Duriavenator

Say it: DOOR-ee-uh-VAY-nay-tor

Name means: “Dorset hunter”1

Ate: MeatOther meat-eatersMiddle Jurassic

Duriavenator was a meat-eating dinosaur that lived in what is now England about 168 million years ago. It was a medium-sized predator with a big head and strong arms. Scientists think it hunted other dinosaurs like a sneaky ambush predator.1

Lived

169 to 168 million years ago2

Middle Jurassic

Fossils found in

Greenhill, Sherborne, Dorset, England2 1

Food

Meat1

Length

5 to 7 m1

Weight

1 tonnes1

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

as long as 4 bicycles in a rowas long as 39 bananas end to endas heavy as 33 big dogsas heavy as 200 watermelons

How big was Duriavenator compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Duriavenator was first thought to be a Megalosaurus, but scientists later gave it its own name in 2008.1

The only known fossils of Duriavenator are parts of its skull and jaws, found in a quarry in 1882.1

Duriavenator had a deep groove on its upper jaw bone with many air-filled holes, which is a unique feature.1

It had about 4 teeth in the front of its upper jaw, 14 to 16 in the back of the upper jaw, and 14 to 15 in the lower jaw.1

The front teeth of Duriavenator were longer and pointed forward, which may have helped it grab food.1

Duriavenator lived during the Middle Jurassic period, about 168 million years ago, making it one of the oldest known tetanuran theropods.1

AI-made picture of Duriavenator — An AI-made picture of how Duriavenator 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 Duriavenator

?How big was Duriavenator?

It was about 5 to 7 metres long (16 to 23 feet) and weighed around 1 tonne (2,200 pounds). That is about as heavy as a small car.1

?What did Duriavenator eat?

It was a meat-eater that probably hunted other dinosaurs, like sauropods and stegosaurs. Scientists think it was an ambush predator.1

?When did Duriavenator live?

It lived about 168 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic period. That is long before T. rex appeared.1

?Where was Duriavenator found?

Its only known fossils were discovered in a quarry near Sherborne in Dorset, England, in 1882. They are now at the Natural History Museum in London.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Duriavenator
Named by: Benson 20082
Group: Other meat-eaters
Family / clade: Megalosauridae2
Classification: Theropoda2
Age of the rocks: 169 to 168 million years (Bajocian)2
Rock formations: Upper Inferior Oolite2
Countries: United Kingdom2
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database2
Discovery: In 1882, Edward Cleminshaw found skull bones near Sherborne, England. The fossils were first called Megalosaurus, but in 2008 Roger Benson renamed them Duriavenator.1
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how big Duriavenator was because only a few skull bones have been found. The size estimates are based on related dinosaurs.1

Where the facts come from

Duriavenator (en.wikipedia.org)
Duriavenator in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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