Jurassic June: Nanuqsaurus

Name: Nanuqsaurus (Nan-nuke-sawr-us)

Which means: "polar bear lizard"

Nanuqsaurus was a bipedal theropod dinosaur that lived in the Late Cretaceous, 71-68 million years ago. It is a close cousin of the famous Tyrannosaurus Rex, with its large skull and short forelimbs composing of two individual phalanges. Unlike its cousin this dinosaur was only half the size and length, measuring up to 20-25 feet in length.

This dinosaur made its home in what would be known as modern day Alaska. It shared its habitat with other dinosaurs such as smaller theropods like Troodon and Dromeosaurus, the duck-billed Edmontosaurus, the dome-headed Alaskacephale, and the battering ram like ceratopsid Pachyrhinosaurus, which happens to be one of my all time favorite dinosaurs.

Winter would have been a common during this time period, given its location during the Late Cretaceous, so it was likely that this dinosaur had a coat of feathers to help keep it warm.

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