Utah State Fossil - Allosaurus

was an iconic, meat-eating dinosaur that was one of the top predators during the Late Jurassic period. It grew up to 39 feet long, with a mouthful of serrated teeth, and curved claws up to 8 inches in length. It likely preyed upon the large, sauropod dinosaurs such Diplodocus that shared its environment. It also frequently battled Stegosaurus, as bite marks matching Allosaurus have been found on fossil Stegosaurus bones, a puncture wound matching a Stegosaurus tail spike has been found on an Allosaurus vertebra. It&#;s theorized that Allosaurus hunted in packs to take down much larger prey.


Allosaurus fragilis skeleton from Utah.

Allosaurus fragilis skeleton from Utah.

Link to Dino walk

Allosaurus is the most common dinosaur found in the Morrison Formation that is exposed in Eastern Utah as well as neighboring Colorado and Wyoming. The Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur quarry located at the Jurassic National Monument in Utah has yielded the bones of 46 individual Allosaurus. It&#;s believed that the quarry represents a &#;predator trap&#; similar to how the La Brea Tar Pits in California frequently trapped predatory mammals.


Allosaurus Fragilis Reconstruction by Fred Wierum Creative Commons License

Allosaurus Fragilis Reconstruction by Fred Wierum Creative Commons License

Another fearsome theropod dinosaur found discovered in Utah, the Utahraptor was named the official state dinosaur in . Initially it was proposed that Utahraptor would replace Allosaurus as the state&#;s official fossil, but it was decided to make it the state dinosaur instead. Unlike Allosaurus which lived during the Late Jurassic, Utahraptor lived during the Early Cretaceous and its fossils are found in the Cedar Mountain Formation. Utahraptor is the largest-known member of the family Dromaeosauridae, dinosaurs commonly referred to as raptors. It reached 19 feet in length and its sickle-shaped claws have been found over 9 inches in length.


Claw of a Utahraptor, on display at the BYU Museum of Paleontology.

Claw of a Utahraptor, on display at the BYU Museum of Paleontology.

In a 9-ton block of sandstone containing the bones of at least seven individual Utahraptors was discovered in Eastern Utah. These seven individuals represent at least one adult, four juveniles and at least one hatchling. The block of sandstone was removed in a single piece and is currently under preparation at the Museum of Ancient Life at Thanksgiving Point, Utah. It is estimated that it will still take another decade to completely remove the fossils from the hard limestone. Check out the

In the Utah state legislature designated Allosaurus as the Utah state fossil. In addition the Utahraptor was designated as the official state dinosaur in . Allosaurus was an iconic, meat-eating dinosaur that was one of the top predators during the Late Jurassic period. It grew up to 39 feet long, with a mouthful of serrated teeth, and curved claws up to 8 inches in length. It likely preyed upon the large, sauropod dinosaurs such Diplodocus that shared its environment. It also frequently battled Stegosaurus, as bite marks matching Allosaurus have been found on fossil Stegosaurus bones, a puncture wound matching a Stegosaurus tail spike has been found on an Allosaurus vertebra. It&#;s theorized that Allosaurus hunted in packs to take down much larger prey.Allosaurus is the most common dinosaur found in the Morrison Formation that is exposed in Eastern Utah as well as neighboring Colorado and Wyoming. The Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur quarry located at the Jurassic National Monument in Utah has yielded the bones of 46 individual Allosaurus. It&#;s believed that the quarry represents a &#;predator trap&#; similar to how the La Brea Tar Pits in California frequently trapped predatory mammals.Another fearsome theropod dinosaur found discovered in Utah, the Utahraptor was named the official state dinosaur in . Initially it was proposed that Utahraptor would replace Allosaurus as the state&#;s official fossil, but it was decided to make it the state dinosaur instead. Unlike Allosaurus which lived during the Late Jurassic, Utahraptor lived during the Early Cretaceous and its fossils are found in the Cedar Mountain Formation. Utahraptor is the largest-known member of the family Dromaeosauridae, dinosaurs commonly referred to as raptors. It reached 19 feet in length and its sickle-shaped claws have been found over 9 inches in length.In a 9-ton block of sandstone containing the bones of at least seven individual Utahraptors was discovered in Eastern Utah. These seven individuals represent at least one adult, four juveniles and at least one hatchling. The block of sandstone was removed in a single piece and is currently under preparation at the Museum of Ancient Life at Thanksgiving Point, Utah. It is estimated that it will still take another decade to completely remove the fossils from the hard limestone. Check out the Utahraptor project for more information.

NPS/Bob Walters Tess Kissinger

 

Allosaurus, meaning "different delicate reptile," is a theropod (meat-eating dinosaur) that probably ate other smaller dinosaurs. Its teeth were up to 3 in (7.6 cm) long and serrated like steak knives for cutting flesh. Adults hunted by overpowering their prey, possibly in small groups. Juvenile Allosaurus relied on their longer limb bones that were better adapted to running in order to hunt smaller vertebrates. Even though Allosaurus grew up to 30 ft (8.5 m) in length, it was not the largest predator of the time. Its sharp teeth and hook-shaped claws did, however, make Allosaurus a nightmare for many creatures of the Jurassic.

 

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Allosaurus Facts

Allosaurus is the most common predatory dinosaur from the Morrison Formation
Allosaurus is Greek for &#;different lizard&#;
Allosaurus is the state fossil of Utah!
Adult Allosaurus grew up to lengths of 30 feet

 

Allosaurus fragilis is one of the largest predators in the Morrison. Notice how large even just the skull is in comparison to a human!

Allosaurus fragilis is the most common species of carnivorous theropod dinosaur in the Morrison Formation from the Late Jurassic of North America. Although only a few of its bones are exposed in the present day quarry at Dinosaur, one of the best skeletons ever found came from the Carnegie Quarry including a remarkably preserved skull that is currently on exhibit in the Quarry Exhibit Hall.

Dinosaur skulls are rarely preserved because they are made of very thin bone that is easily crushed. Skulls are mostly hollow to hold soft tissues that cannot be preserved. Fine sediments compress the skull to flatten it the way you might step on an empty tin can. These skulls may be preserved, but some of the three-dimensional structure is lost. The sand-sized sediments in the Carnegie Quarry are fine enough to preserve bone in great detail but coarse enough to resist compression of the skulls.

Allosaurus fragilis is one of three theropods found in the Carnegie Quarry, the others being Ceratosaurus sp. and Torvosaurus tanneri.

This specimen of Allosaurus fragilis has attracted the attention of paleontologists around the world and has been referenced in many scientific studies. You don't, however, have to be a scientist to marvel at this beautiful specimen. The real skull is on display at the Quarry Exhibit Hall.

 

Jurassic Fact

Almost 75% of all theropods (meat-eating dinosaurs) found in the Morrison Formation are Allosaurus!

 

A mounted cast of an Allosaurus fragilis is on display at the Quarry Exhibit Hall.

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For more information, please visit Real-Life Dinosaur.