Description
Location: Elrhaz Formation, Gadoufaoua, Tenere Desert, Niger, Africa
Weight: 0.7 Ounces
Tooth Dimensions: 2.4 Inches Long, 1 Inch Wide, 0.5 Inches Thick
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Eocarcharia dinops, meaning "fierce-eyed dawn shark," is an extinct theropod dinosaur discovered in Niger's Elrhaz Formation. Described in 2008 by paleontologists Paul Sereno and Steve Brusatte, it was initially classified as a basal carcharodontosaurid, a group of large predatory theropods. The fossils, including a maxilla, postorbitals, and teeth, were found in the Aptian–Albian strata at Gadoufaoua. Recent studies question its exact classification due to the fragmentary and possibly mixed nature of the fossils. While some features, like the maxilla and teeth, align with carcharodontosaurids, other parts, such as the skull roof and postorbital bones, might belong to a spinosaurid like Suchomimus. When identified as a carcharodontosaurid, Eocarcharia is estimated to be 6–8 meters long (20–26 feet), smaller than relatives like Carcharodontosaurus and Giganotosaurus. Its distinctive, robust postorbital brow—likely covered in keratin—may have been used for intraspecific head-butting. Eocarcharia lived in a riparian environment with inland floodplains, coexisting with animals like Suchomimus, Nigersaurus, and crocodylomorphs such as Sarcosuchus.
