Majungasaurus

## MajungasaurusMahajanga Lizard

* **Bite Force** of 750 - 800 pounds
* One of the few dinosaurs confirmed to engage in cannibalism

***“ Majungasaurus. Madagascar's top hunter. ”***

― **David Attenborough**, *Islands*
***Majungasaurus*** (Mahajanga Lizard, for it was found in the Mahajanga Province of Madagascar) is a genus of abelisaurid theropod dinosaur that served as the apex predator of the Maevarano Formation, Madagascar, 70 - 66 million years ago, during the Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period.

## Paleobiology

### Size and Physique

*Majungasaurus* is a medium-sized, heavily-built abelisaurid that stood 2 meters (6 feet, 7 inches) tall and 5.6 - 7 meters (18 - 23 feet) in length, with some fragmentary remains indicating that some specimens can exceed 8 meters (26 feet), rivaling *Carnotaurus* in length. It weighed around 750 - 1100 kilograms (1650 - 2430 pounds). As with all abelisaurs, *Majungasaurus* is believed to have a bite force similar to that of *Allosaurus*, around 750 - 800 pounds.

### Rugged Features

Being an abelisaur, it had rough skin, made even more rugged by feature scales and osteoderms randomly scattered and distributed all over the body, as well as short arms that appear vestigial, with no wrist bones and immobile elbow joints. Atop its skull, which is tall, short in terms of length, and robust like other abelisaurs, is a single thick, rounded horn. Originally, this horn was mistaken for a pachycephalosaur dome in 1979, and was thus considered a new pachycephalosaur called "*Majungatholus atopus*". However, its true origin was eventually discovered in 1998, leading to a reversion to its older name "*Majungasaurus crenatissimus*", which was set in 1955, around 24 years prior to "*Majungatholus*", and thus takes precedence. It is now believed that this rounded horn was likely a display feature (since the horn has a hollow sinus cavity within it, making it not ideal for use in physical headbutting). This single horn, along with other shared features, shows that *Majungasaurus* is more closely related to *Rajasaurus* of India rather than *Carnotaurus* of Argentina, reinforcing the belief that the abelisaurs of Africa, Europe, and India diverged into forms distinct from their isolated South American cousins.

### Sounds

As with *Carnotaurus* and *Rajasaurus*, *Majungasaurus* is depicted making guttural crocodile-like sounds and emu-esque vocalizations, producing low, rumbling growls and resonant, raspy huffs. Much like birds, crocodiles, and other reptiles, *Majungasaurus* does not need to open its mouth in order to vocalize, as vibrating and amplifying the sound of air within the body is sufficient.

### Prehistoric Planet's Depiction

***“ This particular female is blind in one eye. So she finds it hard to make a kill, and is now very hungry. ”***

― **David Attenborough**, *Islands*
Prehistoric Planet depicts *Majungasaurus* with an earthly-brown color scheme and a body that appears to be lower and more heavily-built than *Carnotaurus* and *Rajasaurus*. The only individual seen on the show is a female with wounds on her neck and flank as well as a blind left eye. Dr. Darren Naish, lead consultant of Prehistoric Planet, confirms that this is based on a *Majungasaurus* specimen unearthed in 2020, which suffered injuries to the face, lower jaw, spine, arm, ribs and belly, likely due to one injury leading to another. The original plan was to show that these injuries were the result of an attack by a *Mahajangasuchus*, a crocodyliform that also lived in the Maevarano Formation, though such a scene was ultimately scrapped.

## Paleoecology

### Paleoenvironment

*Main: Maevarano Formation*

Main: Maevarano Formation

*Majungasaurus* lived 70 - 66 million years ago in the Maevarano Formation in the Mahajanga Province of Madagascar as the apex predator of the region. The Maevarano Formation is recognized as an alluvial plain where the discharge of rivers fluctuate. The area is also believed to have had reddish soil, with floodplains that supported vegetation able to grow in the relatively dry climate. The region, at times semi-arid (like it is today), at times undergoing strong dry and wet seasons, was eventually claimed by rising sea levels that pushed the shoreline back. This may or may not have been the result of the Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction Event, a catastrophe that wiped out three-quarters of life on Earth.

