Mid Cretaceous · 99–95 million years ago

Giganotosaurus

"Giant Southern Lizard"
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Cretaceous
🦖
13m
Length
4m
Height
8 t
Weight
🥩
Carnivore
~30 km/h
Top speed
📍
South America

Giganotosaurus was the apex predator of South America during the mid-Cretaceous, ruling an ecosystem dominated by some of the largest sauropods that ever lived. It surpassed T. Rex in length, though its skull was longer and more lightly built. Unlike T. Rex's bone-crushing bite, Giganotosaurus likely used a slashing attack, using its serrated teeth to inflict massive bleeding wounds on prey too large to bring down in a single attack.

Key fact
Slightly larger than T. Rex and hunted the massive titanosaur Argentinosaurus — possibly in coordinated groups.