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Afrovenator

Say it: AF-roh-ven-AY-tor

Name means: “African hunter”1

Ate: MeatMeat-eating dinosMiddle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Afrovenator was a meat-eating dinosaur that hunted in what is now the Sahara Desert of Niger, Africa. It was a fast and slender predator, with long legs and blade-shaped teeth for slicing into its prey.1 2

Lived

171 to 143 million years ago4

Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Niger, West Africa (Tiourarén Formation and Irhazer II Formation)1 3

Food

Meat3 2

Length

6.8 to 8 m1

estimates vary

Weight

453 kg to 1 tonnes1

Height

1.9 to 2.4 m1 2

at the hips

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How tall was it?

at the hips

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 33 big dogs

as long as 8 dogs nose to tailas long as 44 bananas end to endas heavy as 200 watermelonsabout as tall as a door

How big was Afrovenator compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Afrovenator is the most complete predatory dinosaur from the Cretaceous period ever found in Africa.2

Its skeleton was discovered in 1993 by a team led by famous paleontologist Paul Sereno.1 2

Afrovenator had a flexible, S-shaped neck and strong neck muscles, which helped it move its head side to side and up and down while hunting.1

Its lower leg bones were long compared to its thigh bone, meaning it was probably a fast runner.1

The name Afrovenator comes from Latin words meaning 'African hunter'.1

Afrovenator lived during the Middle to Late Jurassic Period, about 167 to 157 million years ago.1

AI-made picture of Afrovenator — An AI-made picture of how Afrovenator might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Afrovenator

?How big was Afrovenator?

Afrovenator was about 8 metres (26 feet) long from snout to tail tip, stood about 1.9 metres (6.2 feet) tall at the hips, and weighed around 790 kg (1,740 lb). Different scientists give slightly different estimates, but it was a medium-sized, slender predator.1

?What did Afrovenator eat?

Afrovenator was a meat-eater. It had long, blade-shaped teeth for slicing into prey, and it probably hunted other dinosaurs and animals in what is now the Sahara Desert.1 2

?When did Afrovenator live?

Afrovenator lived during the Middle to Late Jurassic Period, about 167 to 157 million years ago. Some older sources said it lived in the Early Cretaceous, but scientists now think it is Jurassic in age.1

?Where was Afrovenator found?

Afrovenator was discovered in 1993 in the Tiourarén Formation of Niger, in West Africa. Its skeleton is the most complete predatory dinosaur from the Jurassic period ever found in Africa.1 2

?Was Afrovenator a fast runner?

Yes, Afrovenator was probably a fast runner. It had long lower leg bones compared to its thigh bone, and its bones were slender and light, which helped it run quickly after prey.1 2

?Is Afrovenator related to Allosaurus?

Afrovenator was a cousin to Allosaurus, but not a close relative. It belonged to a group called megalosaurids, while Allosaurus was in a different family. Afrovenator had longer, more slender bones and was lighter and faster than Allosaurus.1 2

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Afrovenator
Named by: Sereno et al. 19944
Group: Meat-eating dinos
Family / clade: Megalosauridae4
Classification: Theropoda4
Age of the rocks: 171 to 143 million years (Bajocian / Tithonian)4
Rock formations: Tiourarén, Irhazer II4
Countries: Niger4
Fossil records: 3 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: Afrovenator was named in 1994 by Paul Sereno and his team, based on a nearly complete skeleton found in Niger, West Africa. The species name, abakensis, comes from the Tuareg name for the region where it was found.1
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how big Afrovenator was, because different estimates give different lengths and weights.1

Where the facts come from

Afrovenator (en.wikipedia.org)
Discoveries | Paul Sereno - Paleontologist | The University of Chicago (paulsereno.uchicago.edu)
PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
Afrovenator in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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