T yrannosaurus rex was a species of Theropoda
dinosaur in the Late Cretaceous period. Like
other tyrannosaurids – such as Tarbosaurusand Gorgosaurus – the T-rex was a bipedal carnivore and
apex predator and scavenger, preying on smaller
dinosaurs directly or out-muscling them for their kills.
Typical prey included hadrosaurs and ceratopsians.
T yrannosaurus rex’s name translates as “t yrant lizardking” – something that was historically attributed due to
its immense size. Indeed, the T yrannosaurus rex is one
of the largest species ever excavated by palaeontologists,
with specimens averaging over 12 metres (40 feet) in
length and four metres (13 feet) in height, but it wasn’t
the biggest carnivorous dino. It was incredibly heav y
with fully grown adults weighing up to nine tonnes; this
fi gure was suggested in 2011 after an in-depth study
which made digital 3D models of fi ve T-rex skeletons.
Due to their considerable size, the T yrannosaurus rex
had ver y few, if any, predators – a fact that enabled it to
remain unchallenged as the Late Cretaceous era’s apex
predator on land and to live for lengthy periods.
Estimates taken from excavated specimens – of which
there are now more than 30 confi rmed around the world- indicate that the T-rex’s life span was roughly 30 years,
with the majority of growth taking place in the fi rst 16
years before tailing off rapidly. This suggests that the
T yrannosaurus rex would have reached adulthood at
approximately 20 years of age.
As with almost all species of Dinosauria, the
T yrannosaurus was wiped out 65.5 million years ago in
the Cretaceous-Palaeogene (K-Pg) extinction event. At
the time it was one of the last widespread non-avian
dinosaurs, as evidenced by the discover y of many
specimens throughout North America.
Tyrannosaurus rex
Learn about the lizard king’s physiology and
how it presided over the prehistoric jungle
Tyrannosaurus rex
Length: 12-13m (40-43ft)
Height: 4m (13ft)
Weight: 6-9 tonnes
Diet: Carnivore
Discovered: Colorado, USAThe statistics...