Genus
Valid Extinct

Tyrannosaurus

tyrant lizard
Osborn 1905
Etymology Roi des reptiles tyrans

Tyrannosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur. The type species Tyrannosaurus rex, often shortened to T. rex or colloquially T-Rex, is one of the best represented theropods. It lived throughout what is now western North America, on what was then an island continent known as Laramidia. Tyrannosaurus had a much wider range than other tyrannosaurids. Fossils are found in a variety of geological formations which have been dated to the late Maastrichtian age of the late Cretaceous period, 69 to 66 million years ago, with isolated specimens possibly indicating an earlier origin in the middle Campanian age. It was one of the last known members of the tyrannosaurids and among the last non-avian dinosaurs to exist before the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
87
Group
Dinosaures
Carnivore Ground dwelling, solitary Terrestrial
Tyrannosaurus
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Wikimedia
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Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
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Tyrannosaurus
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PBDB Wikipedia
Classification
Dinosauria Unranked clade
Theropoda Unranked clade
Neotheropoda Unranked clade
Averostra Unranked clade
Tetanurae Unranked clade
Coelurosauria Unranked clade
Tyrannosauroidea Superfamily
Tyrannosauridae Family
Tyrannosaurinae Subfamily
Tyrannosaurini Tribe
Tyrannosaurus Genus
Measurements
Height
3,6 m
Length
12,5 m
Tyrannosaurus rex
12 m
Mass
9 500 kg
Tyrannosaurus rex
Fossil sites 87 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇺🇸 United States
78
🇨🇦 Canada
6
🇨🇳 China
1
🇷🇺 Russia
1
🇲🇽 Mexico
1
Geological formations
Lance
12
Denver
6
Ferris
4
Scollard
2
Subashi
1
Temporal distribution
Maastrichtian (72.2–66 Ma)
81
Campanian (83.6–72.2 Ma)
6
Species (9)
Albertosaurus megagracilis subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Aublysodon molnaris subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Dynamosaurus imperiosus subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Manospondylus gigas subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Tyrannosaurus imperator subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Tyrannosaurus mcraeensis 84 Ma
Tyrannosaurus regina subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Tyrannosaurus rex 84 Ma
Tyrannosaurus turpanensis nomen dubium, species not entered Tyrannosaurus 84 Ma
Synonyms (6)
Dinotyrannus subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus
Dynamosaurus subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus
Manospondylus subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus
Stygivenator subjective synonym of Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosauripus nomen nudum Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus turpanensis nomen dubium, species not entered Tyrannosaurus
News 6
Tyrannosaurus rex Scavenged Duck-Billed Dinosaurs in Ancient Wyoming, Bite Marks Reveal
Tyrannosaurus rex Scavenged Duck-Billed Dinosaurs in Ancient Wyoming, Bite Marks Reveal
bone feeding hunting United States Cretaceous +5
Thousands of fossilized bones from a Cretaceous-period bonebed in Wyoming, the United States, offer rare physical evidence that Tyrannosaurus rex fed on the carcasses of a duck-billed dinosaur species called Edmontosaurus annectens. The post Tyrannosaurus rex Scavenged Duck-Billed Dinosaurs in Ancient Wyoming, Bite Marks Reveal appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.
16/07/2026 sci-news
Il devient le dinosaure le plus cher du monde en 10 minutes : voici l’incroyable histoire de Gus
He becomes the most expensive dinosaur in the world in 10 minutes: here is Gus' incredible story
museum Dinosauria Tyrannosaurus skeleton
It spent 67 million years buried in the ground before shaking an auction house. The skeleton of Tyrannosaurus rex nicknamed “Gus” was sold for $50.13 million at Sotheby’s in New York. An absolute record for a dinosaur, which revives the debate on the privatization of...
15/07/2026 futura-terre ⚙ Auto-translated
This dinosaur fossil captures the final moments of a T. rex attack
tooth predator prey fossil Dinosauria +4
A fossilized Edmontosaurus skull with a Tyrannosaurus tooth still embedded in its face has given scientists rare evidence of a dramatic predator-prey encounter. The discovery suggests the giant carnivore delivered an incredibly powerful face-to-face bite, offering new clues about how Tyrannosaurus hunted.
14/07/2026 sciencedaily
New Study Examines Tyrannosaur Reproduction Strategy
reproduction Dinosauria Tyrannosaurus bird study
A new study examining Tyrannosaurus rex hatchlings has provided fresh insight into the early lives of these famous theropod dinosaurs. Researchers writing in the journal "Biology" investigated evidence linked to the development and reproductive strategies of large meat-eating dinosaurs.  The researchers concluded that tyrannosaurs produced relatively small hatchlings compared to modern birds. This suggests that
12/07/2026 everythingdinosaur
Review of New Tyrannosaurus Figure in Prestigious Magazine
toy Hell Creek Dinosauria Tyrannosaurus evolution
The Everything Dinosaur Evolution Tyrannosaurus rex model has received another fantastic endorsement. The inaugural figure in our new Evolution range has been reviewed in issue 157 of the prestigious "Prehistoric Times" magazine. The review highlights the first model in our Hell Creek series. It also features the figure alongside several new prehistoric animal model releases
25/06/2026 everythingdinosaur
T. rex took 40 years to reach full size, scientists find
growth predator fossil Tyrannosaurus study
Tyrannosaurus rex may have been a much slower grower than scientists realized. A new study of 17 tyrannosaur fossils found that the giant predator likely took about 40 years to reach its full size of roughly eight tons, extending previous estimates by 15 years.
22/06/2026 sciencedaily
Images 21
Bibliography
Original description
H. F. Osborn. 1905. Tyrannosaurus and other Cretaceous carnivorous dinosaurs. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 21(14):259-265
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