Deltadromeus
Deltadromeus agilis
Pronounced: Dell - ta - Dro -
me - us
Diet: Carnivore (Meat-Eater)
Name Means: "Delta Runner"
Length: 25 feet (8 m)
Height: 8 feet (2.4 m)
Weight: 3 tons (2,700 kilos)
Time: Late Cretaceous - 73
MYA
Fossil remains for this Dinosaur have been found in
North Africa
Deltadromeus was a fast meat eater, sort of like a very large
raptor. It had big claws, strong legs, and lots of sharp teeth.
Only one partial skeleton has been found so there is still a
great deal about this dinosaur that remains a mystery. To date,
a skull hasn't been found, but scientists have uncovered its
teeth, and because of this they can only guess at what its head
looked like. Much of its body has been found, however, so
scientists know how big it was, and by comparing it to similar
dinosaurs they can make a good guess as to how it looked when it
was alive.
Deltadromeus is known mostly from a single, very fragmented
partial skeleton that was found in 1995 by Paul Sereno from the
University of Chicago. Bones and sharp, one-inch-long, serrated
teeth found in the Baharia Formation have been attributed to
this species, but this has yet to be proven as the skull for the
species has not been found. Skeletal elements indicate that it
was a fast, agile carnivore with many similarities to
coelurosaurs like the older
Ornitholestes from the Jurassic. Dr. Sereno's National
Geographic-sponsored expedition was most successful as he also
discovered the only substantial specimen of
Carcharodontosaurus. |
