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Dinosaurs from Brazil

Brazil has a fossil record spanning the entire Mesozoic, with formations distributed across several sedimentary basins. The Santa Maria Formation, in the Paraná Basin of Rio Grande do Sul (Late Triassic, ~233 Ma), preserved some of the world's first dinosaurs: Staurikosaurus pricei, Saturnalia tupiniquim, Buriolestes schultzi, and the basal sauropodomorph Unaysaurus tolentinoi. The Romualdo Formation of the Araripe Basin in Ceará (Early Cretaceous, Aptian-Albian) produced exceptionally preserved fossils in carbonate concretions, including Irritator challengeri, Santanaraptor placidus, Aratasaurus museunacionali, Ubirajara jubatus, and the pterosaur Anhanguera blittersdorffi. The Bauru Basin in central-southern Brazil (Late Cretaceous, Campanian-Maastrichtian) hosted the abelisaurid Pycnonemosaurus nevesi and the titanosaur Maxakalisaurus topai, alongside Oxalaia quilombensis (a spinosaurid from Maranhão) and Austroposeidon magnificus, the largest known Brazilian dinosaur.

15 species in the catalog

5 Triassic

10 Cretaceous

Filter by: 15 species

BR · 233–233 Ma

Buriolestes

Buriolestes schultzi

"Raider of Buriol Farm (Schultz)"

Buriolestes schultzi is one of the oldest dinosaurs in the Brazilian fossil record, from the Carnian (Late Triassic, ~233 million years ago) Santa Maria Formation in Rio Grande do Sul. Although it belongs to the sauropodomorph lineage that later gave rise to the giant herbivorous sauropods, Buriolestes was a small bipedal hunter with serrated predator teeth, a fact that rewrote the understanding of the ancestral diet of sauropodomorph dinosaurs. Specimen CAPPA/UFSM 0035, described by Müller et al. in 2018, preserves a nearly complete skeleton with a fully articulated skull, an extremely rare condition among basal sauropodomorphs. In 2021 Müller and colleagues digitally reconstructed the animal's brain (via micro-CT) and revealed a small brain with a well-developed cerebellar flocculus, consistent with an active predator. Buriolestes is a key piece for understanding the origin of dinosaurs and the transition between ancestral carnivory and derived herbivory in Sauropodomorpha.

Triassic Carnivore 1.5m

BR · 233–233 Ma

Gnathovorax

Gnathovorax cabreirai

"Voracious jaws (of Cabreira)"

Gnathovorax cabreirai is one of the earliest bipedal predators in the fossil record, living around 233 million years ago in what is now central Rio Grande do Sul. Roughly 3 metres long, it was a medium-sized herrerasaurid that dominated its ecosystem alongside rhynchosaurs, cynodonts and the first sauropodomorphs. Holotype CAPPA/UFSM 0009, discovered in 2014 by Sérgio Cabreira at the Marchezan site in São João do Polêsine, preserves an articulated skeleton with a near-complete skull and is among the best-preserved Herrerasauridae specimens ever found. The name literally means 'voracious jaws', a direct reference to its robust skull and serrated teeth adapted for active predation. Given the completeness of the material, Gnathovorax has been decisive in reassessing the phylogenetic position of herrerasaurids at the start of the dinosaur radiation.

Triassic Carnivore 3m

BR · 233–229 Ma

Saturnalia

Saturnalia tupiniquim

"Saturnalia, tupiniquim (Brazilian)"

Saturnalia tupiniquim is one of the oldest known dinosaurs in the world, living approximately 233 million years ago in what is now Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. At roughly 1.5 meters in length and an estimated weight between 4 and 11 kilograms, it was a small bipedal animal. Described in 1999 by Max Cardoso Langer, Fernando Abdala, Martha Richter, and Michael Benton, it is classified as one of the most basal sauropodomorphs on the evolutionary tree, representing a critical transition between primitive carnivorous dinosaurs and the future giant herbivores like sauropods. Its diet likely included insects and small vertebrates, indicating that the earliest sauropodomorphs were not yet exclusive herbivores. The name honors the Roman Saturnalia festival, celebrated at the time of discovery.

Triassic Omnivore 1.5m

BR · 233–225 Ma

Staurikosaurus

Staurikosaurus pricei

"Southern Cross lizard, honoring Llewellyn Ivor Price"

Staurikosaurus pricei is one of the most primitive carnivores known, living approximately 233 to 225 million years ago in what is now Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. At roughly 2.1 meters long and 30 kilograms, it was a medium-sized bipedal predator for its time. Its serrated, backward-curving teeth indicate an active carnivorous diet. Described by Edwin Colbert in 1970 from holotype MCZ 1669, its phylogenetic position remains debated: sometimes classified in Herrerasauridae, sometimes as an even more basal dinosaur. It is one of the most important animals for understanding the earliest stages of dinosaur evolution.

