Neovenator

''Neovenator'' ( nˈiːə͡ʊvˌɛne͡ɪtə; "new hunter") is a genus of carcharodontosaurian theropod dinosaur. It is known primarily from several skeletons found in the Early Cretaceous (Hauterivian-Barremian) Wessex Formation on the south coast of the Isle of Wight, southern England. The first remains of ''Neovenator'' were discovered in 1978 alongside those of the ornithopod '' Brighstoneus'', after the collapse of part of Grange Chine. In 1996, Steve Hutt, David Martill and Michael Barker named the genus ''Neovenator''. One species is known: the type species, ''N. salerii'', after the Salero family who owned the site on which its remains were discovered.

Between the type specimen and multiple referred specimens, roughly seventy percent of ''Neovenator'''s skeleton is known. While incompletely known, it was likely around in length, and probably weighed , though a specimen possibly referrable to the genus indicates a larger body size of . Its skull is known from both premaxillae, parts of the left maxilla, right nasal, right palatine, and the front portion of a dentary. The snout of ''Neovenator'' is covered in rugosities, similar to carcharodontosaurids and to abelisaurids, which indicates that it either had an extensive blood supply, possibly for thermoregulation, or an extensive neurovascular system, possibly for tactile purposes. However, this hypothesis has seen scrutiny. Teeth found in association with the type specimen of ''Neovenator'', while they do possess the characteristic enamel wrinkles of carcharodontosaur teeth, differ in their precise pattern.

The taxonomic position of ''Neovenator'' has been a subject of debate. Prior to its description, its fragmentary remains led to a tentative referral to ''Megalosaurus''. The authors who described the genus suggested that it was a British representative of Allosauridae, or at least closely related to ''Allosaurus''. In a 2008 monograph on the osteology of ''Neovenator'', a position within the clade Carcharodontosauria was suggested. Four years later, it was given a family of its own, Neovenatoridae.

''Neovenator'' is best known from the Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, although teeth possibly referrable to the genus have been recovered from the Angeac-Charente bone bed in France. Bite marks found on a fossil of the iguanodontid ''Mantellisaurus'' suggest that it was among ''Neovenator'''s prey base. Like many fossils of the closely-related ''Allosaurus'', the type specimen of ''Neovenator'' bears numerous pathologies''.''

Discovery and species

The first bones of ''Neovenator'' were discovered in the summer of 1978 when a storm made part of the Grange Chine collapse. Rocks containing fossils fell to the beach of Brighstone Bay on the southwestern coast of the Isle of Wight. The rocks consisted of plant debris bed L9 within the variegated clays and marls of the Wessex Formation, dating from the Barremian stage of the Early Cretaceous, about 125 million years ago. They were first collected by the Henwood family and shortly afterwards geology student David Richards collected additional material. Richards sent the remains to the Museum of Isle of Wight (now Dinosaur Isle) and the British Museum of Natural History. In the latter institution, palaeontologist Alan Jack Charig determined that the bones belonged to two kinds of animal: ''Iguanodon'' and a theropod. The "''Iguanodon''", later referred to ''Mantellisaurus'' and ultimately made the separate genus '' Brighstoneus'', generated the most interest and in the early 1980s a team was sent by the BMNH to secure more material. The theropod material, meanwhile, was fairly incomplete (consisting of vertebrae and fragments of the pelvis), and a lack of diagnostic features meant that it was ignored until its significance was recognised by Dr. William Blows.

Several amateur paleontologists, among them Keith and Jenny Simmonds, now began to search for additional remains of the predator. Ultimately, the total of secured bones included the snout, teeth, the front of a mandible (lower jaw), most of the vertebral column, ribs, belly ribs, chevrons, the left shoulder girdle, pelvis bones and a hindlimb. These were accessioned under numbers BMNH R10001 and MIWG 6348. They equalled approximately 70% of the skeleton. In 1985, excavations undertaken by Steve Hutt of the MIWG revealed two vertebrae of a second individual, specimen MIWG.5470. In 1987, Jenny Simmonds found a third skeleton, containing vertebra and pelvic bones, specimen MIWG.6352. A fourth individual found by Nick Oliver is represented by specimen IWCMS 2002.186, consisting of a lower jaw, parts of the cervical (neck) vertebrae and limb elements. In 1990 the material, then considered a possible new species of ''Megalosaurus'', was provisionally described by Hutt. Having mistaken the ischium of MIWG 6352 for a pubic bone, Hutt suggested this specimen represented a separate species.

In 1996, Steve Hutt, David Martill