Basic info Taxonomic history Classification Included Taxa
Morphology Ecology and taphonomy External Literature Search Age range and collections

Megalosaurus

Reptilia - Megalosauridae

Taxonomy
Megalosaurus was named by Parkinson (1822) [A nomen nudum in this publication. Name ascribed to Buckland and Conybeare in Buckland 1824, p. 391, Pl. 40–47.]. It is the type genus of Megalosaurinidae, Megalosaurinae, Megalosauri, Megalosauridae.

It was considered a nomen dubium by Allain and Chure (2002).

It was assigned to Enaliosauri by Parkinson (1822); to Ameivoidea by Fitzinger (1826); to Lacertilia by Owen (1841); to Megalosauri by Fitzinger (1843); to Pachypodes by Meyer (1845); to Dinosauria by Owen (1842) and Quenstedt (1852); to Dinosauria by Pictet (1853); to Deinosauria by Mantell (1854); to Harpagosauria by Haeckel (1866); to Dinosaurii by Quenstedt (1867); to Goniopoda by Cope (1869); to Theropoda by Quenstedt (1882); to Goniopoda by Cope (1866) and Cope (1887); to Dinosauria by Owen (1854), Owen (1857), Owen (1859), Owen (1860), Owen (1861), Lennier (1870), Seeley (1881), Lydekker (1883), Lydekker (1887) and Mansel-Pleydell (1888); to Megalosaurinidae by Lydekker (1888); to Theropoda by Dollo (1885), Gadow (1898) and Gadow (1901); to Megalosauridae by Nopcsa (1901); to Theropoda by Winkler (1893), Sauvage (1896), Gadow (1897), Sauvage (1914) and Joleaud (1922); to Carnosauria by Kuhn (1939); to Megalosauroidea by Haubold (1971) and Haubold (1974); to Megalosauridae by Gardiner (1982); to Carnosauria by Delair (1973) and Zhao (1983); to Carnosauria by Molnar et al. (1990); to Megalosauroidea by Holtz (1995); to Tetanurae by Holtz (1994) and Holtz (2000); to Eustreptospondylidae by Mateus (2006); to Averostra by Benson et al. (2008); to Megalosauridae by d'Orbigny (1849), Gervais (1853), Gervais (1859), Huxley (1870), Sauvage (1882), Marsh (1882), Vetter (1884), Dollo (1884), Marsh (1884), Marsh (1884), Marsh (1885), Lydekker (1885), Zittel (1890), Baur (1891), Sauvage (1895), Marsh (1895), Marsh (1896), Sauvage (1898), Van Den Broeck (1900), Sauvage (1900), Mansel-Pleydell (1902), Hay (1902), Williston (1905), Lambe (1905), Arldt (1909), Huene (1909), von Zittel (1911), Matthew and Brown (1922), Piveteau (1923), Huene (1923), Lull (1924), Depéret and Savornin (1925), Piveteau (1926), Huene (1926), Huene (1927), Depéret and Savornin (1928), Rama Rao (1932), Stromer (1934), Stromer (1934), Swinton (1936), Romer (1956), Bataller (1960), Delair (1960), Tatarinov (1964), Walker (1964), del Corro (1966), Romer (1966), Charig (1967), Steel (1970), Swinton (1970), Waldman (1974), Galton (1977), Madsen and Miller (1979), Molnar (1980), Santafé et al. (1982), Buscalioni and Sanz (1984), Welles (1984), Chabli (1986), Carroll (1988), Kurzanov (1989), Bakker et al. (1992), Currie and Zhao (1994), Holtz (1996), Gao (1999), Benson and Barrett (2009), Vila et al. (2011), Hanson and Makovicky (2013) and Hendrickx and Mateus (2014); and to Megalosaurinae by Nopcsa (1928), Paul (1988), Holtz et al. (2004), Carrano et al. (2012), Rauhut et al. (2016) and Rauhut et al. (2018).

