Megapnosaurus
| Megapnosaurus Temporal range: Early Jurassic, | |
|---|---|
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| Life reconstruction of Megapnosaurus rhodesiensis | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | Theropoda |
| Family: | †Coelophysidae |
| Genus: | †Megapnosaurus Ivie et al., 2001 |
| Species: | †M. rhodesiensis |
| Binomial name | |
| †Megapnosaurus rhodesiensis (Raath, 1969) | |
| Synonyms | |
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Megapnosaurus (meaning "big dead lizard", from Greek μέγα = "big", ἄπνοος = "not breathing", "dead", σαῦρος = "lizard") is an extinct monospecific genus of coelophysid theropod dinosaur that lived around 199-188 million years ago during the early part of the Jurassic Period in what is now Africa. The species was a small to medium-sized, lightly built, ground-dwelling, bipedal carnivore, that could grow up to 2.2 m (7.2 ft) long and weigh up to 13 kg (29 lb).
It was originally given the genus name Syntarsus, but that name was later determined to be preoccupied by a colydiine beetle (itself now absorbed into the genus Cerchanotus). The species was subsequently given a new genus name, Megapnosaurus, by Michael Ivie, Ślipiński, & Węgrzynowicz in 2001. Some studies have classified it as a species within the genus Coelophysis, but this interpretation has been challenged by more subsequent studies and the genus Megapnosaurus is now considered valid.