Carnosaurs
Giganotosaurus.
LENGTH-43 FEET
HEIGHT-14 FEET
WEIGHT-7 TONS
DATE DISCOVERED-1993
DISCOVERED BY-RUBEN DARIO CAROLINI
HABITAT-LAND, ECOSYSTEM UNKNOWN BUT PROBABLY FORESTS AND OPEN PLAINS
DIET-MEAT
DISCOVERED IN-1993
Giganotosaurus is one of the largest creatures to ever roam across the Earth's surface, outclassing Tyrannosaurus Rex in size and likely in weight. Giganotosaurus is actually currently 3rd in size for carnivorous dinosaurs, 2nd being Carcharodontosaurus, and 1st being Spinosaurus Aegyptiacus.
It is dated by Evolutionary means to 97 million years ago during the late "Cretaceous Period". It's fossil remains have only been found in South America, lending to it's name Giganotosaurus which breaks down in Ancient Greek thusly; Gigas means "Giant", Notos means "South Wind", and Sauros means Lizard. This effectively makes it's Latin name "Giant South Wind Lizard".
The first fossil specimen was discovered in 1993 in Patagonia and described in 1995 and for a short time was touted as the largest carnivorous dinosaur of all time, only to be quickly replaced, twice. But even at 3rd place Giganotosaurus' size is certainly nothing to scoff at. At an estimated 43 feet long, a head about 14 foot off the ground, and an estimated weight of between 6.5 and 13.3 tons, Giganotosaurus is certainly a gargantuan and respect commanding reptile whom you would never want to cross.
As with many Theropods, it is believed by many that Giganotosaurus was a carnivore and a predator, this is based largely on the shape and structure of it's teeth, as is often the basis, however this alone cannot, in reality, tell us the diet and lifestyle of an animal. Although it is likely that after the Fall and the entrance of Sin into the world many animals with sharp teeth became predatory.
An interesting note is that Giganotosaurus may have had the overall largest skull of any Carnivorous dinosaur yet known. It had a large, bulky skull typical of Carnosaurs that was actually quite lightweight due to large portions of the skull being unoccupied by bone. The largest Giganotosaurus skull known of measures 6.4 feet long, and though Spinosaurus may have had a longer skull at times, Giganotosaurus had a taller and wider skull that occupied more cubic space.
Another interesting fact is that Giganotosaurus' teeth were more like common Monitor lizard teeth than it's relative Tyrannosaurus in that Giganotosaurus' teeth were not as round and robust but narrower and had a knife-like edge which would have made them very adept at slicing instead of crushing. This would have been helpful for an active predator post Fall, since slicing would enable the predator to inflict a serious flesh wound more easily even if it just "knicked" the prey animal , whereas robust teeth like those of Tyrannosaurus would be better at crushing bone, something helpful to an animal that scavenged bodies like a Hyena.
It is clear how Giganotosaurus could have inspired Dragon legends among local people after the Flood, such a imposing animal would indeed strike fear into people if they encountered them while out hunting or exploring or if one came into a human settlement and they would probably have a hard time slaying the beast, but the fact that no one has seen one in hundreds of years seems to attest to the winner of the war in the long run. Sadly we may have to wait until the New Earth after God's return to see a Giganotosaurus in person, though such a sight would be worth the wait.
Carcharodontosaurus.
LENGTH-45 FEET
HEIGHT-17 FEET
WEIGHT-8 TONS
DATE DISCOVERED-1925
DISCOVERED BY-DEPERET & SAVORNIN
HABITAT-UNKNOWN, LIKELY FORRESTS AND OTHER AREAS.
DIET-MEAT
DISCOVERED IN-EGYPT
Carcharodontosaurus is one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs to ever be discovered, the second largest in fact, only being outclassed by Spinosaurus. Unlike Spinosaurus however Carcharodontosaurus was a Carnosaur and therefore built like most other Theropods, having no sail and having a large, bulky head and relatively small forearms. It gets it's name from the genus of sharks Carcharodon. Charcharo means "jagged or sharp", odonto means "teeth", and sauros means "lizard" coming together to mean "jagged" or "sharp toothed lizard". It is dated by Evolutionary researchers to the "Cretaceous Period", however Creationists do not except such dates based on many factors both scientific and philosophical.
