Make Way For The Giganotosaurus!
If you are obsessed with the T-Rex, you probably haven't heard about the Giganotosaurus. And if you haven't heard about the Giganotosaurus, you probably have no idea how wonderful it is. Or it was. Belonging to the genus of theropod dinosaurs, the Giganotosaurus ruled the earth about 97-98 million years ago. Here are some facts, and hopefully by the end of it, we can open an Instagram account for the poor reptile, and give some competition to the T-Rex!
Was it bigger than the T-Rex? Well, it may have been bigger than the T-Rex. Based on the holotype specimen, it was estimated to have been 39-43 ft tall! But this is a controversial topic, and researchers are divided on this one.
Heavy-weight champions: You can well imagine what 13.8 metric tons would weight. It's massive! The Giganotosaurus were heavier than most of its counterparts.
United we stand, divided we fall. Err, die! Since the remains of several Giganotosaurus were found together, researchers have concluded that they might have lived and hunted im groups. Now that's quite a tight-knit community of sweet dinosaurs we had back then!
My teeth, my rules: Unlike the pearly white teeth of the T-Rex, the Giganotosaurus' teeth were actually used for slicing meat, rather than crunch and crush. More of an art actually, when compared to the brute force of the T-Rex. That would also explain its eating habits, as these giant reptiles ate large herbivore dinosaurs.
Finders keepers: The Giganotosaurus were quite sly when it came to dinner. They were hunters, but that didn't stop them from scavenging. Talk about thieves and their lack of honour!
Big skulls make big lizards: Their skulls are estimated to have been 5-5.9 ft in length! But a recent report revealed that it might have been smaller. But that's not all. The pattern resembles those that of 21st century lizards, snakes and turtles! Well, they were the royal reptiles, I guess.
What's there in a name? An amateur fossil hunter, Ruben D. Carolini, first discovered the remains of the Giganotosaurus back in 1993. In 1995, when Rodolfo Coria and Leonardo Salgade described the fossilized remains, they named it Giganotosaurus carolinii, which was a tribute to Carolini, and his amazing discovery.
The Giganotosaurus and its discovery is still kind of incomplete. But one thing is for sure, there's a new hero in town. Or rather, a fossilized hero!
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