Cretaceous
Gastonia
Gastonia burgei
The catalogue presents Gastonia as a herbivore member of Polacanthidae that lived during the Cretaceous, between 124.0–115.0 Ma. Its estimated range is 4.0–7.0 m in length and 1.9 t in mass, giving a practical sense of scale. Reference material comes from Cedar Mountain Formation, Utah, USA. Size and mass are approximations and may change with new fossils or methods.
Evidence-backed summary
For Gastonia, the PBDB records the taxonomic attribution as Kirkland (1998).
The PBDB places it in Nodosauridae, and the catalogue record assigns it to the family Polacanthidae.
- PBDB · taxon.parent
- Polacanthidae
In the PBDB record, the reported stratigraphic range runs from the Valanginian to the Albian.
The PBDB catalogues 2 occurrences, with material from the Cedar Mountain Formation (2). Provenance: United States.
The catalogue records the holotype as CEUM 1307g and the type locality as “Cedar Mountain Formation, Utah, USA”.
- CEUM 1307g
- Cedar Mountain Formation, Utah, USA
The catalogue's reference measurements are 4.0–7.0 m in length and 1.9 t in mass — estimates, which vary with specimen and method.
- 4.0-7.0 m
- 1.9 tons
The record gathers 26 bibliographic references registered in the PBDB, listed below.
Where it lived
Fossil occurrences on today’s map and in the tectonic reconstruction.
Positions reconstructed by PBDB/GPlates, not observed; this is not an exact habitat map.
Artistic 3D reconstruction
There is no approved species-specific 3D model yet. Generic anatomy will not be presented as if it were evidence.
Physical Specifications
- Length
- 4.0–7.0 m
- Weight
- 1.9 t
- Period
- Cretaceous
- Time range
- 124.0–115.0 Ma
Discovery Information
- First Discovery
- 1998
- Described by
- James Kirkland
Taxonomic Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Ornithischia
- Family
- Polacanthidae
- Genus
- Gastonia
- Species
- G. burgei
Data status
Taxonomic name matched to PBDB and checked on 2026-08-08.
Taxonomic linkage does not automatically validate size, mass, behaviour or appearance.
- Type specimen
- CEUM 1307g
- Type locality
- Cedar Mountain Formation, Utah, USA