Neovenator

File:Neovenator Scale.pngNeovenator was a mid-sized, lightly built carcharodontosaurid. The holotype specimen measured approximately {{convert|7|m|ft}} in length, and was fairly lightly built. Gregory S. Paul estimated its mass at around {{convert|1|MT|ST|abbr=on}}.{{Cite book|last=Paul|first=Gregory S.|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/985402380|title=The Princeton Field Guide to Dinosaurs|year=2016|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-1-78684-190-2|oclc=985402380|pages=104}} It has been suggested that the holotype may be a subadult, and if this is the case, it may not be reflective of the maximum body size of the genus. However, in 2016, Jeremy Lockwood noted that most of the elements referred to Neovenator are roughly the same size as the holotype, suggesting that adults would have had a similar body size.{{Cite journal |last=Lockwood |first=Jeremy |date=2016 |title=Ichnological evidence for large predatory dinosaurs in the Wessex Formation (Wealden Group, Early Cretaceous) of the Isle of Wight |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/307421475 |journal=Proceedings of the Isle of Wight Natural History and Archaeological Society |volume=30}} Specimen MIWG 4199 indicates an individual with a possible length of about {{convert|10|m}}, but it only consists of a toe phalanx and its position in Neovenator is dubious.Dodson P., Weishampel D. B. & Osmólska H., The Dinosauria, 2nd edition (2004), University of North Carolina Press, p. 104. A footprint (IWCMS:2016.273) is believed to have been left by an animal with a hip height of {{Convert|2.5|m|ft}}, and while the trackmaker is uncertain, it has been suggested that it was left by a mature Neovenator.

File:Neovenator skull reconstruction.pngThe skull of Neovenator is not known in its entirety, but is instead represented by both premaxillae (both complete), a left maxilla, a right nasal, a right palatine, and the anterior (front) portion of a left dentary, part of the mandible. The premaxillae were longer than they were tall, measuring {{Convert|8.7|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length and {{Convert|7|cm|in|abbr=on}} in height. This condition is seen in several non-carcharodontosaurid taxa (i.e. Allosaurus and Sinraptor), but not in other, more derived carcharodontosaurs, such as Acrocanthosaurus. The premaxillae have an additional connection (referred to in 2001 as a "pen-in-socket connection"), by not seen in other theropods.Naish, D., Hutt S. and Martill, D., 2001, "Saurischian dinosaurs 2: Theropods". In: Martill D. and Naish D. (eds.), Dinosaurs of the Isle of Wight The Palaeontological Association, pp. 242-309 The left maxilla, as preserved, measures around {{Convert|30|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length, and {{Convert|7.5|cm|in|abbr=on}} in depth. Only a small portion near where the jugal connected is missing. As in many basal tetanurans (and the more derived Carcharodontosaurus), the maxilla contributed to the posterior (rear) border of the external naris (nasal opening). Similar to abelisaurids and other allosauroids (i.e. Giganotosaurus, Mapusaurus, and Sinraptor), the surface of the maxilla bore prominent rugosities, and contains a high density of foramina, particularly at its anteriormost portion, ventral to (below) the external naris. It has been suggested that Neovenator's snout was highly vascularised or innervated.Barker, C., Dyke, G., Naish, D., Newham, E. and Katsamenis, O., 2015, "Complex neurovascular network in the rostrum of Neovenator salerii", SVPCA 2015 abstracts, 78{{cite journal |last1=Barker |first1=Chris Tijani |last2=Naish |first2=Darren |last3=Newham |first3=Elis |last4=Katsamenis |first4=Orestis L. |last5=Dyke |first5=Gareth |date=2017 |title=Complex neuroanatomy in the rostrum of the Isle of Wight theropod Neovenator salerii |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=3749 |bibcode=2017NatSR...7.3749B |doi=10.1038/s41598-017-03671-3 |pmc=5473926 |pmid=28623335}} Unlike many other allosauroids and ceratosaurs, the ascending ramus lacked pneumatic excavation (hollow spaces containing air pockets). A large maxillary fenestra, with a diameter roughly one-sixth of the length of the tooth row, penetrated the maxilla. Similar to the maxilla, Neovenator's nasal was rugose, though the extent of its rugosity is slightly weaker than in Carcharodontosaurus. The dorsal (upper) and lateral (side) surfaces of the nasal were separated by a rugose ridge. While initially regarded as a diagnostic feature of Neovenator, the same is also known in Allosaurus. As evidenced by the presence of a single large pneumatopore, the nasal was likely hollow and highly pneumatised. Similar conditions are observed in other allosauroids, though the amount of pneumatopores varied, sometimes within the same genus.

