Theropod dinosaur genus from mid-Cretaceous Period
Deltadromeus
Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian), 95 Ma
PreꞒ
Ꞓ
O
S
D
C
P
T
J
K
Pg
N
↓
Mounted skeleton cast with reconstructed skull
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Clade:
Dinosauria
Clade:
Saurischia
Clade:
Theropoda
Clade:
†Noasauridae (?)
Genus:
†Deltadromeus Sereno et al., 1996
Species:
†D. agilis
Binomial name
†Deltadromeus agilis
Sereno et al., 1996
Synonyms
Bahariasaurus? Stromer, 1934
Deltadromeus (meaning "delta runner") is a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Aoufous Formation of Morocco.[1]
It had long, unusually slender hind limbs for its size, suggesting that it was a swift runner.[1] The skull is not known. One fossil specimen of a single species (D. agilis, or "agile delta runner") has been described, found in the Kem Kem Beds, which date to the mid-Cretaceous Period (mid-Cenomanian age), about 95 million years ago. It may be a junior synonym of the contemporary Bahariasaurus.[2] The classification of Deltadromeus has been in flux since its original description. In 2016, a South American theropod known as Gualicho shinyae was found to possess many similarities with Deltadromeus. Depending on the phylogenetic position of Gualicho, Deltadromeus may have been a neovenatorid carnosaur, a tyrannosauroid, or a basal coelurosaur if its close relation to Gualicho is legitimate.[3][4][5] Other studies have considered it a ceratosaurian, more specifically a member of the family Noasauridae.[6][7][8][9]
^ abCite error: The named reference serenoetal1996 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Holtz, Thomas R. Jr. (2008) Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages Supplementary Information
^Cite error: The named reference Apesteguía2016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference Aoniraptor was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Porfiri, Juan D; Juárez Valieri, Rubén D; Santos, Domenica DD; Lamanna, Matthew C (2018). "A new megaraptoran theropod dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous Bajo de la Carpa Formation of northwestern Patagonia". Cretaceous Research. 89: 302–319. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2018.03.014. S2CID 134117648.
^Cite error: The named reference wilsonetal2003 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference elaphrosaurus_2016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference onto was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Ibrahim, Nizar; Sereno, Paul C.; Varricchio, David J.; Martill, David M.; Dutheil, Didier B.; Unwin, David M.; Baidder, Lahssen; Larsson, Hans C. E.; Zouhri, Samir; Kaoukaya, Abdelhadi (2020-04-21). "Geology and paleontology of the Upper Cretaceous Kem Kem Group of eastern Morocco". ZooKeys (928): 1–216. doi:10.3897/zookeys.928.47517. ISSN 1313-2970. PMC 7188693. PMID 32362741.
found to possess many similarities with Deltadromeus. Depending on the phylogenetic position of Gualicho, Deltadromeus may have been a neovenatorid carnosaur...
feet (1.5 meters) long, to much larger genera such as Elaphrosaurus and Deltadromeus, which were more than 20 feet (6.1 meters) in length. A collection of...
the superfamily Tyrannosauroidea. The smaller contemporaneous theropod Deltadromeus could potentially be synonymous with Bahariasaurus. If this assumption...
African and South American genera, such as Aoniraptor, Bahariasaurus, Deltadromeus, and Gualicho. The placement of these theropods is controversial, with...
suggested that Bahariasaurus and Deltadromeus were also basal megaraptorans, and that Aoniraptor, Bahariasaurus, and Deltadromeus could have formed a distinct...
Noasaurinae. Into their new Noasauridae, they have uniquely included Deltadromeus and Limusaurus. It is difficult to discern possible synapomorphies of...
It includes Spinosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, Rugops, Bahariasaurus, Deltadromeus, Paralititan, Aegyptosaurus, and Ouranosaurus. The genus must appear...
theropods with uncertain affinities such as Gualicho, Chilantaisaurus and Deltadromeus are also sometimes included. Phylogenetic studies conducted by Benson...
Carcharodontosaurus as well as the spinosaurid Spinosaurus, the possible ceratosaur Deltadromeus, the large, dubious theropod Bahariasaurus, and an unnamed large abelisaurid...
and Egypt, as has the huge Carcharodontosaurus. Two other theropods, Deltadromeus and Bahariasaurus, have also been found in Morocco and Egypt, respectively...
concluded from Moroccan fossils that Spinosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, and Deltadromeus "ranged across north Africa during the late Cretaceous (Cenomanian)."...
Global Information