Carcharodontosaurus' size is estimated to have been 39-45 feet long and 17 feet high at the head, and is estimated to have weighed between 6-15 tons, with a skull length of 5.5 feet long. Carcharodontosaurus is considered to have the overall second largest skull of any carnivorous dinosaur. It is considered by many that Carcharodontosaurus was a fierce predator, and it was Post-Fall when animals began eating one another as Biblical Literalists contend. It's teeth are large, 8 inches long in fact, and serrated which would have helped in slicing through the flesh of it's prey, and with such a large skull it would have been able to easily dispatch most animals for prey or defense. Their 3 fingers each end in a sharp claw that would help in gripping since it's arms were not as diminutive as those of other Theropods like Tyrannosaurus. It is likely that Carcharodontosaurus had a powerful bite and would have made a fierce predator in it's ecosystem once animals began to predate one another.
An interesting fact about Carcharontosaurus is that when it was first discovered in 1927 in fossil form it was named Megalosaurus Saharicus, as were many Theropods in the early days of paleontology. It's name was later changed to the current one in 1931 and remains the name used. This has happened to several Dinosaurs. It is unclear currently how many subspecies of Carcharodontosaurus there are but there are currently 2 proposed, though these can likely be better explained as local variations of the same species which is really what a "subspecies" is.
The first fossils of Carcharodontosaurus were discovered in 1927 by Charles Deperet and J. Savornin in Algeria. This holotype specimen measured 36 feet long. Sadly the holotype fossils were destroyed in World War II, but more have been discovered since then.
It should be worth noting that throughout history there have been thousands of eyewitness reports of giant reptilian creatures encountered by humans around the world, most people know these accounts as dragon legends. The most interesting aspect is that most of these encounters are regarded as literal, matter-of-fact events and they do not record the fanciful dragons depicted in movies, but creatures that are described much like different kinds of dinosaurs and kin. If the earth and it's inhabitants really did come into existence in the last several thousand years, and altogether like the Bibles' account of origins states, then we would expect all organisms to have lived together in history, including humans and dinosaurs.
Allosaurus.
LENGTH-32 FEET
HEIGHT-10 FEET
WEIGHT-2-4 TONS
DATE DISCOVERED-1869
DISCOVERED BY-FERDINAND VANDIVEER HAYDEN
HABITAT-UNKNOWN, LIKELY FORESTS AND PLAINS
DIET-MEAT
DISCOVERED IN-COLORADO, USA.
Allosaurus is a large Theropod dinosaur believed to live 145-155 million years ago in the late Jurassic period by those who subscribe to the general theory of Evolution. Its name means "different lizard". The first remains attributed to the species were found in 1869 in Middle Park near Granby, Colorado after having been obtained by Ferdinand Vandiveer Hayden. Much of the early paleontological history of Allosaurus is muddled due to all the renaming that went on during a period of Paleontology known as the "Bone Wars".
Allosaurus is an extremely typical Carnosaur Theropod in having a large bulky skull, short yet stout neck, small forelimbs(arms), a long tail and horizontal posture. Allosaurus reached an average length of 28 feet but some may have grown to the size of a Tyrannosaurus Rex at 40 feet. Although the largest confirmed specimen is believed to be 32 feet long, making it close in size to an adult T-rex, or at least a subadult one.Weight estimates for living animals range from 2-over 4 tons.
Allosaurus is one of the best known dinosaurs and has been featured in many forms of popular media. It is often portrayed as a "B" grade Tyrannosaurs, namely since it is smaller, however every animal is different and unique and should not be considered more or less valuable than another. There is evidence of many individuals being buried together that has led some to believe that these animals may have formed groups, while others believe that it is the result of individuals feeding on the same carcass. It is the reasoning of those who believe in the Great Flood described in Genesis that these animals would have been buried together as a result of the waters, yet they may have indeed formed family groups that explain the congregation of them at the time of death.
One of Allosaurus' defining characteristics is its "horns". Ridges of bone that ran above the eyes and were extensions of the lacrimal bones and varied slightly in shape and size. It is unclear what their function was but it is believed by some that they shaded the eyes to help with vision.
One of the most complete Dinosaur skeletons ever found was an Allosaurus named "Big Al". The skeleton was an astonishing 95% complete and was discovered in 1991 near Shell, Wyoming. The skeleton helped to complete the picture of Allosaurus and establish its structure and posture in a way that fragments never could. Since Big Al's discovery another fantastic fossil specimen has been unearthed known as "Big Al 2" that is nearly 100% in tact and is considered the best fossil of it's kind ever found. Big Al 2 currently resides in Switzerland at the Sauriermuseum Aathal.