Synonyms
Synonymy list
YearName and author
1822Megalosaurus Parkinson p. 305
1826Megalosaurus Fitzinger p. 21
1826Megalosaurus conybearei Ritgen p. 354
1841Megalosaurus Owen p. 269
1842Megalosaurus Owen p. 103
1843Megalosaurus Fitzinger p. 35
1845Megalosaurus Meyer p. 281
1849Megalosaurus d'Orbigny p. 206
1852Megalosaurus Quenstedt p. 112
1853Megalosaurus Gervais p. 472
1853Megalosaurus Pictet p. 467
1854Megalosaurus Mantell p. 684
1854Megalosaurus Owen p. 19
1857Megalosaurus Owen p. 1
1859Megalosaurus Gervais p. 465
1859Megalosaurus Owen p. 151
1860Megalosaurus Owen p. 258
1861Megalosaurus Owen p. 286
1866Megalosaurus Cope p. 317
1866Megalosaurus Haeckel p. CXXXVI
1867Megalosaurus Quenstedt p. 143
1869Megalosaurus Cope p. 100
1870Megalosaurus Huxley p. 34
1870Megalosaurus Lennier p. 35
1881Megalosaurus Seeley p. 620
1882Megalosaurus Marsh
1882Megalosaurus Quenstedt p. 182
1882Megalosaurus Sauvage p. 35
1883Megalosaurus Lydekker p. 86
1884Altispinax dunkeri Dames pp. 186-188
1884Megalosaurus dunkeri Dames p. 186–188
1884Megalosaurus Dollo p. 298
1884Megalosaurus Marsh p. 69
1884Megalosaurus Vetter p. 363
1885Megalosaurus Dollo p. 36
1885Megalosaurus Lydekker p. 37
1885Megalosaurus Marsh p. 764
1887Megalosaurus Cope p. 222
1887Megalosaurus dunkeri Koken p. 8
1887Megalosaurus Lydekker p. 78
1888Megalosaurus dunkeri Lydekker pp. 59-60
1888Megalosaurus Lydekker p. 159
1888Megalosaurus dunkeri Lydekker p. 163
1888Megalosaurus Mansel-Pleydell p. 37
1889Megalosaurus dunkeri Lydekker p. 326
1889Megalosaurus dunkeri Newton p. 260
1890Megalosaurus Zittel p. 722
1890Megalosaurus dunkeri Zittel p. 724
1891Megalosaurus Baur p. 450
1893Megalosaurus Winkler p. 107
1895Megalosaurus Marsh
1895Megalosaurus Sauvage p. 470
1896Megalosaurus dunkeri Depéret p. 190
1896Megalosaurus Marsh p. 239
1896Megalosaurus Sauvage p. 48
1897Megalosaurus Gadow p. 204
1898Megalosaurus Gadow p. 22
1898Megalosaurus Sauvage p. 8
1900Megalosaurus Sauvage p. 417
1900Megalosaurus Van Den Broeck p. 84
1900Megalosaurus dunkeri Van Den Broeck p. 84
1901Megalosaurus Gadow p. 421
1901Megalosaurus Nopcsa p. 200
1901Megalosaurus dunkeri Nopcsa p. 200
1902Megalosaurus Hay p. 487
1902Megalosaurus Mansel-Pleydell p. lxxviii
1905Megalosaurus Lambe p. 23
1905Megalosaurus Williston p. 345
1909Megalosaurus Arldt p. 262
1909Megalosaurus dunkeri Dollo p. 102
1909Megalosaurus Huene p. 15
1911Megalosaurus von Zittel p. 282
1914Megalosaurus Sauvage p. 254
1922Megalosaurus Joleaud p. 60
1922Megalosaurus Matthew and Brown p. 369
1923Megalosaurus Huene pp. 450-451, 457
1923Altispinax dunkeri Huene p. 453
1923Megalosaurus Piveteau p. 6
1924Megalosaurus Lull p. 229
1925Megalosaurus Depéret and Savornin pp. 1109-1110
1925Megalosaurus dunkeri Depéret and Savornin p. 1110
1926Altispinax dunkeri Huene p. 78
1926Megalosaurus Huene pp. 87-89
1926Altispinax dunkeri Huene p. 483
1926Megalosaurus Piveteau p. 34
1927Megalosaurus Huene p. 267
1927Megalosaurus dunkeri Royo y Gomez p. 126–127
1928Megalosaurus Depéret and Savornin p. 260
1928Streptospondylus dunkeri Depéret and Savornin pp. 261-263
1928Megalosaurus Nopcsa p. 183
1932Megalosaurus Rama Rao p. 224
1934Altispinax dunkeri Stromer p. 9
1934Megalosaurus Stromer p. 41
1936Altispinax dunkeri Stromer p. 67
1936Megalosaurus Swinton p. 208
1939Megalosaurus Kuhn p. 68
1939Altispinax dunkeri Kuhn p. 74
1956Megalosaurus Romer p. 615
1960Megalosaurus Bataller p. 157
1960Megalosaurus dunkeri Bataller p. 157
1960Megalosaurus Delair p. 77
1960Altispinax dunkeri Delair p. 79
1964Megalosaurus Tatarinov p. 537
1964Megalosaurus Walker p. 128
1966Megalosaurus Romer p. 369
1966Megalosaurus del Corro p. 2
1967Megalosaurus Charig p. 715
1969Megalosaurus dunkeri Quinet p. 30
1970Megalosaurus Steel p. 33
1970Megalosaurus dunkeri Steel p. 35
1970Megalosaurus Swinton pp. 142-145
1970Altispinax dunkeri Swinton p. 143
1971Megalosaurus Haubold p. 77
1973Megalosaurus Delair p. 2
1974Megalosaurus Haubold p. 46
1974Megalosaurus Waldman p. 326
1977Megalosaurus Galton p. 230
1979Megalosaurus Madsen and Miller p. 5
1980Megalosaurus Molnar p. 137
1982Megalosaurus Gardiner p. 222
1982Megalosaurus Santafé et al. p. 83
1982Megalosaurus dunkeri Santafé et al. p. 84
1983Megalosaurus Zhao p. 302
1984Megalosaurus Buscalioni and Sanz p. 12
1984Megalosaurus dunkeri Sanz p. 502
1984Altispinax dunkeri Taquet p. 217
1984Megalosaurus Welles p. 177
1986Megalosaurus Chabli pp. 70-71
1988Megalosaurus Carroll
1988Megalosaurus Paul pp. 280-281
1989Megalosaurus Kurzanov p. 4
1990Megalosaurus Molnar et al. p. 191
1992Megalosaurus Bakker et al. p. 3
1992Megalosaurus dunkeri Cheevely and Chapman p. 349
1994Megalosaurus Currie and Zhao
1994Megalosaurus Holtz
1995Megalosaurus Holtz, Jr. p. 35A
1996Megalosaurus Holtz, Jr. p. 42A
1997Altispinax dunkeri Vickaryous and Ryan p. 488
1999Megalosaurus Gao
2000Megalosaurus Holtz, Jr. p. 13 fig. 5
2003Prodeinodon dunkeri Ruiz-Omeñaca and Canudo pp. 112-113
2004Megalosaurus Holtz, Jr. et al. p. 72
2006Megalosaurus Mateus p. 226
2008Megalosaurus Benson et al. p. 420
2009Megalosaurus Benson and Barrett p. 140
2011Megalosaurus Vila et al. p. 158
2012Megalosaurus Carrano et al. p. 248 fig. 7
2013Megalosaurus Hanson and Makovicky p. 781
2014Megalosaurus Hendrickx and Mateus
2016Megalosaurus Rauhut et al. p. 38
2018Megalosaurus Rauhut et al. p. 18

