Megalosaurus bucklandii

Overview

Megalosaurus, meaning "great lizard," holds an extraordinary honor: it was the FIRST dinosaur ever to be scientifically named! Described in 1824, this Middle Jurassic predator from England started the entire science of dinosaur paleontology. Every dinosaur discovery since then owes something to this historic animal!

---

Taxonomy & Classification

• Clade: Theropoda
• Family: Megalosauridae
• Diet: Carnivorous
• Locomotion: Bipedal

Megalosaurus gave its name to an entire family—the Megalosauridae!

---

Physical Characteristics

Medium-Large Predator

• Length: About 6-9 meters (20-30 feet)
• Weight: 1,000-3,000 kg (1-3 tons)
• Height: About 2 meters (6.5 feet) at hip
• Build: Robust and powerful

Predator Features

• Large, curved teeth with serrated edges
• Powerful jaws for biting prey
• Strong legs for chasing
• Sharp claws on hands and feet
• Built for hunting and killing

---

The First Dinosaur!

Historic Discovery

Year	Event
1676	Thighbone found, thought to be from giant human!
1818	More bones collected in Oxfordshire
1824	William Buckland names Megalosaurus
1842	Richard Owen creates "Dinosauria"

Megalosaurus was named before the word "dinosaur" existed!

---

William Buckland

The Eccentric Scientist

The man who named Megalosaurus was unusual:

• Geology professor at Oxford University
• Also a churchman (Dean of Westminster)
• Claimed to have eaten every animal possible!
• First to formally describe a dinosaur
• A true pioneer of paleontology

---

Early Mistakes

Getting It Wrong

Early scientists had problems:

• First reconstruction showed it walking on all fours
• Made it look like a giant lizard
• The name "great lizard" reflects this misunderstanding
• Only later did scientists realize it was bipedal
• Early dinosaurs were often reconstructed incorrectly

---

The "Dinosaur Highway"

Recent Discovery!

In Oxfordshire, scientists found:

• Over 200 dinosaur footprints!
• Including tracks from Megalosaurus
• Dating back 166 million years
• Shows dinosaurs walking along a shoreline
• Amazing window into Jurassic behavior

---

Defining "Dinosaur"

One of the Original Three

In 1842, Richard Owen coined "Dinosauria" using:

1. Megalosaurus (the carnivore)
2. Iguanodon (the herbivore)
3. Hylaeosaurus (the armored one)

These three created the concept of dinosaurs!

---

Jurassic England

Megalosaurus's World

166 million years ago:

• England was near the equator
• Tropical climate with shallow seas
• Islands and coastal environments
• Rich with prey animals
• Very different from modern Britain!

---

What We Don't Know

Incomplete Fossils

Despite being the first dinosaur:

• No complete skeleton has been found
• Many bones attributed incorrectly to Megalosaurus over the years
• True appearance still somewhat uncertain
• Scientists had to sort out which bones really belonged
• Still being studied and re-evaluated

---

The "Wastebasket Taxon"

Too Many Bones

For years:

• ANY large theropod bone was called "Megalosaurus"
• Bones from all over the world were lumped together
• Most of these were different animals
• Scientists had to clean up the mess
• Now only English specimens are true Megalosaurus

---

Cool Facts

• The FIRST dinosaur ever scientifically named—in 1824!
• Named before "dinosaur" was even a word
• A bone was once thought to be from a biblical giant!
• The "Dinosaur Highway" in Oxfordshire preserves its footprints
• For decades, every big theropod was wrongly called Megalosaurus
• Named by William Buckland, an eccentric professor who ate unusual foods
• One of the three dinosaurs that defined Dinosauria
• Still being studied nearly 200 years after discovery!

---

Megalosaurus started it all—the first dinosaur ever named, the creature that launched the entire field of dinosaur science, and still revealing secrets today!