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Wiehenvenator

Say it: VEE-hen-ven-ay-tor

Name means: “hunter of the Wiehengebirge”1

Ate: MeatMeat-eating dinosMiddle Jurassic

Wiehenvenator was a big, meat-eating dinosaur that lived in what is now Germany. It was a cousin of Torvosaurus and one of the largest predators of its time. Its bones were found in an old quarry, mixed with seashells and fossil wood.1

Lived

165 to 162 million years ago3

Middle Jurassic

Fossils found in

Pott Quarry, Lutternsche Egge, near Minden, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany3 1

Food

Meat3

Length

7 to 10 m2

estimates range from 7-8 m (Mortimer) to 9-10 m (Rauhut et al.)

Weight

750 kg to 1.2 tonnes2

estimate by Mortimer

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 40 big dogs

as long as 2 cars parked in a rowas long as 56 bananas end to endas heavy as 240 watermelons

How big was Wiehenvenator compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Wiehenvenator lived about 165 to 161 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic Period.3

Its fossils were found in a layer that was once a shallow sea. The dinosaur's bones were mixed with oysters and other marine animals.1

The name Wiehenvenator means 'hunter of the Wiehengebirge', after the hills where it was discovered.1

Only one partial skeleton of Wiehenvenator has been found. It includes parts of the skull, teeth, back bones, ribs, and leg bones.1

Wiehenvenator was a megalosaurid, a group of large carnivorous dinosaurs. Its closest relative was Torvosaurus.1

The dinosaur was discovered in 1998 by geologist Friedrich Albat, who was looking for fossils for a museum.1

Wiehenvenator is the first diagnostic dinosaur fossil from the Middle Jurassic of Germany.1

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

?How big was Wiehenvenator?

About 9 to 10 metres long, with a skull about 1 to 1.05 metres long. It was one of the largest known European theropods.2 1

?What did Wiehenvenator eat?

Wiehenvenator was a meat-eater. It likely hunted other dinosaurs and animals that lived in its environment.2 1

?When did Wiehenvenator live?

It lived about 166 to 164 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic Period (Callovian stage).2 3

?Where was Wiehenvenator found?

Its fossils were discovered in an abandoned quarry in the Wiehen Hills near Minden, Germany, in a layer that was once a shallow sea.2 1

?Was Wiehenvenator bigger than T. rex?

No, Wiehenvenator was smaller than T. rex. T. rex could reach over 12 metres long, while Wiehenvenator was about 9 to 10 metres.2

?Is Wiehenvenator a dinosaur?

Yes, Wiehenvenator is a dinosaur. It was a megalosaurid theropod, a group of large meat-eating dinosaurs.2 1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Wiehenvenator
Named by: Rauhut et al. 20163
Group: Meat-eating dinos
Family / clade: Megalosauridae3
Classification: Theropoda3
Age of the rocks: 165 to 162 million years (Callovian)3
Rock formations: Ornatenton3
Countries: Germany3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: In 1998, geologist Friedrich Albat found the first bones of Wiehenvenator in an abandoned quarry in Germany. Scientists named it Wiehenvenator albati in 2016, honoring Albat and the Wiehengebirge hills.1
Still debated: Because only a few bones have been found, scientists are not sure exactly how big Wiehenvenator was or what it looked like in full.1

Where the facts come from

German Jurassic megalosaurid (palaeo-electronica.org)
Wiehenvenator (en.wikipedia.org)
Wiehenvenator 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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