Dilophosaurus
Dilophosaurus wetherilli
It is one of the best-known large predatory dinosaurs of the Early Jurassic in North America.
Image: Eduard Solà · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
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Characteristics
- Scientific name
- Dilophosaurus wetherilli
- Period
- Early Jurassic (Sinemurian)
- Lived
- 193–183 Ma (193 million years ago)
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Habitat
- Plains, Forest
- Length (estimate)
- 7 m
- Mass (estimate)
- 400 kg
Description
Dilophosaurus was a slender, bipedal theropod with two thin, crescent-shaped skull crests. The crests were probably used mainly for recognition or display, not powerful combat. Its relatively light skull and long forelimbs suggest an active predator, although its exact prey is unknown. Contrary to a popular film portrayal, there is no evidence for an extendable neck frill or venom-spitting.
Habitat
Riverbanks and seasonally dry plains of the south-western United States.
Fossil sites
Kayenta Formation, Arizona
Kayenta Formation
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Contemporaries in the database
Sources: Dilophosaurus