Spinostropheus
Encyclopedia
Spinostropheus is a genus
of small ceratosauria
n dinosaur
that lived in the late Jurassic
period of Niger
. Once thought to be a species closely related to the abelisaur
s (Sereno et al. 2002), subsequent studies have confirmed the original interpretation as a basal ceratosaur closely related to Elaphrosaurus
(Carrano & Sampson, 2008).
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of small ceratosauria
Ceratosauria
Ceratosaurs are members of a group of theropod dinosaurs defined as all theropods sharing a more recent common ancestry with Ceratosaurus than with birds. There is presently no universally agreed upon listing of species or diagnostic characters of Ceratosauria, though they were less derived...
n dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
that lived in the late Jurassic
Jurassic
The Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
period of Niger
Niger
Niger , officially named the Republic of Niger, is a landlocked country in Western Africa, named after the Niger River. It borders Nigeria and Benin to the south, Burkina Faso and Mali to the west, Algeria and Libya to the north and Chad to the east...
. Once thought to be a species closely related to the abelisaur
Abelisaur
Abelisaurs were a group of ceratosaurian dinosaurs which lived in the Southern hemisphere during the Cretaceous period. Some well-known dinosaurs of this group include Abelisaurus, Carnotaurus, and Majungasaurus. They are known for their small arms...
s (Sereno et al. 2002), subsequent studies have confirmed the original interpretation as a basal ceratosaur closely related to Elaphrosaurus
Elaphrosaurus
Elaphrosaurus is a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic of Tanzania. Elaphrosaurus was probably a ceratosaur about 6 meters long. Suggestions that it is a late surviving coelophysoid have been entertained but are generally dismissed. It was first...
(Carrano & Sampson, 2008).