Skorpiovenator

Skorpiovenator is one of the most anatomically complete abelisaurids ever found, discovered in Patagonia, Argentina, and described in 2009. Its name, meaning scorpion hunter, pays humorous homage to the numerous living scorpions that infested the excavation site. Preserved almost entirely intact from skull to tail tip, the specimen provides critical insights into abelisaur anatomy. Skorpiovenator possessed an exceptionally short, deep skull that was covered in knobbly ridges and bumps, perfectly suited to absorbing substantial vertical stress when biting down on struggling prey. Measuring around six metres in length and weighing over a tonne, it had short, muscular legs and negligible vestigial forearms typical of its subgroup. Skorpiovenator lived alongside giant carcharodontosaurids like Mapusaurus, occupying the ecological role of a fast, muscular mid-tier predator.

Its skeleton is one of the most complete and articulated abelisaurids ever excavated.

Where and when

Skorpiovenator lived in the Late Cretaceous, from 96 to 93 million years ago (Cenomanian-Turonian age). Its remains come from Argentina, in the Huincul Formation.

The numbers

Length 6.3 m (estimates run from 6 to 6.5 m). Mass about 1.4 t. Hip height about 2.1 m. That is 3.7 human-lengths, or 0.56 of a double-decker bus. These are estimates from near-complete skeleton; fields marked estimated by the site are length, mass, hip height.

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