Triassic Carnivore 2.1m

BR · 228–225 Ma

Unaysaurus

Unaysaurus tolentinoi

"Black-water lizard (Tolentino)"

Unaysaurus tolentinoi is a small basal sauropodomorph from the Late Triassic (early Norian, around 225 million years ago) Caturrita Formation of the Paraná Basin in southern Brazil. About 2.5 m long and 70 kg, it is one of the most complete early sauropodomorphs known from South America, with a nearly intact skull and partially articulated postcranium. Leal and colleagues described holotype UFSM 11069 in 2004 and recovered it as a plateosaurid close to European Plateosaurus. In 2018 Müller, Langer and Dias-da-Silva erected the family Unaysauridae to accommodate Unaysaurus, Brazilian Macrocollum itaquii, and Indian Jaklapallisaurus asymmetricus, while Beccari et al. (2021) and Pretto et al. (2019) returned the taxon to the Plateosauridae orbit. The species is a global reference for studying the transition from small, opportunistic early sauropodomorphs to the large long-necked herbivores that would dominate the Jurassic.

Triassic Herbivore 2.5m

BR · 125–113 Ma

Tapuiasaurus

Tapuiasaurus macedoi

"Tapuia lizard (Macedo)"

Tapuiasaurus macedoi is a mid-sized titanosaur (~13 m, ~10 tonnes) from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian, ~120 Ma) Quiricó Formation, Areado Group, Sanfranciscana Basin, in northern Minas Gerais, Brazil. The holotype MZSP-PV 807, curated at the Museu de Zoologia da USP, is renowned for preserving the only nearly complete Early Cretaceous titanosaur skull known worldwide, combined with an articulated partial postcranial skeleton. Its 'diplodocoid-like' cranial anatomy, with elongated rostrum, pencil-shaped cylindrical teeth and retroposed nares, pushed back by up to 30 million years the radiation of advanced titanosaurs that literature had assumed was restricted to the Late Cretaceous. Described in 2011 by Hussam Zaher and colleagues in PLOS ONE and cranially redescribed by Wilson, Pol, Carvalho and Zaher in 2016, the taxon is now a key piece for understanding the early evolution of Titanosauria in Gondwana.

Cretaceous Herbivore 13m

BR · 115–108 Ma

Irritator

Irritator challengeri

"Challenging irritator (named after Professor Challenger)"

Irritator challengeri is a Brazilian spinosaurid discovered in the Romualdo Formation, Araripe Basin, Ceará state. Its name reflects paleontologists' frustration upon finding the original skull had been fraudulently modified by fossil traffickers before reaching scientists. About 8 meters long with an elongated snout lined with conical teeth, it was likely piscivorous, hunting giant fish in the lagoonal environments of the Early Cretaceous of Brazil. The holotype (SMNS 58022), housed in Stuttgart, Germany, is the most complete spinosaurid skull ever found, making Irritator essential for understanding the biology of the entire Spinosauridae family.

Cretaceous Piscivore 8m

BR · 115–113 Ma

Ubirajara

Ubirajara jubatus

"Lord of the spear, with mane"

Ubirajara jubatus is a small coelurosaurian theropod from the Lower Cretaceous of the Araripe Basin, Ceará, discovered around 1990 and illegally exported to Germany in the 1990s. Described in 2020 by Smyth and colleagues as the first non-avian dinosaur from Gondwana with elaborate integumentary structures (a filamentous mane along the neck and two elongate, ribbon-like shoulder structures likely used for display), the animal became the epicentre of an international campaign for the repatriation of Brazilian fossils. The original paper was withdrawn in September 2021, and the name 'Ubirajara jubatus' was formally declared unavailable under the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature by Caetano, Delcourt and Ponciano (2023). Even so, the holotype SMNK PAL 29241 was repatriated to Brazil in June 2023 and now resides at the Plácido Cidade Nuvens Paleontology Museum of the Regional University of Cariri (URCA), in Santana do Cariri.

Cretaceous Carnivore 1m

BR · 113–108 Ma

Aratasaurus

Aratasaurus museunacionali

"Fire-born lizard (Museu Nacional)"

Aratasaurus museunacionali is a small basal coelurosaurian theropod from the Early Cretaceous (Albian, ~110 Ma) Romualdo Formation in the Araripe Basin, Santana do Cariri (Ceará, Brazil). Described by Juliana Sayão and colleagues in 2020, holotype MPSC R 2089 consists of an articulated right hindlimb (distal femur, proximal tibia, partial metatarsals, several phalanges and three unguals) of a juvenile individual aged around 4 years, estimated at 3.12 metres long and 34 kg. The name means 'lizard born from fire', referring to the fire at the Museu Nacional of Rio de Janeiro in September 2018, just before publication. Aratasaurus expands the known diversity of small theropods from the Araripe Basin, alongside Santanaraptor, Mirischia, Irritator and Angaturama, and is a rare basal coelurosaur from Gondwana.

