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Top 10 Largest Theropods - Update

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Gigadino

MemberCompsognathusNovember 08, 2014

I'm back, and since there have been a lot of new things during last months, I think it's time to update my top 10 largest Theropods list. You may find some big surprises:

#1. Tyrannosaurus rex

Everybody's favourite meat eater. Called "the absolute wardlord of the Earth" by New York Times in 1905, it's the most famous dinosaur in this list. This guy is pretty big: the largest specimen in called FMHN PR2081, or "Sue", and it's the largest good Theropod specimen: it was around to 3.5 meters tall, with a lenght of 12.3 m. This guy wasn't the longest meat-eaters but, due to its massive built, it was likely among the heaviest. Estimates for "Sue" range from as little as 5.6 t to over 9.5 t. Hartman recently proposed a lower estimate, wich puts this animal at over 8 t. It can beat any other Theropods in my list in terms of weight and since this ranking is about the largest (=heaviest), it earned the first place.

#2, #3, #4: Mapusaurus rosae, Giganotosaurus carolinii, Carcharodontosaurus saharicus

The three largest Carcharodontosaurids are very similar in size, so they share a common place.

 

Mapusaurus is often thought to be just 10-11 m long. Actually, that's just a myth. Coria & Curria, Mapusaurus's describers, mentioned some specimens comparable in size with Giganotosaurus carolinii's holotype. There is also a specimen wich is 110 % the size of Giganotosaurus carolinii's holotype. That's just a piubic shaft, so we cannot give a precise estimate for this animal. If it was really 110 % the size of G.carolinii's holotype, it was 13.6 m long, but as this is a fragmentary specimen, we don't know if it really was that large. A wiser 12-13 m range is better for large Mapusaurus specimens. A weight range similar to that of Giganotosaurus is also feasible.

 

One of the well know guys is Giganotosaurus carolinii. This south american Carcharodontosaurid was discovered back in 1993, and it was one of the largest Theropods. The first specimen is a uncomplete skeleton (around to 50-70 % complete), wich is longer than "Sue" (at 12.2-12.4 m), but lighter (at 6-7 t). A second specimen has been discovered. It's a piece of dental, and it's estimated to be 6.5 % larger than the first specimen. If it was really that big, it was 13.2 m long, but again this specimen is very fragmentary, and precise estimates aren't safe. A 12-13 m range for this specimen is pretty good. Weight estimates ranges from 5 to 14 t, but something like 7-8 t is supported by most of the paleontologist.

Carcharodontosaurus saharicus is the most fragmentary of the three. It's been discovered back in 1927, but only recently we realized how big it really was. Its size strongly depends on its proportions: if it was small-headed, like Acrocanthosaurus, well, the largest speimen, SMG-din 1, would have been a huge behemot, at almost 14 meters long. However, a such build is pretty unlikely, as Acrocanthosaurus is a less derivated Carcharodontosaurid. The much closer Giganotosaurus is a big-headed Theropod, so a big-headed build is likely for Carcharodontosaurus saharicus, too. If it was big headed, it would end up between 12 and 13 meters. Again, 12-13 m is the best range for a such fragmentary beast. A weight similar to that of other giant Carcharodontosaurids is likely.

#5: Spinosaurus aegyptiacus

Once regarded as the biggest Theropod, something changed during last months. In fact, Ibrahim et. al proposed a new recostruction based on new materials. This time, the animal was much closer to the ground than before, and it had a much less deep chest, thus the animal would be lighter. There is no official estimate for the new recostruction, but Andrea Cau mentioned a 6-7 t figure, wich would fit perfectly for a such gracile animal. Spinosaurus aegyptiacus still holds the record as longest Theropod though, at 12-15 meters long.

