A new dinosaur was more dangerous than the Tyrannosaurus Rex

Scientists have discovered a new predator at the height of the dinosaur era – a carnivore with shark teeth larger than T. rex.

This top predator is called Ulughbegsaurus uzbekistanensis, or Ulugh Beg for short.

A new study of the creature’s jaw – published in the Royal Society Open – found that the dinosaur was often 26 feet long and weighed nearly 2,200 pounds.

This means he was longer than an African elephant and heavier than a bison, according to Science Alert. So it’s pretty big.

The name Ulughbegsaurus uzbekistanensis, or Ulugh Beg, is based on an astronomer and former sultan of the region now known as Uzbekistan, according to Science Alert.

“What surprised scientists was that the dinosaur was much larger – twice as long and over five times as heavy – than the predator at the top of its previously known ecosystem: a tyrannosaurus, the researchers found.” , according to Science Alert.

Scientists said the creature’s partial jaw could suggest the animal was a carcharodontosaurus, which “were cousins ​​and competitors of tyrannosaurs, whose most famous species is Tyrannosaurus rex,” according to Live Science. .

Scientists don’t know how Ulughbegsaurus uzbekistanensis didn’t stay at the top of the food chain, according to Smithsonian Magazine. Tyrannosaurs were unlikely to have become the best dinosaur in the world by simply fighting Carcharodontosaurs.

University of Calgary paleontologist Darla Zelenitsky said the environment may have something to do with changing the environment, according to Smithsonian Magazine.

“We don’t know why these dinosaurs lost their place as top predators, but it may have been related to environmental changes that would have altered herbivorous dinosaur communities in or around this time window,” Zelenitsky said. .