Kryptops

What it was like

Kryptops was an abelisaurid, a predator with a short, deep face. Its upper jaw bone is rough and pitted, a sign that a tough, horny covering lay over its face in life, which gave it its name.

Its world

It lived in the Early Cretaceous in what is now Niger. Its bones come from the Elrhaz Formation, a land of rivers where it shared the land with the fish-eating Suchomimus, the predator Eocarcharia and plant eaters such as Nigersaurus, Ouranosaurus and Lurdusaurus.

How it was found

Sereno and Brusatte named Kryptops in 2008. Some back and hip bones were first linked to it, but later studies suggest those belong to a different kind of predator, so only the jaw is certain.