#6: Tyrannotitan chubuitensis

This guy may not be that well know among the public, but it would definitely deserve to: it's got an epic name, rivalling Tyrannosaurus rex itself. Joking aside, Cau called it "the Cinderella of Giant Theropods", because it's often forgotten, when it's the largest Theropod know from good specimens along with T.rex. Its lenght was estimated at 12.2 m, and that's the only estimate I found. There's even a 13 meters one by GSP, but seems to be based on a 13 m Giganotosaurs holotype, wich is doubtfull. The largest specimen is around as big as Giganotosaurus holotype - so, between 6 and 7 t - making it one of the largest Theropod.

#7: Deinocheirus mirificus

This guy is a new entry. Once an unsolved puzzle, today the most depicted dinosaur on Deviant Art. Only recently we realized how much strange (and big) it was; we've new materials, wich includes two new very good preserved skeletons. This animal was in the 6-6.5 t range, according to new estimates based on new specimens, so it was almost as big as Spinosaurus. Its lenght is measured at 11 m long, thus it was pretty long as well. It may hold the record as the tallest Theropod, at over 4 meters tall.

#8: Acrocanthosaurus atokensis

This guy is easily recognizable due to its muscolar ridge on its back. Even though it isn't always mentioned, it's earned its place here, as it's one of the largest Theropod, as well as apex predator of its ecosystem. The largest specimen is called "Fran", and it's indeed pretty big; it's measured to reach 11,5 meters long over the curves. Weight estimates rage between 5 and 6 t, even though Mazzetta proposed a higher weight of 7 t. Cau said that this Theropod was much more gracile than Tyrannosaurus rex, so a 5-6 t range can be good.

#9: Therizinosaurus cheloniformis

This guy isn't mentioned everywhere, but it should. It's the most massively built Theropod, even more than Tyrannosaurus rex, thus it was among the heaviest. This guy is the only herbivore in my ranking, but it was a Theropod, so I included it. I've found a lot of estimates for this animal, but a 10 meters estiamte for lenght appears to be good. This animal could have weighted around to 5 t. It may have been the tallest Theropod, only rivalled by Deinocheirus.

#10: Suchomimus tenerensis

You weren't expecting to find it here, were you? Actually, even though it's often forgotten, it definitely deserves to be there. Suchomimus's type specimen is a sub adult, yet it's very big: it was originally estimated at 11 meters, but GSP later gave a 9.5 m estimate. However, hartman recently made a skeletal of this specimen, wich is 12 meters long. And it even wasn't an adult. Weight estimates rage from 4 to over 5 tonnes, thus a 4-5 t range can be good.

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Rex Fan 684
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Not based on the new skeleton it wouldn't be. Keep in mind this new one is 40 percent complete(not too bad), but combined with Stromers and any other fragments, it would be 60 percent complete. Now, that's not an exact science, but it'd helpful.

"Men like me don't start the wars. We just die in them. We've always died in them, and we always will. We don't expect any praise for it, no parades. No one knows our names." ―Alpha-98
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Gigadino
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As I've already explained, using averages isn't wiser, as we don't know the average size ofa couple of animals from this list.

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Tyrant king
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I completely understand. But the maxses are even more unknown.

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Gigadino
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Not really, when we have just 2 specimens, like in Giganotosaurus. We cannot size what average size was with 2 specimens, but we can say what max. confirmed lenght was (by giving a range, wich includes even smaller adults size)

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Something Real
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GIGADINO, REX FAN 684 and TYRANT KING - Out of curiosity, since I know the three of you are quite knowledgeable within the field of paleontology, what is the largest known specimen of Carcharodontosaurus? :)

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Carnosaur
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@Rexfan, yes but bigger species of mosasaurs weighed 7+ tons. mosasaurs in general were massive creatures despite their serpentine-esque build. anaconda are the worlds largest snakes, and they're semi aquatic. need i remark their ribcage is elongated as well? as a general rule of thumb, semi aquatic animals > terrestrial relatives in terms of mass at equal lengths. e.g. green anaconda > african rock python, ornate water monitor > savannah monitor. elongated ribcage doesn't mean an animal is gracile. @ gigadino specifications in regards to your figures there would've been nice, as your post implies higher mass figures as average in some theropods here. SR, even though you didn't ask me, a well rounded estimate for sereno's C. saharicus is ~12.8 m; 7 tons.

