Irritator

irritator (the irritating one)

• irritator · Latin/English · one who irritates or provokes

The name was chosen by the describers to reflect the irritation of the researchers when they found that the fossil had been heavily modified. Commercial fossil collectors had added plaster and other material to the snout to make it look longer and more impressive. Scientists had to work to separate the original bone from the additions.

Named by

Martill et al.

Year named

1996

Period

Early Cretaceous

Stage

Albian

Found in

Romualdo Formation, Santana Group, Araripe Basin, northeastern Brazil

A spinosaurid theropod. The type species is Irritator challengeri, named after Professor Challenger from Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World. Angaturama limai, named in 1996, is often considered a synonym of Irritator challengeri.