Tyrannosaurus Rex

 

 

The Tyrannosaurus Rex or T-Rex was one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs and, as such, one of the largest land predators to have ever existed. The name means 'tyrannical lizard king' and has helped in the public perception of the T-Rex as the most badass of all the dinosaurs. It is widely believed that the T-Rex was natures greatest ever predator, although some now believe that it was actually a very large scavenger.

 

Members of the Tyrannosaurus family have been found all around the world but the T-Rex lived particularly in what is now western North America. They would have lived alongside Ceratopsians, such as the Triceratops. They would most likely have preyed mostly upon large herds of Hadrosaurs, although some believe that all Tyrannosaurids were primarily scavengers. Tyrannosaurs are considered to be unique amongst carnivorous dinosaurs for their tiny forelimbs, huge skulls and short snouts.

The Tyrannosaurus Rex was the largest of the Tyrannosaurids. The largest specimen ever discovered measured 12.8 meters (48ft) long and 4 meters (13ft) tall at the hips. The largest T-Rex skull is 1.5 meters (5ft) long and the largest tooth is 30 centimeters long (including the root), the longest tooth of any dinosaur. Despite it's size, the T-Rex was also an incredibly fast creature, although scientist debate exactly how fast.

The T-Rex lived in the late cretaceous period, meaning that it was around for the big extinction that wiped out almost all of the dinosaurs.