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Ekrixinatosaurus

Say it: eh-KRIX-in-ah-TOH-sore-us

Name means: “explosion-born reptile”1

Ate: MeatMeat-eating dinosEarly Cretaceous

Ekrixinatosaurus was a big, meat-eating dinosaur with a boxy head and strong legs. It lived in what is now Argentina during the Early Cretaceous period. Its fossils were found when workers were building a gas pipeline and used dynamite, which is how it got its name!1

Lived

113 to 110 million years ago2

Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Bajo del Añelo, Neuquén Province, Argentina2 1

Food

Meat2 1

Length

6.5 to 8 m1

some scientists think it may have been up to 10 to 11 metres long based on its skull, but others disagree

Weight

800 kg1

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 27 big dogs

as long as 8 dogs nose to tailas long as 44 bananas end to endas heavy as 160 watermelons

How big was Ekrixinatosaurus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Ekrixinatosaurus was an abelisaurid, a family of theropod dinosaurs with short, deep skulls and tiny arms. Its skull was about 83 centimetres long.1

The only known skeleton of Ekrixinatosaurus was found scattered over an area of 15 square metres. It included parts of the skull, backbone, hips, legs and feet.1

Ekrixinatosaurus lived alongside the giant meat-eater Giganotosaurus and the long-necked sauropods Andesaurus and Limaysaurus. Scientists think they may have competed for food.1

The bones of Ekrixinatosaurus were discovered because of a gas pipeline project. Workers used dynamite to blast through the rock, which is why the dinosaur was named 'explosion-born reptile'.1

Ekrixinatosaurus had a boxy skull with a bump above its eye and a jaw that curved upward. Its face bones were covered in small holes and spikes, which may have supported a tough, wrinkly skin.1

Some scientists once thought Ekrixinatosaurus was the largest abelisaurid, bigger than Carnotaurus. But later studies showed that Carnotaurus was actually larger, just with a smaller head.1

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

?How big was Ekrixinatosaurus?

It was about 6.5 to 8 metres long (21 to 26 feet) and weighed around 800 kilograms (1,800 pounds). Some scientists once thought it was bigger, but later studies showed it was smaller than Carnotaurus.1

?What did Ekrixinatosaurus eat?

It was a meat-eater that probably hunted smaller dinosaurs and animals. It lived alongside giant plant-eaters like Andesaurus and may have competed with the huge predator Giganotosaurus for food.1

?When did Ekrixinatosaurus live?

It lived during the Early Cretaceous period, about 111 to 106 million years ago.1

?Where was Ekrixinatosaurus found?

Its fossils were found in Argentina, in a place called the Candeleros Formation. Workers building a gas pipeline blasted the rock with dynamite, which is how the dinosaur got its name 'explosion-born reptile'.1

?Was Ekrixinatosaurus bigger than Carnotaurus?

No, Carnotaurus was actually larger. Some scientists once thought Ekrixinatosaurus was bigger because of its large skull, but comparing the leg bones shows Carnotaurus was the bigger dinosaur.1

?Did Ekrixinatosaurus have feathers?

The sources do not say whether it had feathers. Its face bones had small holes and spikes that may have supported tough, wrinkly skin, but no information about feathers is given.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Ekrixinatosaurus
Named by: Calvo et al. 20042
Group: Meat-eating dinos
Family / clade: Abelisauridae2
Classification: Theropoda > Ceratosauria > Abelisauridae2
Age of the rocks: 113 to 110 million years (Albian)2
Rock formations: Candeleros2
Countries: Argentina2
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database2
Discovery: Ekrixinatosaurus was named in 2004 by paleontologists Jorge Calvo, David Rubilar-Rogers and Karen Moreno. The fossils were found in the Candeleros Formation of Argentina during construction of a gas pipeline.1 2
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how big Ekrixinatosaurus was. Some think it was 6.5 to 8 metres long, while others estimate it could have been 10 to 11 metres based on its skull size.1

Where the facts come from

Ekrixinatosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
Ekrixinatosaurus 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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