Megalosauroidea

Megalosauroidea is a group of carnivorous theropod dinosaurs. They lived from the Middle Jurassic to the Late Cretaceous period. Members of the group include Spinosaurus, Megalosaurus, and Torvosaurus.

Megalosauroids Temporal range: Middle Jurassic – Late Cretaceous, Possible Late Maastrichtian record
File:Torvosaurus Museum of Ancient Life 2.jpg
Torvosaurus skeletal mount, Museum of Ancient Life
File:Spinosaurus swimming.jpg
Spinosaurus skeletal mount, National Geographic Museum
Scientific classification
Unrecognized taxon (fix):	Megalosauroidea
Type species
†Megalosaurus bucklandii Mantell, 1827
Subgroups
?†Yunyangosaurus †Piatnitzkysauridae †Megalosauria †Megalosauridae †Spinosauridae
Synonyms
Spinosauroidea Stromer, 1915 Torvosauroidea Nopcsa, 1915 Spinosauria Olshevsky, 1991

Classification

The definition of the clade Megalosauroidea includes Megalosaurus bucklandii and all taxa that share a more recent common ancestor with it than they do with Allosaurus fragilis or the House Sparrow.

Below is a cladogram showing the relationships between different members of Megalosauroidea. It is based on a study by Carrano, Benson & Sampson (2012).

Tetanurae

Cryolophosaurus 50 px "Dilophosaurus" sinensis 50 px Chuandongocoelurus Monolophosaurus 50 px Orionides Avetheropoda Allosauroidea File:Allosaurus AMNH White Background.jpg Coelurosauria Lourinhanosaurus Other coelurosaurians 50 px Megalosauroidea Piatnitzkysauridae Marshosaurus Condorraptor Piatnitzkysaurus Megalosauria Streptospondylus Spinosauridae Baryonyx Suchomimus 50 px Angaturama Irritator 50 px Spinosaurus 50 px Megalosauridae Eustreptospondylinae Eustreptospondylus Megalosaurinae Duriavenator Megalosaurus Torvosaurus 50 px Afrovenatorinae Afrovenator 50 px Dubreuillosaurus Magnosaurus Leshansaurus Piveteausaurus

Megalosauroidea Media

• Monolophosaurus jiangi jmallon (flipped).jpg

  Monolophosaurus jiangi jmallon (flipped)

• Suchomimus tenerensis by PaleoGeek

• Irritator challengeri by PaleoGeek

• Spinosaurus aegyptiacus by PaleoGeek

• Afrovenator Abakensis by PaleoGeek.jpg

  Afrovenator Abakensis by PaleoGeek

• Torvosaurus tanner DBi.jpg

  The megalosaurid dinosaur Torvosaurus tanneri was a huge theropod from the late Jurassic of North America (and possibly Portugal, Europe).

• Cryolophosaurus reconstruction (flipped).jpg

  Cryolophosaurus reconstruction (flipped)

• Dilophosaurus wetherilli (flipped).PNG

  Dilophosaurus wetherilli (flipped)

• Monolophosaurus jiangi jmallon (flipped).jpg

  Monolophosaurus jiangi jmallon (flipped)

• Allosaurus fragilis reconstruction by Fred Wierum. Proportions align with Hartman's reconstruction of UUVP 6000.