Spinosaurus
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Among the largest carnivorous dinosaurs of all, Spinosaurus is simultaneously one of the most famous and most mysterious theropods. Its fossils were first discovered in 1912 by Enrst Stromer and brought to the Paläontologisches Museum München in Munich, Germany. This specimen ended up a casualty of World War II; it was still in the museum when Nazi-controlled Munich was bombed. However, since the 90's, remains of the animal have been discovered that rival the original in completeness, giving us more information about it. Spinosaurus's most noteworthy feature is the massive sail on its back, formed from large, thick neural spines (some almost as tall as a person) covered with skin. It was more of a sail than a hump - a useful billboard. The skull of Spinosaurus resembles gharials and gari, and is covered with sensory pits like those of crocodilians. Its teeth are smooth, conical and procumbent. Its nostrils are placed high on the skull and can be held out of the water while the jaws remain submerged. Its legs are now-infamously tiny, and its feet are large, splayed and webbed. Spinosauurs is a primarily aquatic piscivore - Spinosaurus teeth have been found embedded in fish bones. The environment it lived in was a warm coastal swamp. The shortnesss of its legs and robustness of its arms have led some to hypothesize it was a quadruped, although this is very unlikely. Our Spinosaurus, Yi Sun-sin, lives in the Deadly Shores exhibit. She is our largest theropod. |
Scientific name Location Time Length Diet |