Nigersaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that originated from Early Cretaceous Africa. A relatively small sauropod, Nigersaurus is comparable in size to a modern African elephant, Nigersaurus was a fairly small quadruped dinosaur with a small head, relatively short neck, thick hind legs, and a prominent tail. With large fenestrae and thin bones, its skull was specialized for feeding. Nigersaurus had a wide muzzle filled with over 500 teeth, which were rapidly replaced about every 14 days. Typically found in small herds of eight to twelve, but other herbivors may wander with them as well.
Nigersaurus is a social sauropod that can live with a variety of other dinosaurs, including other sauropods, ornithomimosaurs, and hadrosaurs, Nigersaurus enjoys palaeobotany from Tree Ferns, Conifers, and Ginkgo plants.
When discovered in 1999, Nigersaurus was a startling find. The most notable feature of it is its broad jaws with a flattened edge across its front. Inside these jaws were hundreds of small teeth arranged at the front of the jaws. This would have allowed the Nigersaurus to crop low growing vegetation and mash it down into with ease and has earned it the nickname the ‘Mesozoic lawnmower’. A further adaptation was the structure of the inner ear indicates that the head was usually carried close to the ground. These features may have been an adaptation to the soft plants that grew during the Early Cretaceous, as the continents continued to break apart and the climate became wetter, compared to the drier conditions of the Late Jurassic.
Nigersaurus is a member of the Rebbachisauridae family, an evolutionary offshoot of the Diplodocimorpha. These sauropods generally had short necks and tails and teeth more akin to hadrosaurs and ceratopsians rather than sauropods. They lived between the Late Jurassic and early stages of the Late Cretaceous and could be found on almost every continent.
ABILITIES
With its large size and tough hide, Nigersaurus has little to fear save from large packs of determined predators, or bigger predators such as the T-Rex. Its slow speed is more than made up with its durability and ability to walk through deeper waters than most other dinosaurs.
HABITAT
Nigersaurus lived in Early Cretaceous Niger in inland floodplains alongside the ornithopod Ouranosaurus, the spinosaurid Suchomimus, and the massive crocodilian Sarcosuchus, it prefers similar environments today.
NOTES
Nigersaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that originated from Early Cretaceous Africa. A relatively small sauropod, Nigersaurus is comparable in size to a modern African elephant, Nigersaurus was a fairly small quadruped dinosaur with a small head, relatively short neck, thick hind legs, and a prominent tail. With large fenestrae and thin bones, its skull was specialized for feeding. Nigersaurus had a wide muzzle filled with over 500 teeth, which were rapidly replaced about every 14 days. Typically found in small herds of eight to twelve, but other herbivors may wander with them as well.
Nigersaurus is a social sauropod that can live with a variety of other dinosaurs, including other sauropods, ornithomimosaurs, and hadrosaurs, Nigersaurus enjoys palaeobotany from Tree Ferns, Conifers, and Ginkgo plants.
When discovered in 1999, Nigersaurus was a startling find. The most notable feature of it is its broad jaws with a flattened edge across its front. Inside these jaws were hundreds of small teeth arranged at the front of the jaws. This would have allowed the Nigersaurus to crop low growing vegetation and mash it down into with ease and has earned it the nickname the ‘Mesozoic lawnmower’. A further adaptation was the structure of the inner ear indicates that the head was usually carried close to the ground. These features may have been an adaptation to the soft plants that grew during the Early Cretaceous, as the continents continued to break apart and the climate became wetter, compared to the drier conditions of the Late Jurassic.
Nigersaurus is a member of the Rebbachisauridae family, an evolutionary offshoot of the Diplodocimorpha. These sauropods generally had short necks and tails and teeth more akin to hadrosaurs and ceratopsians rather than sauropods. They lived between the Late Jurassic and early stages of the Late Cretaceous and could be found on almost every continent.
ABILITIES
With its large size and tough hide, Nigersaurus has little to fear save from large packs of determined predators, or bigger predators such as the T-Rex. Its slow speed is more than made up with its durability and ability to walk through deeper waters than most other dinosaurs.
HABITAT
Nigersaurus lived in Early Cretaceous Niger in inland floodplains alongside the ornithopod Ouranosaurus, the spinosaurid Suchomimus, and the massive crocodilian Sarcosuchus, it prefers similar environments today.