Dilophosaurus

Say it: dy-LOH-fə-SOR-əs

Name means: “two-crested lizard”1

Ate: MeatOther meat-eatersEarly Jurassic

Dilophosaurus was a big, fast meat-eating dinosaur that lived in North America about 186 million years ago. It had two thin crests on its head and strong jaws that could crush bone. It was the biggest land predator in its neighborhood during the Early Jurassic.1 2

Lived

201 to 184 million years ago3

Early Jurassic

Fossils found in

Arizona, Utah, USA; also India1 3

Food

Meat1

Length

6 m1

estimate

Artist's life restoration of Dilophosaurus — How Dilophosaurus may have looked, by Brian Engh. Published by Adam D. Marsh and Timothy B. Rowe. CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Scientists still argue about colours and details.

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

Dilophosaurus had two thin crests on its head made from the nasal and lacrimal bones. These crests might have been used for display or to attract mates.1 2

Its jaws were strong enough to puncture bone, and it may have been the top predator in its ecosystem.1

Some scientists think Dilophosaurus might have eaten fish. Its jaws had a 'rosette' of interlocking teeth like modern fish-eating crocodiles and gharials.1

Dilophosaurus breathed like a bird. Air sacs in its bones allowed unidirectional airflow in its lungs, which gave it more oxygen and made it a fast, active hunter.1

Fossil footprints of Dilophosaurus have been found, including traces where it rested.1

It lived in a seasonally dry environment with rivers and sand dunes, like a river oasis surrounded by a desert.1

Dilophosaurus was the largest land animal in North America during the Early Jurassic, bigger than any other predator at that time.2

Myth buster

Myth: Dilophosaurus could spit venom like in the movie Jurassic Park.

Truth: There is no evidence that Dilophosaurus spat venom. It was a large predator with strong jaws and teeth, not a small frilled dinosaur that spits poison.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Dilophosaurus
Named by: Welles 19703
Group: Other meat-eaters
Family / clade: Neotheropoda3
Classification: Theropoda3
Age of the rocks: 201 to 184 million years (Hettangian to Pliensbachian)3
Rock formations: Kayenta, Dharmaram3
Countries: USA, India3
Fossil records: 14 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Three skeletons were found in northern Arizona in 1940 and collected in 1942. Scientist Samuel P. Welles named the first specimen Megalosaurus wetherilli in 1954. After finding a larger skeleton with crests, he renamed it Dilophosaurus wetherilli in 1970.1
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Dilophosaurus was a fast predator that attacked large prey or a scavenger that ate smaller animals. Most now think it was an active hunter.1

Where the facts come from

Dilophosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
A comprehensive anatomical and phylogenetic evaluation of Dilophosaurus wetherilli (Dinosauria, Theropoda) with descriptions of new specimens from the Kayenta Formation of northern Arizona (bioone.org)
Dilophosaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@dinowiki.app and we will fix it.