Rahiolisaurus

Rah-e-ol-e-sore-us.
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Liam Carter

Paleoanthropologist

Liam Carter explores the roots of humanity by studying early human fossils and artifacts. His ground-breaking work has provided a deeper understanding of our ancestors' lifestyles and social structures.

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Name

Rahiolisaurus ‭(‬Rahioli lizard‭)‬.

Phonetic

Rah-e-ol-e-sore-us.

Named By

Fernando E Novas,‭ ‬Sankar Chatterjee,‭ ‬Dhiraj K.‭ ‬Rudra‭ & ‬P.‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Datta‭ ‬-‭ ‬2010.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Saurischia,‭ ‬Theropoda,‭ ‬Abelisauridae.

Diet

‭C‬arnivore.

Species

R.‭ ‬gujaratensis‭

Size

Roughly estimated to be around ‬8‭ ‬meters long.

Known locations

India,‭ ‬Gujurat‭ ‬-‭ ‬Lameta Formation.

Time Period

Maastrichtian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Partial remains of at least‭ ‬7‭ ‬individuals of varying ages.

In Depth

       Named after a village near the location of the fossil site,‭ ‬Rahiolisaurus is still a surprisingly little known abelisaurid at the time of writing,‭ ‬despite it being around eight meters long.‭ ‬The fossils of this abelisaurid were originally considered to be remains of another abelisaurid named Indosuchus.‭ ‬As a large abelisaurid,‭ ‬Rahiolisaurus would have been comparable to Rajasaurus,‭ ‬another large theropod known from Lameta Formation.‭ ‬The two are separated by the simple observation that Rajasaurus is more robust‭ (‬heavily built‭) ‬than Rahiolisaurus.‭ ‬The Lameta Formation is also home to other genera including the sauropods Isisaurus and Lametasaurus amongst others,‭ ‬and it‭’‬s not impossible that Rahiolisaurus may have hunted these,‭ ‬particularly smaller juveniles.‭ ‬It would be interesting to find out why at least seven individuals of the same species were buried together.‭ ‬It could be that Rahiolisaurus lived in groups,‭ ‬or it could merely be that they had become stuck in some kind of predator trap.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Rahiolisaurus gujaratensis,‭ ‬n.‭ ‬gen.‭ ‬n.‭ ‬sp.,‭ ‬A New Abelisaurid Theropod from the Late Cretaceous of India,‭ ‬Fernando E Novas,‭ ‬Sankar Chatterjee,‭ ‬Dhiraj K.‭ ‬Rudra‭ & ‬P.‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Datta‭ ‬-‭ ‬2010.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT