Afrovenator

an Afrovenator goes for a swim in the Middle Jurassic Sahara

Type Species: Afrovenator abakensis

Classification: Dinosauria – Saurischia – Theropoda – Carnosauria - Megalosauroidea -  Megalosauria - Megalosauridae - Megalosaurinae

Time Period: Middle Jurassic

Location: Africa (Niger) 

Diet: Carnivore 

In the Middle Jurassic, Saharan Africa was a lush mosaic of woodlands, rivers, and lakes – and the African hunter Afrovenator was at the top of the food chain. Our knowledge of the theropod Afrovenator comes from a single specimen discovered in 1990. It was a remarkable find, for the skeleton was almost complete; all that was missing was the lower jaw, some ribs and vertebrae, and the toe bones. It prowled the woods and rivers of the prehistoric Sahara, and its bite marks have been found on the fossilized ribs of a juvenile sauropod Jobaria. Its similarities to the later North American Allosaurus indicate the close proximity of northern Africa and southern North America during the Bathonian. Afrovenator was more lightweight and fleet-footed than its North American cousin, and its arm bones were longer and more slender. Afrovenator grew up to thirty feet in length, and its strong hind legs were built for active hunting. Its tail was stiffened by overlapping bony struts, and its skull was low and lacking ornamentation. Its jaws were filled with long, blade-shaped teeth it used to slice into prey, and its long arms were capped with vicious, curved claws designed for catching and holding prey.