The Torvosaurus, or Savage Lizard, was a mighty carnivorous theropod that roamed the Earth during the Jurassic period. It had a skull with razor-sharp teeth that it used to eat slower-moving sauropods all over the globe from North America to Europe. It's one of the biggest theropods ever recorded in Europe! It was bipedal, which meant it walked around on its hind legs and used its small (but powerful) front arms to grab its prey.
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Some Quick Facts about the Torvosaurus
| Name | Torvosaurus (meaning “savage lizard”) |
| Type of dinosaur | Theropoda |
| Territory | Forests and wetlands, North America, USA, (parts of Wyoming and Utah) South America, parts of Europe |
| Size | Large, 30 feet long, 8.2 feet tall |
| Color | Likely brownish/greenish with stripes |
| Interesting Characteristics | One of the biggest theropods to ever exist |
| Diet | Smaller dinosaurs, lizards |
| Major Threats | Natural disasters |
The Torvosaurus roamed much of the Earth during the middle to late Jurassic period, almost 150 years ago. It was one scary theropod with a mouth full of sharp teeth and a bite force stronger than a Tyrannosaurus rex. Keep reading to learn all about this savage lizard!
What Does Torvosaurus Mean?
Torvosaurus is pronounced ‘tor-voh-sore-us,’ and its name is broken into two parts.
The first part of its name, Torvo (or Torvus), is the Greek word for savage. And, of course, the term Saurus translates to lizard. So, Torvosaurus means Savage Lizard. And its name is quite fitting. This dino was pretty scary, with a large frame, powerful arms and back legs, and a jaw that could crush a car.
How Big was a Torvosaurus?
The Torvosaurus was about 36 feet in length, about as long as a school bus. On its hind legs, it stood 8 feet tall. What’s really impressive about the Torvosaurus is that it was one hefty dino. It weighed over 11,000 pounds, around the weight of an elephant.
The Torvosaurus was about as large as the famous T. rex, but some paleontologists believe that the Torvosaurus was even more scary. With a massive jaw and a bite force of 10,000 pounds, this dino that lived in the upper Jurassic was even more brutal than a T. rex!
What Is the Bite Force of a Torvosaurus?
If you were to find yourself in the grasp of the Torvosaurus jaw, it would be game over. By examining the fossil records of its skull, they discovered that the bite force of the Torvisaurus was stronger than any theropods roaming Earth in the Jurassic period.
It had a bite force of 10,000 pounds per square inch. This sounds like a lot, so let’s put that into perspective. When you bite down on a juicy piece of meat, the average human jaw has a bite force of 200 pounds per square inch. And the Torvosaurus has a bite force of 10,000! It was 2,000 pounds stronger than the famous T. rex.
What Are the Differences Between a Torvosaurus and Allosaurus?
| Allosaurus | Theropod, similar size, faster |
| Torvosaurus | Theropod, similar size, but bigger and heavier |
The Allosaurus and the Torvosaurus are two theropod dinosaurs with a lot in common, but there are a few key differences. Both late Jurassic dinosaurs lived in similar areas, were around the same size, and hunted in similar neighborhoods. But the build of the Torvosaurus was just a little different from the Allosaurus.
Overall, the Torvosaurus was bigger and heavier than the Allosaurus, but this also made it rather slow. While the Allosaurus was quick on its feet (because it weighed less), the Torvosaurs moved much more slowly. This meant it dined on slower-moving dinosaurs, like the Stegosaurus, Diplodocus, or Camarasaurus.
Where was the Torvosaurus First Discovered?
Fossils of the scary Torvosaurus are littered all over the globe. They have been discovered in North America, Spain, Germany, Portugal, Tanzania, and Uruguay. However, the first fossils of this fierce carnivore were discovered in 1899 by an American paleontologist Elmer Riggs. He found a hand and a foot (referred to as Torvosaurus sp) in the Morrison Formation in southeastern Wyoming, where they now live in the natural history museum in Chicago.
Since then, even more fossils of this prehistoric dino have been unearthed all over the globe. Fossil remains were unearthed in Tanzania and classified as a Megalosaurus but later updated to a Torvosaurus in 2020. Even more fossils were found in Portugal’s Lourinhã Formation as recently as 2005. As a fierce and massive predator, it’s no wonder they are found worldwide.
What Are Some Synonyms for Torvosaurus?
When paleontologists discover dinosaur fossils, it’s not always clear what type of dinosaur it is. In 1992, paleontologist Robert T. Bakker discovered the bones of a massive theropod that he named Edmarka rex. However, upon closer examination, these fossils were just another discovery of the gigantic Torvosaurus.
Other discovered dinos later revealed to be the Torvosaurus include the Ceratosaurus, Megalosaurus, and Brontoraptor. If you read about these dinosaurs, their names are just another way of describing the many fossil pieces of evidence of the mighty Torvosaurus!