Carnosauria

Carnosaurs Temporal range: Middle Jurassic – Late Cretaceous, 174–89 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N Possible Late Toarcian and Late Maastrichtian records.
Four carnosaurs (top to bottom): Sinraptor, Acrocanthosaurus, Concavenator, Allosaurus
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Dinosauria
Clade:	Saurischia
Clade:	Theropoda
Clade:	Avetheropoda
Clade:	†Carnosauria von Huene, 1920
Subgroups
†Altispinax? †Monolophosaurus? †Gasosaurus? †Poekilopleuron? †Megalosauroidea? (possibly paraphyletic) †Allosauroidea Marsh, 1878 †Asfaltovenator †Erectopus †Lourinhanosaurus? †Siamotyrannus? †Xuanhanosaurus? †Metriacanthosauridae †Allosauria Paul, 1988 †Allosauridae †Carcharodontosauria Benson, Carrano and Brusatte, 2010 †Datanglong? †Lusovenator †Neovenator †Siamraptor †Ulughbegsaurus? †Carcharodontosauridae Uncertain or possible members †Aorun †Bahariasaurus †Chilantaisaurus †Compsognathus †Deltadromeus †Gualicho †Juravenator †Labocania †Nedcolbertia †Saurophaganax †Scipionyx †Sciurumimus †Siats †Megaraptora
Synonyms
Allosauroidea? Marsh, 1878

Carnosauria is an extinct group of carnivorous theropod dinosaurs that lived during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.

While Carnosauria was historically considered largely synonymous with Allosauroidea, some recent studies have revived Carnosauria as clade including both Allosauroidea and Megalosauroidea (which is sometimes recovered as paraphyletic with respect to Allosauroidea), and thus including the majority of non-coleurosaurian members of theropod clade Tetanurae.^[1] Other researchers have found Allosauroidea and Megalosauroidea to be unrelated groups.^[2]

Distinctive characteristics of carnosaurs include large eye sockets, a long narrow skull and modifications of the legs and pelvis such as the thigh (femur) being longer than the shin (tibia).^[3]

Carnosaurs first appeared in the Middle Jurassic, around 176 mya. The last definite known carnosaurs, the carcharodontosaurs, became extinct in the Turonian epoch of the Cretaceous, roughly 90 mya; reportedly later remains of carcharodontosaurids, from the late Maastrichtian (70–66 mya) Bauru Group in Brazil, were later interpreted as those of abelisaurids.^[4] The phylogenetically problematic megaraptorans, which may or may not be carnosaurs, became extinct around 66 mya.^[5] Unquillosaurus, discovered in rocks dated to 75-70 mya,^[6][7] might potentially also be a carnosaur.