The holotype of Neovenator preserved a near-complete left dentary, measuring {{Convert|23.5|cm|in|abbr=on}} in length and {{Convert|6.8|cm|in|abbr=on}}, though it was lost at the time of the 2008 monograph's publication. What was written in that monograph was therefore based on figures in published works and examinations of a cast. Unlike some other carcharodontosaurs (particularly later genera such as Carcharodontosaurus and Giganotosaurus), the anterior tip of the dentary was not squared-off. It was instead rounded, as in most other theropods. Unlike the maxilla and nasal, the dentary of Neovenator was fairly smooth, lacking rugosities, unlike what is seen in taxa like Carcharodontosaurus. The largest foramina present were directly ventral to the alveolar margin (the tooth row), set in a longitudinal groove which deflected ventrally at around the fifth alveolus. The third alveolus of the dentary was enlarged, which is unique among allosauroids, save for Acrocanthosaurus. When viewed from above, the alveoli on both upper and lower jaws were arranged in a weakly sinuous curve, though this may be the result of taphonomy.

As preserved, Neovenator's premaxilla five alveoli (tooth sockets), and its maxilla bears fifteen, though at least one or two are likely to have been present. No teeth are preserved in the premaxilla or maxilla, and no erupted teeth are known from the dentary, though four replacement teeth are preserved. Additionally, isolated theropod teeth were found around the holotype specimen, tentatively assigned to the genus. Based on these, Neovenator's teeth were fairly typical for theropod teeth, though differ from those of other carcharodontosaurs in details of the enamel wrinkles. The teeth were asymmetrical in cross-section, due to the orientation of the distal carina.

The majority of Neovenator's vertebral column is known from the holotype. Six cervical (neck) vertebrae, including the axis (the second cervical vertebra positionally), are known, as are twelve dorsal (back) vertebrae. Also known are twenty-three caudal (tail) vertebrae. The front joint surface of the intercentrum of the axis was widened transversely. The odontoid process of the axis had small openings along the side edge of the front facet, and the neural process of the axis had a single small opening in the side. The more rearward cervical vertebrae were fused with their cervical ribs; while this is known in many other theropod clades, Neovenator is the only allosauroid in which this was the case.Benson, R.B.J., Carrano, M.T and Brusatte, S.L. (2010). "A new clade of archaic large-bodied predatory dinosaurs (Theropoda: Allosauroidea) that survived to the latest Mesozoic." Naturwissenschaften, 97:71-78 . {{doi|10.1007/s00114-009-0614-x}} The neural spines of the cervical vertebrae were narrow anteroposteriorly (from front-to-back), are thick transversely, and were overall rod-like in shape. The seventh was inclined posteriorly, the eighth anteriorly, and the ninth directly vertically.File:Neovenator salerii dorsal vertebra.jpgThe first two dorsal vertebrae were morphologically intermediate between the cervical and dorsal vertebrae, being, among other things, short anteroposteriorly when compared to dorsal vertebrae further along the column. The remaining dorsal vertebrae were fairly homogenous in morphology, characterised by their tall centra and biconcave articular surfaces. Each dorsal vertebra had transverse processes which are broad anteroposteriorly yet thin dorsoventrally (up-and-down). Their neural spines are subrectangular in lateral view and are thick transversely, at least in comparison to most non-allosauroid tetanurans. Two large fragments of the dorsal ribs are known, one better-preserved and coming from the left side of the torso, and the other coming from the right side. Some disarticulated gastralia (constituent bones of the gastral basket, which supported the organs and aided in respiration) are known. Sacral vertebrae are known from referred specimens. The second and third sacral vertebrae were fused, unlike Acrocanthosaurus and Sinraptor, but like some specimens of Allosaurus. The second and fourth sacrals are known exclusively from their centra, so the neural arches of the sacra are poorly known.

