Giant Dinosaurs Had Tiny Arms

An international team that includes a University of Minnesota Twin Cities researcher has 

discovered a new big, meat-eating dinosaur, dubbed Meraxes gigas (illustrated above), that 

provides clues about the evolution and anatomy of predatory dinosaurs such as the 

Carcharodontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex. Credit: Jorge A Gonzalez

Discovery provides insight into the evolution and anatomy of big, carnivorous dinosaurs.

Researchers discovered a new huge, meat-eating dinosaur, dubbed Meraxes gigas. The new dinosaur provides fascinating clues about the evolution and biology of dinosaurs such as the Carcharodontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus rex—particularly, why these creatures had such large skulls and tiny arms.

The study was co-led by University of Minnesota Twin Cities researcher Peter Makovicky and Argentinean colleagues Juan Canale and Sebastian Apesteguía and was published in Current Biology, a peer-reviewed scientific biology journal.


Initially discovered in Patagonia in 2012, scientists have spent the last several years extracting, preparing, and analyzing the Meraxes specimen. The dinosaur is part of the Carcharodontosauridae family. 

This group of giant carnivorous theropods also includes Giganotosaurus, one of the largest known meat-eating dinosaurs and one of the reptilian stars of the recently released “Jurassic World: Dominion” movie.

Though not the largest among carcharodontosaurids, Meraxes was still an imposing animal measuring around 36 feet (11 meters) from snout to tail tip and weighing approximately 9,000 pounds (4,000 kg). 

The researchers recovered the Meraxes, alongside other dinosaurs including several long-necked sauropod specimens, from rocks that are around 90-95 million years old.  READ MORE...