Abelisaurus

Name Origin

Abel's Lizard

Family

Abelisauridae

Classification

Diapsida, Saurischia, Theropoda

Habitat (Discovery Location)

Argentina

Period

Approximately 75 to 70 million years ago (Late Cretaceous)

Length

Approximately 6.5 to 9 meters

Weight

Approximately 1.4 to 3 tons

Diet

Carnivore (Meat-eater)

Description

Abelisaurus was a large carnivorous dinosaur that lived on the continent of South America during the Late Cretaceous period, around 80 million years ago.
At the time, South America was separated from North America, so unique carnivorous dinosaurs, different from Tyrannosaurus, flourished there.

Unique carnivorous dinosaurs, different from Tyrannosaurus, flourished.

Its name, meaning “Abel’s lizard,” was given in honor of the museum director, Roberto Abel, who discovered the fossil in 1983.

A Speculated Appearance Based on Fragmentary Fossils

Currently, the only Abelisaurus fossil that has been discovered is a skull from Argentina, so its full appearance is shrouded in mystery.

The discovered skull was very large, measuring 1 meter in length and 85 cm in height.
Its mouth was filled with countless small, serrated teeth, and its snout was rounded.
The area above its nose and eyes was raised, and it is believed to have had keratinous horns there in life.

The skull’s shape was short and robust like a Tyrannosaurus‘s, and it had very powerful jaw muscles.
It is said that it could close its jaws so quickly that once it bit down on its prey, there was no chance for a counterattack.

It had very powerful jaw muscles.

Many researchers believe that Tyrannosaurus and Abelisaurus were different evolutionary lineages that diverged over time.

Based on the skull, its body length is estimated to have been between 6.5 and 9 meters, and its weight around 3 tons.

Relatives of the Abelisauridae Family

Fossils of dinosaurs belonging to the Abelisauridae family have been found in South America as well as Africa and Asia, and include species such as Carnotaurus and Majungasaurus.
The complete appearance of Abelisaurus is inferred from these closely related fossils.

However, there is still debate among experts as to whether the skull found in Argentina truly belongs to a fully grown Abelisaurus.
Future discoveries will be the key to revealing the full picture of this mysterious dinosaur.

In 1985, Abelisaurus was given the scientific name Abelisaurus comahuensis by Argentine paleontologist José Bonaparte and his colleagues.