Sigilmassasaurus

Sigilmassasaurus Temporal range: Cenomanian ~99–94 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Middle neck vertebra, specimen CMN 50791 (the holotype of Spinosaurus maroccanus)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Dinosauria
Clade:	Saurischia
Clade:	Theropoda
Family:	†Spinosauridae
Tribe:	†Spinosaurini
Genus:	†Sigilmassasaurus Russell 1996
Species:	†S. brevicollis
Binomial name
†Sigilmassasaurus brevicollis Russell 1996
Synonyms
?Spinosaurus maroccanus Russell 1996

Sigilmassasaurus (/siːdʒɪlˌmɑːsəˈsɔːrəs/ see-jil-MAH-sə-SOR-əs; "Sijilmassa lizard") is a controversial and dubious genus of spinosaurid dinosaur that lived approximately 100 to 94 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous Period in what is now northern Africa. Named in 1996 by Canadian paleontologist Dale Russell, it contains a single species, Sigilmassasaurus brevicollis. The identity of the genus has been debated by scientists, with some considering its fossils to represent material from the closely related species Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, while others have classified it as a separate taxon, forming the clade Spinosaurini with Spinosaurus as its sister taxon.

Sigilmassasaurus was a moderately-built, ground-dwelling, bipedal carnivore, like most other theropods. It may have had strong neck musculature as evidenced by the morphology of its vertebrae (backbones). Sigilmassasaurus may have had semiaquatic habits and a partially piscivorous diet. It coexisted with other large theropods in the Kem Kem Group.