Metriacanthosaurus
Metriacanthosaurus was a meat-eating dinosaur that lived in England about 160 million years ago. It had moderately tall spines on its backbone, not as high as some other dinosaurs. Scientists only know it from a few bones, so they guess what it looked like based on its relatives.21
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Fun facts
Metriacanthosaurus is the only metriacanthosaurid dinosaur named from outside of Asia. All its close relatives are from Asia.2
Its fossils were found in marine sediments. During the Late Jurassic, Europe was a group of islands surrounded by shallow seas.2
The name Metriacanthosaurus means 'moderately-spined lizard' because its backbone spines are taller than Allosaurus but shorter than Acrocanthosaurus.2
The only known specimen includes an incomplete hip, a leg bone, and part of a backbone. No skull has been found.21
Metriacanthosaurus was originally named as a species of Megalosaurus in 1923. It was given its own genus in 1964 by Alick Walker.2
It lived about 160 million years ago during the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic. Other dinosaurs from the same time include the sauropod Cetiosauriscus and the stegosaur Lexovisaurus.2
Most asked questions about Metriacanthosaurus
?When did Metriacanthosaurus live?
It lived during the Late Jurassic period, about 160 to 154 million years ago.12
?Why is it called Metriacanthosaurus?
The name means 'moderately-spined lizard' because its backbone spines are taller than Allosaurus but shorter than Acrocanthosaurus.21
?Did Metriacanthosaurus have a skull?
No skull has been found. The only known fossils are an incomplete hip, a leg bone, and part of a backbone.21
?Was Metriacanthosaurus related to Allosaurus?
It was a theropod like Allosaurus, but it belongs to a different family called Metriacanthosauridae.21
?How fast could Metriacanthosaurus run?
Scientists don't know for sure, but as a medium-sized theropod it was probably a fast runner.2
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For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Metriacanthosaurus
- Named by
- Walker 19644
- Group
- Meat-eating dinos
- Family / clade
- Metriacanthosauridae4
- Classification
- Theropoda > Allosauroidea4
- Age of the rocks
- 162 to 159 million years (Oxfordian)4
- Rock formations
- Oxford Clay4
- Countries
- United Kingdom4
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
- Discovery
- The fossils were discovered in 1871 by W. Parker at Jordan's Cliff, near Weymouth, England. Geologist John Phillips briefly mentioned them that same year. In 1923, Friedrich von Huene named it Megalosaurus parkeri, and in 1964 Alick Walker gave it the new genus Metriacanthosaurus.2
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure exactly what Metriacanthosaurus looked like because only a partial skeleton has been found. Reconstructions are guesswork based on similar dinosaurs.1
Where the facts come from
- Metriacanthosaurus | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
- Metriacanthosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
- Metriacanthosaurus Fact Sheet (enchantedlearning.com)
- Metriacanthosaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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