Nature doesn't deceive us; it is we who deceive ourselves.

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Gigadino
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The largest Carcharodontosaurus is SMG din-1. Its size is unknow, as it's really fragmentary, but, if we assume that it was big-headed like Giganotosaurus, I estimated it at 12,4-12,6 m long, so, considering the margin of error, the individual variability etc a good size range is 12-13 m and 7-8 t If it was small-headed like Acrocanthosaurus, it could reach 13,9 m long (so 13-14 m), but a such build isn't so likely, as Acrocanthosaurus is less close than Giganotosaurus to Carcharodontosaurus, plus Acrocanthosaurus wasn't a derivated Carcharodontosaurid, while Giganotosaurus and Carcharodontosaurus were. Carnosaur, I specified somewhere that I was talking about max sizes. For example, when I talked about T.rex, I said 'estimates for Sue', wich is the largest T.rex. However, I'll change it, and I'll write nax sizes.

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Something Real
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CARNOSAUR - Thank you so very much! I was having trouble with the estimates online and yours falls within the spectrums very nicely! I greatly appreciate this data! :)

GIGADINO - The information you've provided is quite nice! I like the comparisons you made between other animals! :)

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Rex Fan 684
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Carnosaur, snakes may be somewhat robust in someways, but they have to have extra muscles along their bodies to move because they don't have arms or legs. Spinosaurus did, so it's body overall could be more gracile(and mosasaurs were fully aquatic and could simply swim).

"Men like me don't start the wars. We just die in them. We've always died in them, and we always will. We don't expect any praise for it, no parades. No one knows our names." ―Alpha-98
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Spinosaurus Rex
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I dont remember it being proven to have an elongated ribcage in the first place, so whats the point in that being your arguement towards why you think it was a pushover? 

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Rex Fan 684
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Never said it was a pushoever, but the new skeleton(which can't be denied) suggests it...

 

"Men like me don't start the wars. We just die in them. We've always died in them, and we always will. We don't expect any praise for it, no parades. No one knows our names." ―Alpha-98
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Spinosaurus Rex
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Yes... the new "mishap" suggests it.

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Tyrant king
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@ spino rex, what does that mean?

rex fan, the real spino had longer limbs and could rear up to slash. and it dosent look like a pushover to me.

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Rex Fan 684
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TK, it means he's in denial.

 

And TK, Hartman did a skeleton model(bottom) in which he gave it slightly longer legs...

 

 

And, as I said, it isn't a pushover.

"Men like me don't start the wars. We just die in them. We've always died in them, and we always will. We don't expect any praise for it, no parades. No one knows our names." ―Alpha-98
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Lord Vader
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*grabs popcorn* 

Jack of all trades. Master of none

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Spinosaurus Rex
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Gracile is the definition of pushover i will add. I do not agree with this thing one bit nor your assumption, so ill leave it at that.

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Tyrant king
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well i guess i am in denial because i dont trust he new models. there is no true,legit evidence to back it up. and you did say that the new model suggests it was a pushover. but i am not trying to fight.

 

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Rex Fan 684
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A 6-7 ton animal is not a pushover. Go up to any elephant and see if you can overpower it. 

 

Also, considering the new material is 40 percent complete, and when combined with the holotype and other finds it measures 60 percent complete, I'd call that legit evidence.

"Men like me don't start the wars. We just die in them. We've always died in them, and we always will. We don't expect any praise for it, no parades. No one knows our names." ―Alpha-98
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Lord Vader
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If I'm not mistaken, a pushover would be incapable of defending itself. With those claws, it's sheer physical size, and possibly the ability to change the sail's colour, Spino would be no pushover. Gracile, perhaps. Pushover, hell no. 

Jack of all trades. Master of none

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Spinosaurus Rex
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6-7 tons IS a pushover in terms of the largest carnivores as you put it, i stand at 12 tons average.

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