Piatnitzkysaurus

Name: Piatnitzkysaurus ‭(‬Piatnitzky’s lizard‭ ‬-‭ ‬in honour of the palaeontologist Alejandro Mateievich Piatnitzky‭).
Phonetic: Pee-at-nits-kee-sore-us.
Named By: Jose Bonaparte‭ ‬-‭ ‬1979.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Saurischia,‭ ‬Theropoda,‭ ‬Megalosauroidea.
Species: P.‭ ‬floresi‭ (‬type‭)‬.
Diet: ‭C‬arnivore.
Size: About‭ ‬4.3‭ ‬meters long.
Known locations: Argentina‭ ‬-‭ ‬Canadon Asfalto Formation.
Time period: Callovian of the Jurassic.
Fossil representation: Two skulls and partial post cranial remains.




       Currently considered to be a megalosauroid theropod,‭ ‬Piatnitzkysaurus was a smaller medium sized theropod of the Jurassic.‭ ‬As a predator Piatnitzkysaurus probably hunted other small dinosaurs and possibly even those slightly larger than itself.‭ ‬It is also almost a certainty that Piatnitzkysaurus would scavenge the carcasses of dead dinosaurs when able,‭ ‬since scavenging is a frequent and often observed feeding strategy in most predatory animals that are capable of killing their own prey.
       Hailing from the Canadon Asfalto Formation,‭ ‬Piatnitzkysaurus likely lived alongside other dinosaurs such as Eoabelisaurus,‭ ‬Patagosaurus,‭ ‬Volkheimeria and Tehuelchesaurus.‭ ‬However it is actually a dinosaur from France called Piveteausaurus that is considered to be one of the dinosaurs most similar to Piatnitzkysaurus in form.

Further reading
-‭ ‬Dinosaurs:‭ ‬A Jurassic assemblage from Patagonia,‭ ‬Jose Bonaparte‭ ‬-‭ ‬1979.
-‭ ‬A description of Megalosaurus bucklandii‭ (‬Dinosauria:‭ ‬Theropoda‭) ‬from the Bathonian of the UK and the relationships of Middle Jurassic theropods,‭ ‬R.‭ ‬B.‭ ‬J.‭ ‬Benson‭ ‬-‭ ‬2010.
-‭ ‬Braincase structure of the Middle Jurassic theropod dinosaur Piatnitzkysaurus,‭ ‬Rauhut‭ ‬-‭ ‬2004.



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