Creosaurus
KREE-oh-SORE-us /ˌkriːoʊˈsɔːrəs/
Synonym of Allosaurus
flesh lizard
- kreas (creo-) · Greek · flesh, meat
- sauros · Greek · lizard
The name combines the Greek "kreas" (flesh or meat) with "sauros" (lizard), giving "flesh lizard". It alludes to the animal's carnivorous habits, as a large meat-eating theropod. Othniel Charles Marsh used it for a Late Jurassic theropod from the western United States.
- Named by
- Marsh
- Year named
- 1878
- Period
- Late Jurassic
- Stages
- Kimmeridgian – Tithonian
- Found in
- Morrison Formation, Colorado, USA
Creosaurus is now regarded as a junior synonym of Allosaurus (the type species, Creosaurus atrox, is considered Allosaurus material). The stage range and locality given are those of Allosaurus and the Morrison Formation in general, not verified for the Creosaurus type specimen specifically.