Abelisaurus

Abelisaurus is a genus of abelisaurid theropod dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous of South America. It is the type genus of the family Abelisauridae, a group of carnivorous theropods known primarily from Gondwanan landmasses. The type species, Abelisaurus comahuensis, was described from fossils recovered in Argentina. The available material is fragmentary, so its precise appearance and full body size are uncertain, but as an abelisaurid it would have been a relatively robust, bipedal predator with a short, deep skull and proportionally short forelimbs compared with larger theropods.

Abelisaurus lived in what is today Patagonia during the Late Cretaceous, a period marked by diverse abelisaurid lineages across southern continents. The discovery of Abelisaurus helped establish the distinct abelisaurid lineage and contributed to the understanding of theropod diversity in the southern hemisphere during this time.

In paleobiology, abelisaurids are characterized by distinctive cranial ornamentation and sculpturing and by reduced forelimbs. While Abelisaurus itself is known from limited material, its status as the eponymous genus of the Abelisauridae makes it a reference point for the evolution and study of abelisaurids in Gondwanan ecosystems.