Name:
Proceratosaurus (Greek for "before Ceratosaurus"); pronounced PRO-seh-RAT-oh-SORE-us
Habitat:
Plains of Western Europe
Historical Period:
Middle Jurassic (175 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 9 feet long and 500 pounds
Diet:
Meat
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Small size; narrow crest on snout
About Proceratosaurus:
When its skull was first discovered--in England way back in 1910--Proceratosaurus was thought to have been related to the similarly crested Ceratosaurus, which lived much later. Today, though, paleontologists identify this middle-Jurassic predator as more similar to small, early theropods like Coelurus and Compsognathus. Despite its relatively small size, Proceratosaurus was one of the biggest hunters of its day, since the tyrannosaurs and other large theropods of the middle Jurassic had yet to reach their maximum sizes.
