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Albertosaurus
Sign in to saveAlbertosaurus (; meaning "Alberta lizard") is a genus of large tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived in northwestern North America during the early to middle Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous period, about 71 million years ago. The type species, A. sarcophagus, was apparently restricted in range to the modern-day Canadian province of Alberta, after which the genus is named, although an indeterminate species ("cf. Albertosaurus sp.") has been discovered in the Corral de Enmedio and Packard Formations of Mexico. Scientists disagree on the content of the genus and some recognize
Albertosaurus was a large meat-eating dinosaur related to T. rex that roamed northwestern North America about 71 million years ago, with fossils primarily found in Alberta, Canada. It matters to paleontologists because it helps us understand the diversity and distribution of large predatory dinosaurs during the Late Cretaceous period before dinosaurs went extinct.
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Wikidata facts
- Mass
- 2.5
- Image
- Albertosaurus Clean.png
- Height
- 2.7
- Length
- 9.0
Show 5 more facts
- end time
- 68000000-0
- taxon name
- Albertosaurus
- Commons category
- Albertosaurus
- Commons gallery
- Albertosaurus
- start time
- 71000000-0
Sources (2)
via Wikidata · CC0
~31 min read
Article
19 sectionsContents
- History of discovery
- Naming
- Early discoveries
- Dry Island bone bed
- Other discoveries
- ''Gorgosaurus libratus''
- Other species
- Description
- Skull and teeth
- Classification and systematics
- Palaeobiology
- Growth pattern
- Life history
- Social behaviour
- Palaeopathology
- Palaeoecology
- See also
- References
- External links
Albertosaurus (; meaning "Alberta lizard") is a genus of large tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived in northwestern North America during the early to middle Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous period, about 71 million years ago. The type species, A. sarcophagus, was apparently restricted in range to the modern-day Canadian province of Alberta, after which the genus is named, although an indeterminate species ("cf. Albertosaurus sp.") has been discovered in the Corral de Enmedio and Packard Formations of Mexico. Scientists disagree on the content of the genus and some recognize Gorgosaurus libratus as a second species.
As a tyrannosaurid, Albertosaurus was a bipedal predator with short arms, two-fingered hands, and a massive head with dozens of large, sharp teeth, a strong sense of smell, powerful binocular vision, and a bone crushing bite force. It may have even been the apex predator in its local ecosystem. While Albertosaurus was certainly large for a theropod, it was still much smaller than its larger and more famous relative Tyrannosaurus rex, growing up to in length and weighing .