| Bahariasaurus Temporal range: Late Cretaceous, 95 Ma |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Superorder: | Dinosauria |
| Order: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | Theropoda |
| Infraorder: | Ceratosauria |
| Family: | Bahariasauridae von Huene, 1948 |
| Genus: | Bahariasaurus Stromer, 1934 |
| Species | |
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| Synonyms | |
Bahariasaurus (meaning "Bahariya lizard") is a genus of large theropod dinosaur found in the Bahariya Formation in El-Waha el-Bahariya or Bahariya (Arabic: الواحة البحرية meaning the "northern oasis") oasis in Egypt and Kem Kem Beds of North Africa, which date to the late Cretaceous Period, (Cenomanian age), about 95 million years ago. It was a huge theropod, in the same size range as Tyrannosaurus and the contemporary genera Carcharodontosaurus and Spinosaurus.[1]
The type species, B. ingens, was described by Ernst Stromer in 1934,[2] though the type specimen was destroyed during World War II. The exact placement of Bahariasaurus is uncertain, although it has been variously assigned to several theropod groups, including Carcharodontosauridae (by Rauhut in 1995) and Tyrannosauroidea (by Chure in 2000). It is potentially synonymous with Deltadromeus, another theropod from the early Late Cretaceous of North Africa.[3] More specimens would be needed to more accurately classify it, and to determine its relationship to Deltadromeus.[4][5]