The scientists estimate that the length of the dinosaur, which is similar to Tyrannosaurus Rex, was 13-12 meters and weighed 8-6 tons. He roamed the steppe that is now Argentina, searching for food that he chewed with his long, jagged teeth
A hard blow to the Tyrannosaurus Rex. Fossils recently discovered in South America have revealed the remains of an animal that may be the largest meat-eating dinosaur yet discovered, scientists reported in the latest issue of the journal. "Nature
The scientists estimate that the length of the dinosaur, which is similar to Tyrannosaurus Rex, was 13-12 meters and weighed 8-6 tons. He roamed the steppe that is now Argentina, searching for food that he chewed with his long, jagged teeth.
According to Dr. Rodolfo Correa, the author of the report and a paleontologist at the Carmen Pines Banken Museum in Argentina, the dinosaur lived about 100 million years ago, about 30 million years before the appearance of Tyrannosaurus Rex, but was a little longer and heavier. It appears to have weighed three tons more, Correa says.
The fossils were discovered by Ruben Karolini, a mechanic whose hobby was searching for dinosaur bones, and the giant dinosaur was named Gigantosaurus Karolini. The scientists discovered only about 70% of the dinosaur's skeleton. According to Kuria, without a complete skeleton one can only estimate what the exact size of the animal was. However, it is clear that the dinosaur ran on its hind legs, and most likely had small arms. It is still unclear what he feeds on in his environment, which resembles an African savannah.
Despite the general resemblance to the Tyrannosaurus rex, the Gigantosaurus was not closely related. The two animals emerged separately in different places, time and space where there were ecological niches for giant carnivores, Kuria says. Tyrannosaurus rex lived in North America, at a time when there was no land bridge from South America that could have allowed Gigantosaurus or its descendants to move north and become the ancestors of Tyrannosaurus rex.
Jack Horner, curator of paleontology at the Museum of the Rockies in Montana, says comparing the size of Gigantosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex is dangerous because dinosaurs grew continuously until the day they died. Therefore, there is no clear answer to the question of how big Tyrannosaurus rex was, and estimates vary between 12 and 15 meters. Fossils of a meat-eating dinosaur from North America hint at the existence of another animal, larger than Tyrannosaurus rex, says Horner, but the results of the examination of these bones have not yet been published. And in any case, more than size will be important in determining whether the Gigantosaurus was a hunter, or was content with scavenging.
New York Times ("Haaretz" 24/10/94) - The Hidan website was part of the IOL portal until 2002.
