Dilophosaurus

Dilophosaurus (which means "double-crested reptile") was a medium-to-large carnivorous dinosaur that lived about 201-182 million years ago, during the Early Jurassic period. It was one of the earliest large meat-eating dinosaurs known to science.

Dilophosaurus Temporal range: Lower Jurassic
Reconstruction of a Dilophosaurus skull
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Superorder:	Dinosauria
Order:	Saurischia
Suborder:	Theropoda
Superfamily:	Coelophysoidea
Family:	Dilophosauridae
Genus:	Dilophosaurus

another view

Dilophosaurus was around 6 to 7 meters (20 to 23 feet) long and walked on two strong legs. It had long arms with sharp claws, a long tail for balance, and a slender, lightweight body that helped it move quickly. Its most famous feature was the pair of thin, bony crests on top of its head. These crests may have been used to attract mates or to show off to rivals, but they were too fragile for fighting.

Scientists have changed their ideas about Dilophosaurus many times. Since it was discovered in the 1940s, it has been placed into at least nine different groups of theropod dinosaurs. Some researchers think it was related to smaller dinosaurs like Coelophysis, while others believe it belongs in its own special branch of early meat-eaters.

Fossils of Dilophosaurus have mostly been found in what is now the western United States and China Back then, the land was covered with slow-moving rivers and flat floodplains. These wet environments helped preserve the bones. Although not many details are known about its daily life, its sharp teeth and strong jaws show that it ate meat, possibly hunting small dinosaurs or scavenging from larger animals.

Dilophosaurus was shown in the movies, Jurassic Park and Jurassic World Dominion, aswell as the documentary, When Dinosaurs Roamed America.

Dilophosaurus Media

• 

  Map showing localities in northern Arizona where Dilophosaurus fossils have been collected (squares)

• 

  Reconstructed skeleton of Sinosaurus sinensis from China, originally described as a species of Dilophosaurus, Museo delle Scienze

• 

  Size of the largest known (left) and holotype (right) specimens compared to a human

• 

  Life restoration showing hypothetical feathers and crest-shape

• 

  Reconstruction of the skull showing preserved extent of the crests

• 

  Cast of Coelophysis, with which Dilophosaurus has often been grouped, Redpath Museum

• 

  Reconstructed skeleton of the crested Cryolophosaurus, sometimes considered a close relative of Dilophosaurus

• 

  Known skull bones of Dracovenator, which may have been a close relative of Dilophosaurus (onto whose skull the bones are arranged here)

• 

  Cast in Japan of a resting trace from Massachusetts, which was argued to have been made by a theropod like Dilophosaurus and to include feather impressions around the belly (arrow), but this has been questioned

• 

  Reconstructed skull in semi-profile, American Museum of Natural History; note the subnarial gap, large upper teeth, and slender mandible