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Concept
Appalachiosaurus
Summary
Appalachiosaurus (ˌæpəˌleɪtʃioʊˈsɔːrəs ; "Appalachian lizard") is a genus of basal eutyrannosaurian theropod dinosaur from the middle Campanian age of the Late Cretaceous period of what is now eastern North America. Like all theropods, it was a bipedal predator. Only a juvenile skeleton has been found, representing an animal approximately long and weighing , which indicates an adult would have been significantly larger. It is the most completely known theropod from eastern North America.
Fossils of Appalachiosaurus were found in central Alabama’s Demopolis Chalk Formation. This formation dates to the middle of the Campanian age of the Late Cretaceous, around 77 million years ago. Fossil material assigned to A. montgomeriensis is also known from the Donoho Creek and Tar Heel-Coachman formations of North and South Carolina.
The type specimen was found by Auburn University geologist David King in July of 1982. This dinosaur was named after the region of the eastern United States known as Appalachia, which also gave its name to the ancient island continent where Appalachiosaurus lived. Both are named after the Appalachian Mountains. The generic name also includes the Greek word sauros ("lizard"), the most common suffix used in dinosaur names. There is one known species, A. montgomeriensis, which is named after Montgomery County, Alabama. Both the genus and species were named in 2005 by paleontologists Thomas Carr and Thomas Williamson.
The juvenile specimen of Appalachiosaurus measures approximately long and . So far, it is only known from partial remains, including parts of the skull and lower jaw, as well as several vertebrae, parts of the pelvis, and most of both legs. These remains are housed at the McWane Science Center in Birmingham, Alabama. There are several open sutures between bones of the skull, indicating that the animal was definitely a juvenile. Several of its bones are crushed, but the specimen is still informative and shows many unique characteristics.
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