SPINOSAURUS
A theropod with as many fans as Tyrannosaurus, Spinosaurus aegypticus (spine-oh-soar-us Egypt-E-cuss) is currently the largest land carnivore known to have walked the earth. However, most people do not know the real Spinosaurus, or its long history. In this mega article, we will be examining Spinosaurus from a multitude of angles.
Original Discovery
Spinosaurus was originally discovered in 1915 by German paleontologist Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach. Excavated in Egypt, only a few bones (shown in black) were discovered. However, Stromer was still able to tell that he had found a massive dinosaur. Stromer reconstructed Spinosaurus with a large, boxy skull and an upright posture, features that were standard for large theropods at the time. If these features were present in Spinosaurus, it would have been a dinosaur hunter on the open plains of Cretaceous Africa. If word of Stromer's giant theropod had spread, Spinosaurus would have taken all the glory that the newly discovered Tyrannosaurus rex would gain. The fossils were displayed the museum in Munich, Germany. Sadly, World War II started, preventing Stromer from publishing his findings. Then, in 1944, almost all evidence that Spinosaurus existed was destroyed when Munich was bombed by allied forces, destroying the museum. Decades later, Spinosaurus would be "rediscovered", but it did not gain much attention from scientists or the media. All that would change in 2001 when paleontologist John "Jack" Horner suggested that it be used in the third Jurassic Park film to illustrate a theory of his.
Jurassic Park 3
On July 18, 2001 (my birthday!), the public was introduced to Spinosaurus, in the film Jurassic Park 3. Jack Horner had suggested to Universal Studios that they should replace Tyrannosaurus rex with Spinosaurus as the apex predator in the film. Horner, at that time, believed that Tyrannosaurus was a mere scavenger, while Spinosaurus was the true hunter. While many people left the theater feeling hatred towards the new dinosaur, just as many left as new "Spino" fans. Suddenly, Spinosaurus was everywhere, from toys to games to movies, even making an appearance in a Land Before Time movie. But, in 2014, new fossils thought to belong to Spinosaurus were discovered, leading to a massive change in everything scientists thought they knew about Spinosaurus, from its appearance to its diet, to even its ecological role.
New Evidence
In 2014, new fossils of Spinosaurus were discovered in Morocco. These fossils suggested that Spinosaurus was another theropod oddity. The scientists who found the fossils stated that the new evidence showed Spinosaurus had extremely short legs that forced it into a permanent quadrupedal stance and a rectangular sail. While the media instantly ate up the information, other scientists were not sure if these fossils were actually those of Spinosaurus.
The Debate
The extremely short legged reconstruction of Spinosaurus was highly critiqued and investigated. Some scientists flat out denied the short legged Spinosaurus, stating that the new fossils belonged to a creature called Sigilmassasaurus (sij-ill-mass-a-sore-us). Other scientists suggested that maybe the length of the legs was slightly exaggerated, and that Spinosaurus had the ability to go directly from a quadrupedal stance to a bipedal stance. So far, the debate continues, although the completely quadrupedal reconstruction is less heavily used than the others.
Ecology
While the physical appearance of Spinosaurus is uncertain, the new fossils have shed a lot of light on Spinosaurus's role in the ecosystem in which it lived. Spinosaurus lived during the early Cretaceous (80 mya) in north Africa. This was an area that would have been swampy and brackish. It lived along side another giant carnivore, the highly terrestrial Carcharodontosaurus (car-car-oh-don-toe-sore-us). It is unlikely that Spinosaurus could have directly competed with Carcharodontosaurs, so Spinosaurus adopted an aquatic lifestyle, taking advantage of the numerous large fish that lived in the region. It would have spent its time swimming through the deltas and estuaries, only occasionally venturing onto land. These trips would have been made more often during mating seasons and when food was scarce. This would have brought Spinosaurus into direct confrontation with Carcharodontosaurus. In a fight, it would be a close match between the two giants. Spinosaurus was both bigger, and bigger looking due to its large sail. But Carcharodontosaurus had a more deadly bite.
My Personal Crazy Theory
Based on my own research, I have developed my own theory as to the physical appearance of Spinosaurus, as well as the growth sequence of Spinosaurus. I believe that the three known genera of spinosaurs found in Europe and Africa are one and the same and represent the growth sequence of Spinosaurus. Spinosaurus would have begun life as the 25 foot long creature currently known as Baryonyx walkeri (bear-E-on-icks walk-air-I). So far, only one specimen of Baryonyx is known. This specimen displays a lack of fusing in the bones, a feature characteristic of juvenile animals. The specimen was also found with both fish scales and dinosaur bones in its stomach, some of the only evidence of spinosaur diets.
This animal would have grown up into a creature called Suchomimus tenerensis (sue-co-my-muss ten-air-en-sis). Suchomimus is already the subject of a debate as to its legitimacy as a distinct species, or whether it is a sub-species of Baryonyx. The primary distinguishing factor between the two genera being that Suchomimus was found in Africa, and Baryonyx was found in England. Other than the location difference, the two are almost identical, with Suchomimus being 5 feet longer with longer vertebrate forming a low ridge on its back. More interesting still, is that no adult Suchomimus fossils are known. The only fossil yet discovered, again shows the characteristic lack of fusing, suggesting that the animal died as a juvenile.
According to my theory, Suchomimus would, over a few years time, develop a sail from the its already lengthened vertebrae and grow an additional 15 feet to resemble the believed physical appearance of Spinosaurus. Due to the primarily bipedal nature of Suchomimus/Baryonyx and Spinosaurus, the full grown Spinosaurus would have been a biped with the ability to quadruped, sort of like a reverse hadrosaur. The young Spinosaurus would have played an important role in the ecosystem they lived in. They would have been the faster, more light weight carnivores, hunting the duckbill dinosaurs of the region. For now, the relationship of Suchomimus/Baryonyx and Spinosaurus as youth and adult versions of the same genera remains an imaginative theory. Maybe some day, evidence will be found to support my theory.
Extinction
During the time of the dinosaurs, the Mesozoic period, the continents often shifted, causing environments to change. One of the environments that eventually disappeared was the swampy estuaries that were home to Spinosaurus. It was highly specialized for this environment, and could not compete with more terrestrial predators. This meant that when the swamp dried up, Spinosaurus could not survive and adapt to its new world, leading to its extinction.
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Image Credits
All images have been cropped to fit the space required
All images are used under Fair Use laws
Image credits are listed from top to bottom and from left to right
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Spinosaurus
Original screenshot by: Liekeze
Taken in game: The Isle
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Stromer's Spinosaurus
Original reconstruction by: Stromer
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Terrestial Spinosaurus
Original screenshot by: Liekeze
Taken in game: Primal Carnage: Extinction
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Obligate quadruped Spinosaurus
Original reconstruction by: Davide Bonnadonna
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Two Spinosaurus
Original image composite by: Davide Bonnadonna, Ibrahim et al., and Skeletaldrawing.com
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Baryonyx
Original screenshot by: Liekeze
Taken in game: The Isle
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Suchomimus
Original screenshot by: Liekeze
Taken in game: The Isle
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Spinosaurus fishing
Original screenshot by: Liekeze
Taken in game: The Isle
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Dead Spinosaurus
Original screenshot by: Liekeze
Taken in game: The Isle