Ouranosaurus

What it was like

Ouranosaurus was a plant-eating ornithopod that grew to about 7 meters (23 feet) long, with a long, low snout ending in a broad, flattened beak. Tall spines rose from the bones of its back, and scientists debate whether these supported a thin sail of skin or a fleshy hump for storing fat, similar to a camel. It had thumb spikes on its hands, like some of its relatives, and probably moved on both two and four legs depending on its speed.

Its world

Ouranosaurus lived in what is now Niger and Tunisia during the Early Cretaceous, between about 121 and 101 million years ago. It shared its river and floodplain habitat with large predators including Carcharodontosaurus and Spinosaurus, as well as the fish-eating Suchomimus, and smaller plant eaters such as Elrhazosaurus and the heavily built Lurdusaurus.

How it was found

Taquet named Ouranosaurus in 1972, based on fossils from the Elrhaz Formation. About 5 separate fossil finds are known today, making it one of the better documented dinosaurs of its time and place.