Afrovenator

dinosaur · Africa · predator · Jurassic

African apex hunter. Afrovenator was a megalosaur, a type of large theropod dinosaur that hunted other dinosaurs in what is now Niger, in the Sahara region of Africa, during the Jurassic period.

Gondwanan giant. It's the only named megalosaur we know for certain lived on Gondwana, the southern supercontinent. This makes it super important for understanding which dinosaurs lived where.

Ancient timeline. Afrovenator roamed Earth between 150 and 170 million years ago, during the Middle or Late Jurassic period, long before even the Tyrannosaurus existed.

Desert location. Scientists discovered Afrovenator's fossils in the Sahara Desert in Niger. Back then, this hot desert was a lush landscape where dinosaurs thrived.

Mystery cousins. Similar megalosaur fossils have been found in Uruguay and Tanzania from the same era, suggesting these predators roamed across the ancient southern continents.