Saltriosaurus

Fossils of "Saltriosaurus"

Saltriosaurus (Saltrio-lizard) is the informal name for a theropod dinosaur that lived during the Jurassic period. It was found in 1996, when Angelo Zanella discovered its remains in a quarry in Saltrio, in northern Italy. Very little is known about the dinosaur. The name "Saltriosaurus", given to it in 2000 by Cristiano Dal Sasso, is a nomen nudum.

Arm bones

Saltriosaurus is thought to have resembled Allosaurus, and is the oldest known three-fingered dinosaur. Like Allosaurus, it appears to have been carnivorous and is estimated to have weighed about 500 kilograms (1,100 lb). It was 8 metres (26 ft) long and 4 metres (13 ft) tall, with a skull 70 cm (28 in) long. The single tooth that has been found was about 7 cm (2.8 in) long.

About ten percent of the skeleton has been discovered thus far: lateral tooth, dorsal rib fragments, scapular fragment, furcula, humeri, metacarpal II, phalanx II-1, phalanx III-1, phalanx III-2, manual ungual III, proximal fibula, distal tarsal III, distal tarsal IV.

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