Eoabelisaurus
Eoabelisaurus was an early meat-eating dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic. It lived in what is now Argentina, and it was one of the first members of the abelisaurid family, which later included big predators with tiny arms.14
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Fun facts
Eoabelisaurus is the oldest known abelisaurid, living more than 40 million years before any other secure member of its group.1
Its skeleton is almost complete, including most of the skull, backbone, arms, legs, and hips.1
The arms of Eoabelisaurus were already starting to shrink, with the hand bones reduced compared to earlier relatives.1
It had a special elbow bone with a large bump, which may have helped with muscle attachment.1
Eoabelisaurus lived during the Middle Jurassic, about 184 to 174 million years ago.4
The fossils were found in rocks of the Cañadón Asfalto Formation in Argentina.4
Most asked questions about Eoabelisaurus
?How big was Eoabelisaurus?
Eoabelisaurus was about 5.8 to 6.5 metres (19 to 21 feet) long and weighed around 730 to 800 kilograms (1,610 to 1,760 pounds).31
?What did Eoabelisaurus eat?
Eoabelisaurus was a meat-eater, a bipedal carnivore that hunted other animals.31
?Did Eoabelisaurus have small arms?
Yes, its arms were already starting to shrink. The hand bones were reduced and the fingers were short and robust, but the upper arm bone was not yet shortened.31
?When did Eoabelisaurus live?
Eoabelisaurus lived during the Middle Jurassic, about 179 to 178 million years ago.31
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Myth buster
Myth: Some people think all abelisaurids had extremely tiny arms like Carnotaurus.
Truth: Eoabelisaurus shows that early abelisaurids had longer arms with more fingers, and the reduction happened gradually over time.1
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Eoabelisaurus
- Named by
- Pol and Rauhut 20124
- Group
- Meat-eating dinos
- Family / clade
- Abelisauridae4
- Classification
- Theropoda > Ceratosauria > Abelisauridae4
- Age of the rocks
- 184 to 175 million years (Toarcian)4
- Rock formations
- Cañadón Asfalto4
- Countries
- Argentina4
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
- Discovery
- Eoabelisaurus was named by Diego Pol and Oliver Rauhut in 2012. The skeleton was found at the Jugo Loco site in Argentina, and the species name 'mefi' honors the Museo Paleontológico Egidio Feruglio.14
- Still debated
- Scientists debate whether Eoabelisaurus is a true abelisaurid or a slightly more primitive relative, because its skeleton shows a mix of features.1
Where the facts come from
- A Middle Jurassic abelisaurid from Patagonia and the early diversification of theropod dinosaurs (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
- Eoabelisaurus mefi | Western Australian Museum (visit.museum.wa.gov.au)
- Eoabelisaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
- Eoabelisaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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