### Hunting Tactics and Feeding Preferences

The female seen on Prehistoric Planet is shown to have dried blood and wounds on her neck and flank, along with a blinded left eye. This implies that she's gotten into an accident or has been involved in conflict (the original plan was to show that these injuries were inflicted by a *Mahajangasuchus*). Such conflicts can also be the result of the most known trait of the animal as indicated by evidence and popularized in modern media, hostility between members that results in cannibalism. Whatever the case, these wounds and the loss of vision in one eye prove detrimental for the *Majungasaurus*, who is forced to rely more on ambush for her hunts. Despite being very hungry and thus more motivated and driven to acquire a meal, she is still put off by the bluffs of a *Simosuchus*, which is able to confuse and deter her long enough to escape into a burrow.

This same female is later seen wandering around at night, likely still unsuccessful in finding a meal. It is unknown if this implies that *Majungasaurus* is nocturnal, cathemeral (active in irregular intervals during day and night), or is not behaving normally and is just forced to hunt at night due to desperation.

## Appearances

### Islands

#### Segment 3

In the third segment of Islands, on Madagascar, a *Simosuchus* navigates through an area of plants. It is then shown that they live in a group. One *Simosuchus* reaches up to grab leaves that are out of reach by rearing up and standing on top of another, while some members of the group are shown simply basking under the sun, or sleeping in the shade, not too wary of predators given how their heavily-armored bodies make them feel more secure, unaware that, from afar, a female *Majungasaurus* is observing them. She appears to have dried blood and various wounds on her, and it is revealed that her left eye has gone blind. Due to her disability, she has found it difficult to hunt, and has thus gone very hungry. She finally decides to charge at the group of *Simosuchus*, causing them to run for the burrows they set up beforehand to escape from predators. One male *Simosuchus* ends up unable to find an unoccupied burrow, and is left to face the *Majungasaurus*.

***“ This little male is unlucky. But he's not helpless. Reverse charges, tail swipes, and aggressive kicks. ”***

― **David Attenborough**, *Islands*
With nowhere to run, the *Simosuchus* resorts to bluffing his way out of the situation, with reverse charges, kicks, hisses, and tail swipes, confusing and deterring the *Majungasaurus* long enough for the male to find a vacant burrow to rush for and hide in. The hunter tries to reach into the burrow, but it proves too narrow for her broad snout to fit in. As a safety precaution, the *Simosuchus* digs himself even deeper, getting dirt all over the hunter's face. Dejected and left growling in frustration due to the failure to secure a meal, the *Majungasaurus* walks off, with the *Simosuchus* emerging from his burrow only when he is sure that the hunter has really left the area.

#### Segment 4

In the next segment, as an *Adalatherium* goes out at night to look for food, she comes across the same *Majungasaurus* from earlier (as indicated by the wounds and blinded left eye). The mammal, possessing poor vision herself, senses the threat with her ears and stays still to avoid getting noticed. Fortunately for the mammal, the theropod remained unaware of her presence, the *Majungasaurus* briefly sniffing the air before wandering off to continue looking for prey.

## Trivia

* *Majungasaurus* is the only abelisaurid on Prehistoric Planet not shown interacting with others of its kind.

## References

### General

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Ceratosaur palaeobiology: new insights on evolution and ecology of the southern rulers
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cannibalism in the Madagascan dinosaur *Majungatholus atopus*
3. ↑ A pachycephalosaurid dinosaur from Madagascar and a Laurasia-Gondwanaland connection in the Cretaceous
4. ↑ Lavocat, René (1955). "Sur une portion de mandibule de Théropode provenant du Crétacé supérieur de Madagascar" [On a portion of Theropod's mandible from the Upper Cretaceous of Madagascar]. *Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (in French)*. 27: 256–259

### Dr. Darren Naish

1. ↑ The *Majungasaurus* of Prehistoric Planet is based on a specimen discovered in 2020, with injuries to the face, lower jaw, spine, arm, ribs, and belly, which is likely the result of one injury leading to another.
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 There was a prop made for *Mahajangasuchus*, which was originally planned to be shown attacking the *Majungasaurus* seen in Islands, being responsible for its injuries, though this plan was abandoned due to limitations like time and manpower constraints.