ALBERTOSAURUS
Albertosaurus sarcophagus
Meaning: "Alberta Lizard"
📊 STATS
Size comparison:
As long as a large school bus!
📖 ABOUT ALBERTOSAURUS
Meet Albertosaurus! This speedy 'Alberta Lizard' was a top predator in Canada, just like a smaller cousin of the mighty T-Rex!
Imagine a super-speedy dinosaur that roamed Canada long, long ago! That's Albertosaurus, which means 'Alberta Lizard' because it was first found in Alberta, Canada! Albertosaurus was a type of tyrannosaur, related to the famous Tyrannosaurus Rex, but smaller and faster. It lived about 70 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous period.
This dinosaur was a fearsome hunter, reaching up to 10 meters long! It walked on two strong legs (that's called being a biped!), and could probably run as fast as 40 kilometers per hour! Imagine trying to outrun that! Albertosaurus had a powerful bite, using its sharp teeth to chomp down on other dinosaurs. Paleontologists believe it hunted hadrosaurs (duck-billed dinosaurs) and ceratopsians (horned dinosaurs).
Albertosaurus was a top predator in its ecosystem, meaning it was at the top of the food chain. Its fossils help us understand what life was like in prehistoric Canada. Finding Albertosaurus bones tells us about the plants and other animals that lived alongside this amazing dinosaur.
🔬 CLASSIFICATION
- Group
- Theropoda
- Family
- Tyrannosauridae
- Period
- Late Cretaceous (100-66 Ma)
- Era
- 71.0 - 68.0 million years ago
🗺️ DISCOVERY
- Year
- 1884
- Discovered by
- Joseph Tyrrell
- Location
- Alberta, Canada
- Fossils found in
- Canada (Alberta)
🎨 SCIENTIFIC ILLUSTRATION
Artistic reconstruction of Albertosaurus based on fossil evidence
🗺️ WHERE FOSSILS WERE FOUND
Canada (Alberta)
🤓 FUN FACTS
- ✨ Albertosaurus' name means 'Alberta Lizard' because the first fossil was found in Alberta, Canada!
- ✨ It was a tyrannosaur, which means it's related to the famous T-Rex!
- ✨ Albertosaurus could probably run super fast, maybe even as fast as a car in the city!
- ✨ Its bite was strong enough to crush bones!
- ✨ Scientists think Albertosaurus might have hunted in packs, like wolves!
💡 DID YOU KNOW?
Get this! Some Albertosaurus fossils have been found in a huge pile, leading scientists to think they might have lived and hunted together in groups, like a dinosaur gang!