Cretaceous Carnivore 3.12m

BR · 113–110 Ma

Santanaraptor

Santanaraptor placidus

"Santana raider, placid"

Santanaraptor placidus is a small coelurosaurian theropod from the Early Cretaceous (Aptian-Albian, ~110 Ma) Romualdo Formation (formerly the 'Romualdo Member' of the Santana Formation) of the Araripe Basin in southern Ceará, Brazil. The holotype MN 4802-V is famous for preserving fossilized soft tissue — muscle fibres, epidermis and possible blood vessels — which prompted one of the first dinosaur soft-tissue reports, published by Alexander Kellner in Nature in 1996. Formally described in 1999 as a basal coelurosaur, it was later reinterpreted as a tyrannosauroid (Holtz 2004; Delcourt and Grillo 2018) and, most recently, redescribed as a basal maniraptoromorph by Delcourt and colleagues in 2025. The juvenile holotype survived the September 2018 Museu Nacional fire and remains a reference specimen for studies of exceptional preservation and small-theropod diversity in Brazil.

Cretaceous Carnivore 1.5m

BR · 112–108 Ma

Anhanguera

Anhanguera blittersdorffi

"Blittersdorff's evil spirit"

Anhanguera blittersdorffi is an anhanguerid pterosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of Brazil, described by Campos and Kellner in 1985 from an extraordinarily preserved three-dimensional skull. With an estimated wingspan of 4 to 4.5 meters, it was an aerial predator specialized in fish capture, bearing characteristic premaxillary crests, curved coniform teeth, and a rosette-shaped mandible. Originating from the calcareous nodules of the Romualdo Formation, Araripe Basin, in Ceará, it is one of the most studied Brazilian pterosaurs and an emblem of the Cretaceous fauna of northeastern Brazil.

Cretaceous Piscivore 4.5m

BR · 100.5–93.9 Ma

Oxalaia

Oxalaia quilombensis

"Oxalaia: deity of the waters in Afro-Brazilian religion; quilombensis: from the quilombos of Maranhão"

Oxalaia quilombensis was one of the largest predators of the Late Cretaceous of South America, with an estimated length of 12 to 14 meters. A member of the family Spinosauridae and subfamily Spinosaurinae, it was closely related to the African Spinosaurus aegyptiacus. Known only from jaw fragments collected on Cajual Island, Maranhão, it possessed conical teeth without serrations, a sculptured secondary palate, and a rosette-shaped anterior snout expansion. Its name honors the deity of the waters in Afro-Brazilian religion and the historical quilombos of Maranhão, acknowledging the cultural heritage of the region where it was discovered.

Cretaceous Piscivore 13m

BR · 85–80 Ma

Maxakalisaurus

Maxakalisaurus topai

"Maxakali people's lizard, of Topá"

Maxakalisaurus topai is a Brazilian titanosaur discovered in the Adamantina Formation, in the Triângulo Mineiro region of Minas Gerais. Described by Kellner et al. in 2006, it is one of the best-documented sauropods from Brazil. About 13 meters long and estimated to weigh 5 tonnes, it had a long neck and tail, ridged teeth (unusual among sauropods), and osteoderms, bony dermal plates. Its name honors the Maxakali indigenous people from the region, and the deity Topá of the Maxakali pantheon. The holotype (MN 5013-V) was on display at the National Museum of Rio de Janeiro until the 2018 fire, which destroyed part of the material. A reconstruction campaign was subsequently launched to restore the skeleton.

Cretaceous Herbivore 13m

BR · 83–72 Ma

Austroposeidon

Austroposeidon magnificus

"Magnificent southern Poseidon"

Austroposeidon magnificus is the largest dinosaur ever described from Brazil, a titanosaur roughly 25 metres long that inhabited the Late Cretaceous Bauru Basin in western São Paulo State. Its holotype MCT 1628-R was collected in 1953 by Brazilian palaeontologist Llewellyn Ivor Price on the outskirts of Presidente Prudente (SP) and sat in storage at the Museum of Earth Sciences in Rio de Janeiro for over 60 years before being formally described in 2016 by Bandeira and colleagues. The original phylogenetic analysis placed it as the sister group of Lognkosauria, while later work (Navarro et al. 2022) recovered it within Lognkosauria itself, alongside Argentinian giants such as Argentinosaurus and Patagotitan. CT scans of the cervical vertebrae revealed, for the first time in any sauropod, an internal structure alternating pneumatic camellae with dense growth rings.

Cretaceous Herbivore 25m

BR · 75–70 Ma

Pycnonemosaurus

Pycnonemosaurus nevesi

"Neves's dense forest lizard"

Pycnonemosaurus nevesi was the largest known abelisaurid dinosaur, estimated at 8.9 meters in length and approximately 3.6 metric tons. It lived during the Late Cretaceous, roughly 70 to 75 million years ago, in what is now Mato Grosso State, Brazil. Described by Kellner and Campos in 2002, it was the first confirmed abelisaurid from the Bauru Group. It belongs to the Furileusauria lineage of South American abelisaurids, the same group that includes Carnotaurus and Aucasaurus. Its fragmentary fossils reveal a large predator that likely preyed on titanosaur sauropods sharing its environment.

Cretaceous Carnivore 8.9m