Scientists have discovered the footprint fossils of what could be one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs to inhabit the earth at the time it was alive, CNN reports.
Per the outlet, researchers analyzed the fossils of footprints of a giant prehistoric creature found in Queensland, Australia, and discovered that they are even larger than a T. Rex's.
"To put that into perspective, T. rex got to about 3.25 meters at the hips and attained lengths of 12 to 13 meters long, but it didn't appear until 90 million years after our Queensland giants," said the lead researcher from the University of Queensland, Anthony Romilio. "The Queensland tracks were probably made by giant carnosaurs -- the group that includes the Allosaurus. At the time, these were probably some of the largest predatory dinosaurs on the planet."
"We have seen the Tyrannosaurus Rex in North America, and large predatory dinosaurs in Africa and South America, " he added. "Turns out ours was in Oakey (Queensland), and it was a badass dinosaur. These guys we've got are close to 3 meters (almost 10 feet) tall, something we have not seen in the skeletal fossil remains in this country."
Dr. Romilio also said that the old coal mines on the Darling Downs, where miners found the footprint would have been where swamps were when the dinosaur was alive. The fossilized footprint measures to be about 80 centimeters, and shaped like a giant bird.
Researchers are dubbing this Australia's version of the T. Rex, albeit from a different time period.