Is something missing? Join the Paleobiology Database and enter the data

RankNameAuthor
kingdomAnimalia()
Bilateria
EubilateriaAx 1987
Deuterostomia
phylumChordataHaeckel 1874
subphylumVertebrata
superclassGnathostomata
Osteichthyes()
subclassSarcopterygii()
subclassDipnotetrapodomorpha(Nelson 2006)
subclassTetrapodomorpha()
Tetrapoda
Reptiliomorpha
Anthracosauria
subclassAmphibiosauriaKuhn 1967
Cotylosauria()
Amniota
Sauropsida
classReptilia
RankNameAuthor
subclassEureptilia()
Romeriida
Diapsida()
Archosauromorpha(Huene 1946)
Crocopoda
ArchosauriformesGauthier 1986
Eucrocopoda
Archosauria()
informalAvemetatarsalia
Ornithodira
Dinosauromorpha
Dinosauriformes
Dinosauria()
Theropoda()
Tetanurae
superfamilyMegalosauroidea()
familyMegalosauridae()
subfamilyMegalosaurinae
genusMegalosaurus

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

G. †Megalosaurus Parkinson 1822
show all | hide all
Subg. †Megalosaurus (Deinodon) Leidy 1857
Megalosaurus bucklandii Mantell 1827
Invalid names: Megalosaurus conybearei Ritgen 1826 [nomen nudum], Megalosaurus dunkeri Dames 1884 [nomen dubium]
Diagnosis
No diagnoses are available
Measurements
partNmeanminimummaximummedians.d.
fibula circumference2234.0230.0238.0234.05.66
humerus circumference1191.0----
scapula circumference2104.5104.0105.0104.50.707
ulna circumference1142.0----

