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03-06-2014, 11:32 AM
A new dinosaur species may be the largest land predator ever discovered in Europe.
The beast, found in Portugal, is estimated to have been up to 10 metres long and weighing in at between four and five tons.
It would have been one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs from the Jurassic era, according to findings published in the journal PLOS ONE.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/05/article-2573834-1C0C582E00000578-989_634x476.jpg
Fearsome: The enormous creature, named Torvosaurus gurney, was discovered in Lisbon, Portugal. It was more than 30ft (10m) long and had razor-sharp 4in(10cm)-long teeth
WHAT WERE TORAVSAURS?
Torvosaurs were a type of carnivorous dinosaur that lived between 153 and 148 million years ago during the later part of the Jurassic Period.
They are only known to have lived in what is now Colorado and Portugal.
Torvosaurus tanneri was a large, heavily built, bipedal predator that could grow to a length of about 32ft (10m).
It was among the largest carnivores of its time - with some specimens measuring up to 36ft (11m) long.
The species is thought to have had short but very powerful arms.
The fossil of the upper jaw of T. tanneri has 11 or more teeth, while T. gurneyi has fewer than 11.
The mouth bones also have a different shape and structure. The new dinosaur is the second species of Torvosaurus to be named.
PhD student Hendrickx said: 'This is not the largest predatory dinosaur we know.
'Tyrannosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, and Giganotosaurus from the Cretaceous were bigger animals.
'With a skull of 115 centimetres, Torvosaurus gurneyi was however one of the largest terrestrial carnivores at this epoch, and an active predator that hunted other large dinosaurs, as evidenced by blade shape teeth up to 10cms.'
He said fossil evidence of closely-related dinosaurs suggest that the predator may have already been covered with proto-feathers.
Recently described dinosaur embryos from Portugal are also ascribed to the new species of Torvosaurus.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2573834/The-fearsome-beast-roam-Europe-New-species-33ft-long-dinosaur-largest-carnivorous-predator.html#ixzz2vBXpCWF0
The beast, found in Portugal, is estimated to have been up to 10 metres long and weighing in at between four and five tons.
It would have been one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs from the Jurassic era, according to findings published in the journal PLOS ONE.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2014/03/05/article-2573834-1C0C582E00000578-989_634x476.jpg
Fearsome: The enormous creature, named Torvosaurus gurney, was discovered in Lisbon, Portugal. It was more than 30ft (10m) long and had razor-sharp 4in(10cm)-long teeth
WHAT WERE TORAVSAURS?
Torvosaurs were a type of carnivorous dinosaur that lived between 153 and 148 million years ago during the later part of the Jurassic Period.
They are only known to have lived in what is now Colorado and Portugal.
Torvosaurus tanneri was a large, heavily built, bipedal predator that could grow to a length of about 32ft (10m).
It was among the largest carnivores of its time - with some specimens measuring up to 36ft (11m) long.
The species is thought to have had short but very powerful arms.
The fossil of the upper jaw of T. tanneri has 11 or more teeth, while T. gurneyi has fewer than 11.
The mouth bones also have a different shape and structure. The new dinosaur is the second species of Torvosaurus to be named.
PhD student Hendrickx said: 'This is not the largest predatory dinosaur we know.
'Tyrannosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, and Giganotosaurus from the Cretaceous were bigger animals.
'With a skull of 115 centimetres, Torvosaurus gurneyi was however one of the largest terrestrial carnivores at this epoch, and an active predator that hunted other large dinosaurs, as evidenced by blade shape teeth up to 10cms.'
He said fossil evidence of closely-related dinosaurs suggest that the predator may have already been covered with proto-feathers.
Recently described dinosaur embryos from Portugal are also ascribed to the new species of Torvosaurus.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2573834/The-fearsome-beast-roam-Europe-New-species-33ft-long-dinosaur-largest-carnivorous-predator.html#ixzz2vBXpCWF0