ABSTRACT
Examination of a cast of the newly recognised Arkansas state dinosaur, Arkansaurus fridayii, revealed abnormal pedal features. As casts do not always faithfully reproduce bony alterations and often lack sufficient resolution for delineation of fine features, the original pedal elements were obtained and subjected to non-destructive microscopic examination to characterise the nature and identify the derivation of the macroscopically recognised pathology. A fracture event associated with tendon/ligament avulsion and possible gout was identified. The fractures were greenstick in nature, a variety not previously reported in dinosaurs. A spherical defect, characteristic of gout, was also noted. Trauma produced tendon/ligament avulsion greenstick fractures. Gout has previously been noted in tyrannosaurs, but these findings would be its first recognition in an orinthomimid.
Acknowledgements
The authors appreciated Mary C Suter and Rebecca Hunt-Foster for sharing casts and organising access to actual specimens.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.