What Is a Masiakasaurus?
The Masiakasaurus is a genus of noasaurid theropod dinosaur that lived about 72.1 to 66 million years ago in the Late Cretaceous period. They were small predatory dinosaurs located in Madagascar and their name in Malagasy means “vicious lizard”. The first bones discovered from this species were several parts of a skull, the humerus, hindlimbs, and its distinctive teeth. With the currently recovered fossils, it is believed that two forms of the Masiakasaurus existed, with one being more agile and one being bulkier and heavily built. Currently, only about 65% of its skeleton is known.
What Did A Masiakasaurus Look Like?
Masiakasaurus were members of the theropod genus, so like other dinosaurs in this clade they are characterized by their bipedal nature, body hollow bones, and three toes with sharp claws on both front and back limbs. The body of the Masakiasaurus measured about 6 feet in length. This species is known best for its distinctive front teeth which projects forward out of the mouth. Its front teeth on both the upper and lower jaw curve inward at the ends which created a hooking action that increased its ability to catch fast-moving prey. The Masiakasaurus is described as having either a robust form or a gracile form. The robust Masiakasaurus has thicker bones and more pronounced muscle attachments while the gracile form is more slender with less pronounced muscle attachments. However, it is still unclear whether these two forms represent sexual dimorphism, two distinct populations, or if one was a subspecies of the other.
Habitat of the Masiakasaurus
The first remains found of the Masiakasaurus were discovered in the Maevarano Formation in northwestern Madagascar. This species was a land-dwelling predator that lived alongside other animals such as Rahonavis, Majungasaurus, Rapetosaurus, and Simosuchus. While it is known that Madagascar was a semi-arid landscape during this period, studies have shown that a large number of prehistoric animals that lived there during the Late Cretaceous period lived near a coastal floodplain.
Diet and Hunting of the Masiakasaurus
The exact diet of the Masiakasaurus is currently unknown. However, scientists do agree these dinosaurs were carnivorous. Due to the uniqueness of this species’ teeth and ability to catch small fast-moving prey, it’s believed fish were the main part of their diet. This means they most likely stayed near coastlines, rivers, and other water sources abundant with aquatic life. It is also thought they ate animals like lizards, snakes, and smaller mammals. The small size of the Masiakasaurus likely helped them gain speed, and chase down prey. Their back teeth were used to slice into tough meats, as it would be difficult to use their front grabbers to do this. While Masiaksasurus chased down their prey, the speed they had also helped them escape predators. Experts believed the Majungasaurus, and other larger dinosaurs that lived during the same time period as this dinosaur preyed on them. The smaller size of the Masiakasaurus made it easy for any bigger animal to attack them. At the time there were not many large carnivores in Madagascar bigger than them.
Extinction of the Masiakasaurus
The Masiakasaurus like the majority of dinosaurs went extinct, but it is not yet known what exactly caused their demise. This species lived between 72 and 66 million years ago. They likely died off during the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event along with most other dinosaurs. This event killed three-quarters of the plant and animal species on earth. The Chicxulub asteroid impact changed the environment and caused the demise of all non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaeous-Paleogene event. This asteroid caused an eternal winter and made it difficult for predators to have a reliable food source. Animals like birds survived since they could fly to areas with more resources, and feed on nonliving things like seeds.
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Dinosaurs are one of the most beloved creatures. Their fossils give us a look at the types of animals that lived throughout earth’s history. Ancient animals resemble many of the species we have today, but some may look like monsters found in movies. Take a look at other articles about the various ancient animals that once roamed the earth.
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