Strangely, there are reports from the remote areas of Northern Australia of fearsome animals that strongly resemble Allosaurus'. These animals are known as Burrunjors to the Aboriginal people and have been seen by non native people as well, helping to establish the identification of the animals as dinosaur-like and not resembling a monitor lizard. Hopefully these animals will be shown to be still living soon, not only to show evidence for Creation, but to study such magnificent yet little understood animals.
Concavenator
LENGTH-20 FEET
HEIGHT-6 FEET
WEIGHT-1 TON
DATE DSICOVERED-2010
DISCOVERED BY-LUIS SANZ, FRANSISCO ORTEGA, FERNANDO ESCASO
HABITAT-UNKOWN
DIET-UNKNOWN, LIKELY PREDOMINANTLY CARNIVOROUS
DISCOVERED IN-SPAIN
The world of dinosaurs and kin gives us many oppurtunities to use the word "strange", yet few are as applicable as the case of Concavenator. At roughly 20 feet long and 6 feet tall at the head, Concavenator was a medium sized theropod dinosaur, much smaller than many of it's more infamous cousins, but still much larger than many theropod species. Evolutionary models place this creature at 130 million years in the past, while the creation model places it at the beginning of creation roughly 6,000 years ago.
Concavenator corcovatus the type species, was discovered as fossil remains at the Las Hoyas dig site in Spain by Luis Sanz, Fransisco Ortega and Fernando Escaso in 2010. They based it's name, which mean "Hump backed hunter from Cuenca", off it's unusual anatomy and the fact that itis believed to have been at least partially carnivorous like most theropods would have been after The Fall.
Concaventor is truly odd due to the fact that unlike most theropods outside the Spinosaur family, it had a crest on it's back, at least part of it's back. The creature had at least 2 tall vertebrae extending from it's spinal column in front of the hips, possibly more. These tall vertebrae are thought to have supported a crest on at least part of the body, and seems to have possibly had some crest beginning again after the hips, above the base of the tail. It is unknown if the structure was a sail or a hump and how far it ran down the creature. It as also unknown as to the function of the structure, as seems to be the case with such odd anatomy in most fossil creatures.
How could such a creature evolve a structure such as a sail made up of elongated vertebrae while still surviving generation to generation with such a hinderance as an unfinished product? And why would it evolve such a structure? How would it know it needed it? What type of creature did Concavenator come from? Questions such as this are unable to be satisfactorily answered by evolution by common descent due to the insurmountable biological problems. However change within a created kind as the Bible states is no problem at all since the information to grow such a structure would have been put into the original creatures at creation. Such strange and specialized animals can only help better understand God's amazing creation and His limitless imagination and wisdom.
Acrocanthosaurus
LENGTH-38 FEET
HEIGHT-14 FEET
WEIGHT-7 1/2 TONS
DATE DISCOVERED-1940
DISCOVERED BY-J. WILLIS STOVALL & WAN LANGSTON JR.
HABITAT-UNKNOWN
DIET-MEAT
DISCOVERED IN-OKLAHOMA, USA.
One of the largest theropod dinosaurs we know of, Acrocanthosaurus was a large dinosaur in the same family as other heavy hitters such as Giganotosaurus and Allosaurus. At a whopping 38 feet in length, a head around 14 feet off the ground and an estimated weight of 7 1/2 tons, this beast was larger than most species of dinosaur.
Discovered as a fossiled creature in the early 1940's and described in 1950 in the Antlers formation in Oklahoma by J. Willis Stovall and Wann Langston Jr., the holotype and paratype specimens consisted of two partial skeletons missing much of the anatomy but included portions of skull remains. Two much more complete skeletons were excavated and described in the 1990's and have helped us understand the anatomy of these creatures.
The name Acrocanthosaurus means "high spine lizard" or "high thorn lizard", referring to it's tall neural spines that extend upwards farther than that of most other theropod species (a notable exception would be those of spinosaurs). This likely gave Acrocanthosaurus a tall back ridge similar to some modern day cattle species such as Bison. These spines could be over 2.5 times as tall as the actual vertebrae.
Little else can be said of Acrocanthosaurus since it was in most other ways very similar to other Carnosaurs aside from the fact that like all other dinosaur species, it's amazing power and grace help us to better understand God: Our Creator and Sustainer through His creation, even in it's fallen state. We should remember anytime we view a fossil that that fossil was made during God's judgement known as The Great Deluge.