Monolophosaurus

What it was like

Monolophosaurus was a meat-eating theropod named for the single, tall crest running along the top of its skull. The crest was hollow and connected to the animal's nasal passages, and paleontologists think it was mainly for display rather than fighting, since it looks too thin and delicate for combat. Monolophosaurus grew to about 5.7 meters (19 feet) long, walked on two legs, and had a skull built for gripping struggling prey, lined with sharp, curved teeth.

Its world

Monolophosaurus lived in what is now China during the Middle Jurassic, between about 165 and 162 million years ago. It shared its world with the long-necked sauropod Mamenchisaurus, the early tyrannosauroid relative Guanlong, and other predators such as Sinraptor and Limusaurus, along with smaller plant eaters like Yinlong.

How it was found

Zhao and Currie named Monolophosaurus in 1994, based on fossils from the Shishugou Formation. Only one fossil find has been reported, so many questions about its biology, and its exact relationship to other theropods such as Allosaurus, remain open.