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Albertosaurus

Albertosaurus

Albertosaurus sacrophagus

  • Pronounced:   al - Bert - o - Saw - rus
  • Diet:   Carnivore (Meat-Eater)
  • Name Means:   "Alberta Lizard"
  • Length:   28 feet (8.5 m)
  • Height:   10 feet (3 m)
  • Weight:   2.5 tons (2300 kilos)
  • Time:   Late Cretaceous - 70 MYA
Location : Northern North America

Albertosaurus was the grandfather of T. rex. This dinosaur looked like a smaller, less muscular version of Tyrannosaurus. As an early member of the tyrannosaur family, Albertosaurus was the final design for the large meat-eating dinosaurs. It only had two fingers on its hands, which were at the end of short arms. It had long legs and it a wide skull with lots of power in its bite.

Albertosaurus is considered by many scientists to be the best known of the tyrannosaurs. A number of nearly complete skeletons, two adults and a juvenile, have been found. There are two recognized species and several in dispute. It is sometimes referenced as a transitory animal, a creature on its way to evolving into T. rex, but it appears that it was extremely successful and longer lived than the Tyrannosaurus genus.