Composition: hydroxyapatiteo
Entire body: yesg
Adult length: 10 to < 100o
Adult width: 1.0 to < 10o
Adult height: 1.0 to < 10o
Maximum body mass: 3000 kgg
Minimum body mass: 1000 kgg
Architecture: compact or denseo
Ontogeny: accretion, modification of partso
Grouping: solitaryo
Environment: terrestrialo
Locomotion: actively mobileo
Life habit: ground dwellingo
Diet: carnivoreo
Reproduction: oviparouso
Dispersal: direct/internalo
Dispersal 2: mobileo
Created: 2005-08-24 13:14:42
Modified: 2005-08-24 15:14:42
Source: g = genus, o = order
References: Marsh 1875, Peczkis 1995

Age range: base of the Rhaetian to the top of the Maastrichtian or 208.50000 to 66.00000 Ma

Collections (58 total)


Time interval Ma Country or state Original ID and collection number
Rhaetian208.5 - 201.3France (Franche-Comte) M. sp. (90877)
Early/Lower Jurassic201.3 - 174.1China (Xizang) M. tibetensis (165590)
Middle Jurassic174.1 - 163.5China (Xizang Zizhiqu) M. dapukaensis (53673)
Late/Upper Bajocian - Bathonian171.6 - 166.1United Kingdom (England) Loxodonta africana (59715)
Bajocian170.3 - 168.3United Kingdom (England) M. bucklandi (52539) M. sp. (52541 52572 52573)
Bathonian168.3 - 166.1United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (57121 59362)
Early/Lower Bathonian167.7 - 164.7United Kingdom (England) M. bucklandi (52546) M. sp. (31054)
Late/Upper Bathonian167.7 - 164.7United Kingdom (England) M. bucklandi (52550) M. sp. (52551 53520 74835) Theropoda indet. (39075)
Middle Bathonian167.7 - 164.7United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (57140 59357) M. sp., M. bucklandii (57120) Scrotum humanum (59716)
Callovian166.1 - 163.5France (Franche-Comté) M. sp. (67993)
Late/Upper Callovian164.7 - 161.2France (Basse-Normandie) M. sp. a (52633) M. sp., M. gracilis (141177)
Middle Callovian164.7 - 161.2United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (59127)
Middle Callovian - Late/Upper Callovian164.7 - 161.2France (Franche-Comté) M. sp. (142143)
Oxfordian163.5 - 157.3France (Charentes) M. sp. (90080)
Late/Upper Oxfordian161.2 - 155.7United Kingdom (England) M. bucklandi (91991)
Middle Oxfordian161.2 - 155.7United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (91992)
Kimmeridgian157.3 - 152.1Poland (Zachodniopomorskie) M. sp. (163141)
Kimmeridgian157.3 - 152.1United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (75743)
Early/Lower Kimmeridgian155.7 - 150.8Germany (Nordrhein-Westfalen) M. sp. (182492)
Early/Lower Kimmeridgian155.7 - 150.8United Kingdom (England) Megalosauridae indet. (38656)
Tithonian152.1 - 145.0Tanzania (Lindi) M. sp. (49820)
Middle Tithonian150.8 - 145.0France (Pas-de-Calais) M. insignis (53966)
Late/Upper Berriasian145.0 - 140.2United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (80516 224727)
Late/Upper Berriasian145.0 - 140.2Germany (Niedersachsen) M. dunkeri (48925)
Late/Upper Berriasian - Valanginian145.0 - 132.9United Kingdom (England) M. bucklandi (52571) M. sp. (187192)
Late/Upper Berriasian - Early/Lower Aptian145.0 - 122.46United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (190893)
Late/Upper Berriasian - Aptian145.0 - 113.0United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (222390)
Early/Lower Valanginian140.2 - 136.4United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (52649 91990)
Late/Upper Valanginian140.2 - 136.4United Kingdom (England) M. sp. (222518)
Barremian129.4 - 125.0Spain (La Rioja) M. sp. (173556 173557 173558)
Early/Lower Aptian125.45 - 122.46United Kingdom (England) M. bucklandi (36581)
Aptian125.0 - 113.0Spain (La Rioja) M. sp. (59099 227100 227101 227102)
Albian113.0 - 100.5France (Lorraine) M. sp. (140021 140022)
Middle Albian109.0 - 105.3France (Marne) M. sp. (139920)
Early/Lower Coniacian89.3 - 85.8Belgium (Hainaut) M. sp. (188778)
Maastrichtian72.1 - 66.0India (Andhra Pradesh) M. sp. (58100)