Spinosaurus

Spinosaurus is a large carnivore from Egypt and Morocco that lived during the Early to Late Cretaceous period. A member of the spinosauridae family, Spinosaurus was a water based predator that hunted for fish using its long snout to probe the water and its claws to kill large fish species. Bones of several fish species have been found inside Spinosaurus stomachs, including the large 4 meter long coelacanth Mawsonia and the enormous 8 meter long sawfish Onchopristis. Spinosaurus was a huge predator, rivaling Tyrannosaurus in size, but may have been solely a piscivore, as its snout and teeth appear specialized for catching fish rather than tackling herbivorous dinosaurs. However it would most likely have scavenged any dead dinosaur it found.

The history of Spinosaurus depicted in science and popular culture is an interesting one. Spinosaurus was found by German paleontologist Ernst Stromer on an expedition to Egypt in 1912. Stromer noted the tall neural spines and suggested that Spinosaurus either had a large display sail or a fatty hump like a camel; the nature of the neural spines is still being debated. Stromer also discovered the giant carnivore Carcharodontosaurus, the sauropod Aegyptosaurus and the crocodile Stomatosuchus. All of his findings were on display in a museum in Munich, which in World War 2 was hit by allied bombers. All of Stromer's fossil specimens were lost, however his notes on location of the expedition and the fossils he found survived and later in the 1990s, numerous expeditions traveled to his original site in Egypt as well as Morocco and rediscovered many of his lost dinosaurs and many new discoveries like the giant titanosaur Paralatitan and the swift footed Deltadromeus. The image of Spinosaurus also changed many times. When first discovered by Stromer, the skeleton was incomplete, so was given a skull similar to Tyrannosaurus, a logical choice at the time. From 1970 onwards, Spinosaurus was shown in a quadrupedal posture, but in the mid 1990s, Spinosaurus was given a full make over; its skull became long and crocodile like, similar to related spinosaurids such as Baryonyx and it was given a bipedal posture again. However in 2014, Spinosaurus was once more depicted in a quadrupedal stance.

Since the destruction of the original specimens, Spinosaurus was relatively obscure until the 1970s when it started appearing in many books, especially children's books. It steadily grew moderate popularity due to its unique appearance of its sail, but usually remained a background dinosaur. In the early 2000s however, when Spinosaurus' true size was established and its appearance in *Jurassic Park III,* Spinosaurus soared in popularity and was regarded as an apex predator that could rival Tyrannosaurus in power. Now however, Spinosaurus' fearsome reputation has softened, but it is still regarded as a popular animal and frequently appears in many sources of media.

Your guests will find Spinosaurus a wonderful sight to behold, with its huge size and spectacular sail. It will also exhibit interesting fishing behavior, so it is recommended to house Spinosaurus in an exhibit with a fresh water body such as a lake, river or delta. While Spinosaurus may not be as ferocious as some other large carnivores, keep in mind that it is a massive and powerful animal and should be housed carefully.

### Spinosaurus' History in Mesozoica

Spinosaurus was made popular in the movie *Jurassic Park III* and appeared in *Jurassic Park: Operation Genesis*. Naturally, this made Spinosaurus extremely popular and became part of the game and a major player in the game's marketing. It was first shown on February 24, 2015. Since then it has appeared many times over the development of the game. The second model was shown on June 28, 2015 as an option for fans that wanted the Spinosaurus to appear as it did in *Jurassic Park III*.