The first caudal vertebra of the holotype is poorly preserved due to damage sustained during the cliff fall, thus leaving the second as the best preserved. Though most of the anterior and middle caudal vertebrae are damaged, the distal ones are fairly complete. The anterior caudal centra had suboval articular surfaces, and posterior surfaces smaller than the anterior surface (a pattern which continues until the vertebra tentatively identified as the twenty-second).

The left scapula and coracoid of Neovenator's holotype are nearly complete, though its forelimbs are not known. Around two-thirds of the glenoid fossa's length is taken up by the scapula. While well-preserved, the coracoid is damaged enough that most of the point where it articulated with the scapula is absent. The shoulder joint is wider transversely than anteroposteriorly. On the medial surface of the scapulocoracoid, the glenoid is buttressed by a slight ridge, which fans out posteriorly to unite with the ventral margin of the scapular blade.

The ilia of Neovenator, including referred elements, are fragmentary. Ventral to the ilium's front blade is a notch, which has a robust shelf on the inner side. The ilium overall is highly pneumatised. While a right pubis is preserved, it is fragmentary, heavily abraded, and badly crushed. Distally, it expands into a large pubic boot, similar to that of other carcharodontosaurs and tyrannosaurids. The "feet" of the ischia are connected at their fronts but diverge at their rears. As in other carcharodontosaurs, and in some tyrannosaurids, Neovenator's femoral head is angled dorsomedially (upwards and towards the centrum). The lesser trochanter of the femur has a robust ridge on its outer side, and is itself extremely robust. The fourth trochanter has a depression in the form of a thumbprint located laterally on its dorsal border. The distal portion of the tibia shows an oval rough area at the inner side. The top of the outer malleolus of the tibia is pinched from the front to the rear. The outer front bulge of the top surface of the tibia has a spur deflected ventrally. In the foot, the outer side of the second metatarsal has a hollow surface to contact the third metatarsal.

File:Neovenator.png|left]]In the 1996 paper describing Neovenator, Hutt, Martill and Barker suggested a close relationship with Allosaurus, and that Neovenator might itself have been a member of Allosauridae. The findings of that paper were based on morphological comparisons, rather than phylogenetic analysis. The first analysis to include Neovenator was published in 2000 by Thomas R. Holtz Jr., and indeed recovered as the sister taxon to Allosaurus.{{Cite journal |last=Holtz Jr. |first=Thomas R. |author-link=Thomas R. Holtz Jr. |date=2000 |title=A new phylogeny of the carnivorous dinosaurs |url=https://www.dinochecker.com/papers/a_new_phylogeny_of_carnivorous_dinosaurs.pdf |journal=Gaia |pages=5–61}} However, that topology was the result of incorrect scoring, and two of the characters used to unite the two genera (prezygapophysis morphology and the distal expansion of the scapula) are respectively erroneous and uncorrelated with phylogeny.{{Cite journal |last1=Brusatte |first1=Stephen L. |last2=and Sereno |first2=Paul C. |date=2008-01-01 |title=Phylogeny of Allosauroidea (Dinosauria: Theropoda): Comparative analysis and resolution |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1017/S1477201907002404 |journal=Journal of Systematic Palaeontology |volume=6 |issue=2 |pages=155–182 |doi=10.1017/S1477201907002404 |bibcode=2008JSPal...6..155B |issn=1477-2019}} In a 2008 phylogenetic analysis of Allosauroidea, which slightly predated the Neovenator monograph, Steve Brusatte and Paul Sereno recovered Neovenator as the most basal member of Carcharodontosauridae. In 2010, Brusatte, along with Roger B. J. Benson and Matt Carrano, recovered Neovenator in a similar position. However, their database included megaraptorans, which were recovered in a clade with Neovenator. Therefore, Benson, Carrano and Brusatte erected the family Neovenatoridae, to encompass both taxa.

The cladogram below follows the 2010 analysis by Benson, Carrano and Brusatte.

