Giganotosurus Carolinii

Giganotosaurus is represented by two specimens. Now, based on current estimates it can be established by a simple calculation that the length of the skull of the second specimen, (as it is 6.5% larger than the holotype) would measure between 1.6 and 1.75 meters in length. The skull of the Giganotosaurus had slightly wide, serrated, curved teeth that were suitable for tearing off large pieces of meat. These teeth were replaced as they were lost. So it is assumed that it was really a predator unlike the abelisaurids with which it lived and which probably had more scavenging habits, although the possibility that they ate remains found, if they did not have a good hunt, is not ruled out. Remains of Giganotosaurus prove to be more predatory than scavenger, because of its powerful but light body and its big and muscular legs giving it a compact and robust appearance (although not as much as a Tyrannosaurid). Its long and muscular tail, gave balance to its body when moving, like the allosaurs, making the giganotosaurs massive predators, huge and fast, specialized to hunt prey of medium to large size. It has been calculated that they could move at 25 km per hour.

To top off the deadly weapons it relied upon to obtain its food it possessed large arms, though small in relation to its body, with three fingers each ending in sharp claws that helped it hold its prey while killing them with its lethal jaws. Giganotosaurs possessed a banana-shaped brain, in which the olfactory bulbs stood out. Studies of the basic skull of Giganotosaurus reveal that the olfactory lobes were more developed than those of Tyrannosaurus.

Mounted length: 35 cm