Eocarcharia

Eocarcharia
Temporal range: Early Cretaceous,
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Family: Carcharodontosauridae
Genus: Eocarcharia
Sereno & Brusatte, 2008
Type species
Eocarcharia dinops
Sereno and Brusatte, 2008

Eocarcharia (meaning "dawn shark") is a genus of carcharodontosaurid theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Elrhaz Formation that lived in the Sahara 112 million years ago, in what today is the country of Niger. It was discovered in 2000 on an expedition led by University of Chicago paleontologist Paul Sereno. The type and only species is Eocarcharia dinops. Its teeth were shaped like blades and were used for disabling live prey and ripping apart body parts. Eocarcharias brow is swollen into a massive band of bone, giving it a menacing glare (leading to the specific name dinops or "fierce-eyed"). It may have reached lengths of 6–8 m (19.7–26.2 ft).

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