Giganotosaurus carolinii

Giganotosaurus carolinii was a giant carcharodontosaurid from the Candeleros Formation of Patagonia. Its long, low skull, laterally compressed serrated teeth and lightly built facial bones differ markedly from the deeper, more powerfully braced skull of Tyrannosaurus. The holotype preserves much of the skeleton and establishes an animal around twelve metres long. A second isolated lower-jaw fragment may represent a larger individual, but scaling a whole body from that one bone introduces considerable uncertainty.

Its fossils occur between approximately 99.6 and 95 million years ago. Values shown here are approximate and reflect the current curated seed dataset.

Holotype MUCPv-Ch1 includes much of the skull, vertebral column, shoulder and pelvic girdles, both femora and most of the left lower leg. The skull was elongated and relatively low, with large openings and blade-like teeth adapted to slicing flesh. The neck and back vertebrae were robust, the hind limbs massive, and the three-fingered forelimbs proportionally small but not reduced to the two-fingered condition of tyrannosaurids. The skull roof and nasal bones carried low rugose surfaces rather than tall horns or crests.

• Elongated, low skull with large openings
• Laterally compressed, serrated slicing teeth
• Robust neck, back and hind-limb skeleton
• Three-fingered forelimbs smaller than the hind limbs
• Low rugose ornamentation on the skull roof

Amateur fossil hunter Ruben Dario Carolini found the first bone in 1993 while exploring badlands near Villa El Chocon in Neuquen Province. A team from the National University of Comahue excavated the disarticulated skeleton. Rodolfo Coria and Leonardo Salgado named Giganotosaurus carolinii in Nature in 1995. The genus combines Greek words for giant, southern and lizard, while the species honours Carolini. The holotype is preserved at the Ernesto Bachmann Paleontological Museum close to the discovery region.

Discovery credit: Ruben Dario Carolini.

Naming authors: Rodolfo A. Coria, Leonardo Salgado.

The Candeleros Formation records river channels, floodplains and wind-worked sediments in a warm, seasonally dry Patagonian landscape. Large sauropods, smaller herbivores, crocodile-line reptiles and other theropods occupied the broader formation. Those occurrences span different sites and times, so they do not by themselves identify particular prey or direct encounters for the Giganotosaurus holotype.

Its large body, slicing teeth and reinforced neck identify Giganotosaurus as a macropredator capable of attacking substantial vertebrate prey or scavenging large carcasses. Exactly how it killed, how fast it ran and whether it hunted sauropods remain unresolved. The multi-individual bonebed known for the related Mapusaurus is not evidence that Giganotosaurus itself hunted in coordinated packs.

• Its name means giant southern lizard, not giant lizard from the south wind.
• It lived roughly thirty million years before Tyrannosaurus rex.
• The holotype was found by Ruben Carolini near the town whose museum now houses it.
• The second known specimen is only part of a lower jaw and may represent a larger animal.

A research repository is not necessarily a public exhibit. Loan and display status can change, so check with the institution before visiting.

1. 01
   A new giant carnivorous dinosaur from the Cretaceous of Patagonia

   Rodolfo A. Coria, Leonardo Salgado · Nature 377 · 1995

   Open source
2. 02
   Giganotosaurus: Dino Directory

   Natural History Museum, London

   Open source