The Metriacanthosaurus, or moderately-spined lizard, earned its nickname from its very unlikely spine. It had large, raised vertebrae, which is unique compared to other theropods that lived 150 million years ago. It lived in the grassy plains of England, where there were plenty of smaller dinos to eat and available water sources. While it’s a smaller theropod, its bite is just as ferocious as the T. rex!
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Some Quick Facts about the Metriacanthosaurus
| Name | Metriacanthosaurus (meaning “moderately-spined lizard”) |
| Type of dinosaur | Theropoda |
| Territory | Forests and grasslands, England |
| Size | 23 feet long, 6 feet tall |
| Color | Brownish with some black stripes |
| Interesting Characteristics | Smaller frame than similar theropods of the time |
| Diet | Slow herbivore dinosaurs |
| Major Threats | Bigger carnivores, natural disasters |
The Metriacanthosaurus was a medium-sized two-legged theropod that roamed modern-day England almost 150 million years ago. What makes the Metriacanthosaurus unique is its raised vertebrae that made it stand out from other scary theropods during the Jurassic period.
What Did a Metriacanthosaurus Look Like?
What made the Metriacanthosaurus interesting is its unlikely shaped vertebrae that stood out more than other theropods at the time, like the Acrocanthosaurus. Some scientists believed these raised vertebrae might have been skin-covered, making this dino stand out amongst larger Theropoda. For example, it has many similar features to the Allosaurus or Carnotaurus, but the raised vertebrae make it unique.
It walked on its strong hind legs and used its small front arms with three sharp claws to grab its prey. The jaw structure of the Metriacanthosaurus is similar to other theropods (for example Compsognathus). Its powerful bite force made it difficult for its meal to escape, and it used its razor-sharp teeth for ripping into its prey.
Did The Metriacanthosaurus Have Stripes?
In the Jurassic Park movies, the Metriacanthosaurus has stripes. But is that accurate? With limited fossil records, it’s challenging to know what the skin of these prehistoric animals looked like, but it’s not outside the realm of possibility. Stripes may have helped this dino survive.
We know modern animals have stripes to help them blend into their surroundings to hide from predators. For example, tigers have stripes to hide from their prey while hunting.
Both of these reasons from today could point to the Metriacanthosaurus having stripes in the past. Especially since the Metriacanthosaurus was a much smaller theropod with plenty of predators, it’s possible that this small dino did have stripes!
What Is the Size of a Metriacanthosaurus?
The Metriacanthosaurus was a mid-sized theropod that lived in the Jurassic period. It wasn’t the most giant theropod but far from the smallest. It lived in that sweet spot somewhere in between. It was 23 feet long from snout to tail and stood 6 feet tall. It was a dense dino, weighing 2,200 pounds, about the same weight as a moose.
These predatory dinosaurs of the world may have looked like a two-legged moose with razor-sharp teeth roaming about. That’s pretty scary stuff! To compare the size of the Metriacanthosaurus to similar theropods of the time, the Metriacanthosaurus came to about the middle of the T. rex’s thigh. It was like a miniature T. rex!
What Does a Metriacanthosaurus Eat?
The metriacanthosaurus was a carnivore or meat eater, but it wasn’t the most enormous meat eater in the middle Jurassic period. It dined on mostly herbivore sauropods like the Stegosaurus, but the Metriacanthosaurus was fast enough to eat smaller theropods like the Dilophosaurus.
We know that the Metriacanthosaurus was a meat eater based on the shape of its teeth. Its many crocodile-like teeth curved inward, which made it easier for this ferocious dino to rip meat off the bones of its prey.
How Was the Metriacanthosaurus Discovered?
The discovery of the Metriacanthosaurus was a little rocky. In 1939, paleontologist Friedrick von Huene discussed the fossil remains found at the Oxford Clay Formation. In his paper, he described these unclassified dinosaur fragments as a new species of Megalosaurus. Ten years later, he classified these bones as an Altispinax, which stayed until 1964. And at one point, it was also known as the Yangchuanosaurus.
In 1962, a scientist named Alick Walker took another look at the fossil records, and he noticed something strange. The vertebrae of these fossils were unique. They were a little taller than similar theropods then, and therefore they deserved their own dinosaur classification. Thus, the Metriacanthosaurus became its own species of dinosaur.