Concavenator

Concavenator corcovatus · Concavenator was a medium-sized meat-eating carcharodontosaurid dinosaur that lived in Spain during the Early Cretaceous, about 125 million years ago.

It lived about 125.8 to 121.4 million years ago.

Concavenator
Photo: Mario Lanzas, CC BY-SA 4.0
Concavenator
Photo: Jesus Gamarra Gonzalez, CC BY-SA 4.0
Concavenator
Photo: Alexandra.bratkowska, CC BY-SA 4.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassReptilia
OrderSaurischia
FamilyCarcharodontosauridae
GenusConcavenator
SpeciesConcavenator corcovatus

Where its fossils were found

Las Hoyas fossil site near Cuenca, Spain.

Fun facts

  • Concavenator had a tall, sail-like structure on its back, which is unusual among its close relatives.
  • Scientists still don't know what the crest on its back was for; ideas include a visual display or a way to regulate body heat.
  • Its arm bones had bumps that may have been quill knobs, which are otherwise known only in birds and other feathered theropods.
  • Its fossil preserved skin impressions, including bird-like scutes and pads on the feet and broad, rectangular scales under the tail.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).