Temporal range: Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian to Tithonian), 155–145 Ma
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A. jimmadseni specimen "Big Al II" (SMA 0005)
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Clade:
Dinosauria
Clade:
Saurischia
Clade:
Theropoda
Family:
†Allosauridae
Subfamily:
†Allosaurinae Marsh, 1878
Genus:
†Allosaurus Marsh, 1877
Type species
†Allosaurus fragilis
Marsh, 1877
Other species[1]
†A. europaeus Mateus et al., 2006
†A. jimmadseni Chure & Loewen, 2020
†A. maximus? Chure, 1995
Synonyms
Genus synonymy
Antrodemus? Leidy, 1870
Apatodon? Marsh, 1878
Creosaurus Marsh, 1878
Epanterias? Cope, 1878
Labrosaurus Marsh, 1879
"Madsenius" Bakker, 1990
"Wyomingraptor" Bakker, 1997
Allosaurus (/ˌæləˈsɔːrəs/)[2][3] is an extinct genus of large carnosaurian theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 145 million years ago during the Late Jurassic period (Kimmeridgian to late Tithonian ages). The name "Allosaurus" means "different lizard", alluding to its unique (at the time of its discovery) concave vertebrae. It is derived from the Greek words ἄλλος (allos) ("different", "strange", or "other") and σαῦρος (sauros) ("lizard" or "reptile"). The first fossil remains that could definitively be ascribed to this genus were described in 1877 by famed paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh. As one of the first well-known theropod dinosaurs, it has long attracted attention outside of paleontological circles.
Allosaurus was a large bipedal predator for its time. Its skull was light, robust, and equipped with dozens of sharp, serrated teeth. It averaged 8.5 metres (28 ft) in length for A. fragilis, with the largest specimens estimated as being 9.7 metres (32 ft) long. Relative to the large and powerful legs, its three-fingered hands were small and the body was balanced by a long, muscular tail. It is classified as an allosaurid, a type of carnosaurian theropod dinosaur.
The genus has a very complicated taxonomy and includes at least three valid species, the best known of which is A. fragilis. The bulk of Allosaurus remains have come from North America's Morrison Formation, with material also known from the Lourinhã Formation in Portugal. It was known for over half of the 20th century as Antrodemus, but a study of the abundant remains from the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry returned the name "Allosaurus" to prominence.
As the most abundant large predator of the Morrison Formation, Allosaurus was at the top of the food chain and probably preyed on contemporaneous large herbivorous dinosaurs, with the possibility of hunting other predators. Potential prey included ornithopods, stegosaurids, and sauropods. Some paleontologists interpret Allosaurus as having had cooperative social behavior and hunting in packs, while others believe individuals may have been aggressive toward each other and that congregations of this genus are the result of lone individuals feeding on the same carcasses.
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Quarry returned the name "Allosaurus" to prominence. As the most abundant large predator of the Morrison Formation, Allosaurus was at the top of the food...
dispute. It has been described as its own genus, or as a species of Allosaurus: Allosaurus maximus. A review of basal tetanurans in 2004 and Carrano et al...
Stegosaurus and an Allosaurus waiting for death in a pit of sticky mud, which forms a predator trap. Meanwhile, a two-year-old female Allosaurus, attracted to...
the material as pertaining to a large species of Allosaurus in 1988 (which he classified as Allosaurus amplexus). Other authors have gone further and considered...
Madsen published on the Cleveland-Lloyd specimens of Allosaurus and concluded that the Allosaurus name should be used because Antrodemus was based on material...
(possibly just Allosaurus) Saurophaganax, one of the largest Jurassic carnivores from North America (possibly a synonym of Allosaurus) Yangchuanosaurus...
is also evidence for Stegosaurus defending itself, in the form of an Allosaurus tail vertebra with a partially healed puncture wound that fits a Stegosaurus...
and the allosaurid Allosaurus. The Garden Park locality in Colorado contained, besides Ceratosaurus, fossils attributed to Allosaurus. The Dry Mesa Quarry...
driving back the Allosaurus. The Nasutoceratops escape and the baby of the family starts crying. Hearing the cry, the Allosaurus starts wrecking the...
milliliters in Giganotosaurus. Allosaurus and Concavenator preserve skin impressions showing their integument. In Allosaurus, skin impressions showing small...
Lourinhã Formation and probably competed with coeval Torvosaurus gurneyi, Allosaurus europaeus, and Ceratosaurus. Its first remains were found at Peralta,...
alongside dinosaurs such as Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Camarasaurus and Allosaurus, the latter of which may have preyed on it. They were large, heavily built...
coexisted with other large theropods such as Allosaurus, Ceratosaurus, and Saurophaganax in the United States, Allosaurus, Ceratosaurus, and Lourinhanosaurus in...
original series but mostly focused on a single individual animal, an Allosaurus specimen nicknamed "Big Al". In response to complaints from scientists...
Edmarka rex). Allosaurids included the common Allosaurus fragilis (including Epanterias amplexus), Allosaurus new species, A. lucasi, and giant Saurophaganax...
at Silas for the way he reacted and steals his marijuana plants. 95 6 "Allosaurus Crush Castle" Julie Anne Robinson Brendan Kelly Bomb the Music Industry...
large carnivores including the semi-aquatic spinosaurids) †Allosauroidea (Allosaurus and close relatives, like Carcharodontosaurus) †Megaraptora (A group of...
neotetanurans closer to Allosaurus than to Neornithes." Kevin Padian (2007) used a node-based definition, defined the Allosauroidea as Allosaurus, Sinraptor, their...
medullary bone in the carnosaur Allosaurus and the ornithopod Tenontosaurus. Because the line of dinosaurs that includes Allosaurus and Tyrannosaurus diverged...
being synonymous with Thecodontosaurus. "Allosaurus robustus": Originally described as a new species of Allosaurus, but may actually represent a megaraptoran...
difficulty in defining the family's membership. A typical 8m specimen of Allosaurus fragilis had a skull of about 0.85m. The premaxilla has five teeth and...
throughout 1877. Marsh described and named dinosaurs such as Stegosaurus, Allosaurus, and Apatosaurus in the December 1877 issue of the American Journal of...
Apatosaurus is commonly found at the same sites as Allosaurus, Camarasaurus, Diplodocus, and Stegosaurus. Allosaurus accounted for 70–75% of theropod specimens...
Woollard, Deidre (2011-05-19). "Allosaurus and Stegosaurus skeletons to be auctioned off for millions". JustLuxe. "Allosaurus, Stegosaurus, Triceratops, prehistoric...
examining the bones of many kinds of dinosaur the researchers noted that Allosaurus had a significantly greater number of bulges on the shafts of its hand...
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