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Oxalaia, a spinosaurid dinosaur, lived in what is now Brazil during the Late Cretaceous, sometime between 93.9 and 100.5 million years ago. The genus name comes from Oxalá, an African deity. Oxalaia's only known fossils, a partial snout and upper jaw bone, were found in 1999 in the Alcântara Formation. At an estimated 12 to 14 metres (39 to 46 feet) in length, it is the largest carnivorous dinosaur discovered from Brazilian fossils. The African genus Spinosaurus was its closest relative. Oxalaia bore two replacement teeth in each socket (similarly to sharks) and a very ornamented secondary palate, features which are not known in other theropod or spinosaurid dinosaurs. Its habitat was tropical and heavily forested, surrounded by dry regions. Since Oxalaia's skull and teeth resembled those of modern crocodilians, it may have largely hunted fish. Fossil evidence suggests spinosaurids also occasionally preyed on other animals such as small dinosaurs and pterosaurs. (Full article...)