Elaphrosaurus

Elaphrosaurus
Temporal range: Kimmeridgian
~154–150 Ma
Holotype skeleton mounted (skull, hands and other elements speculative and likely outdated), Natural History Museum of Berlin
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Family: Noasauridae
Subfamily: Elaphrosaurinae
Genus: Elaphrosaurus
Janensch, 1920
Species:
E. bambergi
Binomial name
Elaphrosaurus bambergi
Janensch, 1920

Elaphrosaurus (/ɛˌlɑːfrˈsɔːrəs/ el-AH-froh-SOR-əs) is a genus of ceratosaurian theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 154 to 150 million years ago during the Late Jurassic Period in what is now Tanzania in Africa. Elaphrosaurus was a medium-sized but lightly built member of the group that could grow up to 6.2 m (20 ft) long. Morphologically, this dinosaur is significant in two ways. Firstly, it has a relatively long body but is very shallow-chested for a theropod of its size. Secondly, it has very short hindlimbs in comparison with its body. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that this genus is likely a ceratosaur. Earlier suggestions that it is a late surviving coelophysoid have been examined but generally dismissed. Elaphrosaurus is currently believed to be a very close relative of Limusaurus, an unusual beaked ceratosaurian which may have been either herbivorous or omnivorous.