Length 1.27 inches 32.2mm
Date Obtained February 2021
Location Elrhaz formation, Gadoufaoua, Niger
Age 112 million years, Albian, Cretaceous
This Suchomimus tenerensis tooth is of great quality. Beside showing feeding wear near the top and having the diagnostic vertical ridges, the serrations are still clearly visible along the carinae. Even a part of the root survived. A beautiful tooth of a rare species, deserving of a place in any collecting. At 3.22 cm (1.27 inch) this tooth is of average size.
All our fossils are consolidated with paraloid b72, to preserve for future generations as is standard procedure within all museums. No repairs or restoration to this fossil.
Suchomimus was a spinosaurid dinosaur related to Britain's Baryonyx, but was larger, at up to 11 meters long. It had serrated, grooved teeth and huge fearsome claws and is believed to have fed on large fish, smaller dinosaurs, pterosaurs and other animals based on knowledge of other spinosaur prey. It is the largest theropod found so far in the Elrhaz Formation and may have competed with Sarcosuchus for the title of apex predator.
The Elrhaz Formation of Niger preserves an Early Cretaceous ecosystem with wide rivers and home to many species of crocodylomorphs and dinosaurs. Perhaps the most famous inhabitants of the Elrhaz ecosystem are the giant crocodile Sarcosuchus and the spinosaurid dinosaur Suchomimus, though it had many others including the sail-backed iguanodont Ouranosaurus and the wide-mouthed sauropod Nigersaurus.