Spinosaurus aegyptiacus for Kids Ages 6-8

Spinosaurus aegyptiacus

I am Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, one of the biggest meat-eating dinosaurs. I lived around 95 million years ago in the rivers of North Africa, using my paddle-like tail to swim and my long snout to catch fish. My first bones were found in 1912 but were lost in 1944, making me a mystery. New fossils found in 2014 helped scientists finally understand how I lived as a swimming dinosaur. My story teaches us that there is always more to learn about the past.

Existence Period c. 99.0 Million Years Ago - 93.5 Million Years Ago (circa)

First Fossils Discovered 1912

Formally Described 1915

Spinosaurus: The River King's Story

Hello there! My name is Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, and I was one of the biggest meat-eating dinosaurs ever! Do you see the giant sail on my back? That was my most famous feature. It made me look very tall and special. I didn't live in your neighborhood, though. I lived a very, very long time ago, around 95 million years ago. My home was a warm, watery world in a place we now call North Africa. It was full of rivers and swamps, the perfect place for a dinosaur like me.

I was a little different from other big dinosaurs you might know. While they stomped around on land, I was well-adapted to a semi-aquatic lifestyle, spending considerable time in aquatic environments, though the exact proportion of time spent swimming versus on land is still under study! My body was perfect for it. I had a long snout, just like a crocodile, which was great for catching slippery fish. My tail was special, too. It was strong and shaped like a paddle, helping me glide through the water. I likely preyed upon large fish, including Onchopristis, but no direct evidence indicates a specific preference. I was the king of my river, the top predator in my ecosystem, and I loved my watery home.

You might wonder how you know all about me. Well, my story began to be told when my bones were first found in Egypt way back in the year 1912. A scientist who studies dinosaurs, called a paleontologist, named Ernst Stromer led the team that found me. But something sad happened to those first bones. They were lost during a big war in 1944. Because they were gone, I became a big mystery. For a long, long time, nobody was sure what I really looked like or how I lived.

But my story didn't end there! Much later, around the year 2014, scientists found new fossils of my kind in a country called Morocco. These new bones were amazing! They helped everyone understand my special swimming tail and how I really was a river dinosaur. I lived in the Cretaceous Period, and even though I'm not around anymore, my story shows that there are always new and exciting things to discover about the past.