{{clade| style=font-size:100%;line-height:80%

|label1=Neovenatoridae

|1={{clade

|1=Neovenator

|label2=unnamed

|2={{clade

|1=Chilantaisaurus

|label2=Megaraptora

|2={{clade

|label1=unnamed

|1={{clade

|1=Australovenator

|2=Fukuiraptor

}}

|2=Orkoraptor?75px

|3={{clade

|1=Aerosteon

|2=Megaraptor

}}

}}

}}

}}

}}

In the years since that paper, however, an increasing number of phylogenies have recovered megaraptorans in Coelurosauria, as opposed to being sisters to Neovenator.{{cite journal |author=Porfiri, J. D., Novas, F. E., Calvo, J. O., Agnolín, F. L., Ezcurra, M. D. & Cerda, I. A. |last2=Novas |last3=Calvo |last4=Agnolín |last5=Ezcurra |last6=Cerda |year=2014 |title=Juvenile specimen of Megaraptor (Dinosauria, Theropoda) sheds light about tyrannosauroid radiation |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=51 |pages=35–55 |bibcode=2014CrRes..51...35P |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2014.04.007 |hdl-access=free |hdl=11336/12129}}{{Cite journal |last1=Aranciaga Rolando |first1=Alexis M. |last2=Novas |first2=Fernando E. |last3=Agnolín |first3=Federico L. |date=1 March 2019 |title=A reanalysis of Murusraptor barrosaensis Coria & Currie (2016) affords new evidence about the phylogenetical relationships of Megaraptora |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=99 |pages=104–127 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2019.02.021 |bibcode=2019CrRes..99..104A |s2cid=134503923}}{{cite journal |last1=Naish |first1=D. |last2=Cau |first2=A. |date=July 2022 |title=The osteology and affinities of Eotyrannus lengi, a tyrannosauroid theropod from the Wealden Supergroup of southern England |journal=PeerJ |volume=10 |pages=e12727≠ |doi=10.7717/peerj.12727 |pmc=9271276 |pmid=35821895 |doi-access=free}} If this is the case, Neovenatoridae is likely monotypic. Fernano Novas et al. (2013) recovered Neovenator at the base of Carcharodontosauridae, in a polytomy with Eocarcharia and Concavenator.

Cladogram after Novas et al., 2013{{cite journal | doi = 10.1016/j.cretres.2013.04.001 | title=Evolution of the carnivorous dinosaurs during the Cretaceous: The evidence from Patagonia | journal=Cretaceous Research | date=2013 | volume=45 | pages=174–215 | first=Fernando E. | last=Novas| bibcode=2013CrRes..45..174N | hdl=11336/102037 | hdl-access=free }}

{{clade| style=font-size:100%;line-height:80%

|1={{clade

|1=Allosaurus 80px

|label2=Carcharodontosauridae

|2={{clade

|1=Neovenator

|2=Eocarcharia

|3=Concavenator80px

|4={{clade

|1=Acrocanthosaurus

|2={{clade

|1=Shaochilong

|label2=Carcharodontosaurinae

|2={{clade

|1=Carcharodontosaurus

|label2=Giganotosaurini

|2={{clade

|1=Tyrannotitan

|2={{clade

|1=Mapusaurus

|2=Giganotosaurus

=== Senses ===

File:Premaxilla and maxilla of Neovenator.jpg

Chris Barker and colleagues suggested that Neovenator may have possessed integumentary sensory organs on its snout, much as modern waterfowl and crocodilians use to find food in muddy water, based on neurovascular structures found on the skull. As Neovenator is believed to be completely terrestrial, unlike the modern species, it is assumed that these sensory organs were used for other purposes, such as sensitivity to pressure and temperature, controlling jaw pressure and precision feeding. In support of this, the tooth wear for Neovenator seems to indicate that it avoided eating or biting into bone while it fed. Additionally, Neovenator might have used these integumentary sensory organs in courtship and sensing nest conditions, a technique seen today in most species of crocodilians and megapode birds. Though such structures are known for another theropod, the tyrannosaurid Daspletosaurus horneri, Neovenator{{'}}s neurovascular structures that likely supported these organs are the best preserved and most complete in any known theropod yet discovered.[https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/06/170627142435.htm University of Southampton. "Sensitive faces helped dinosaurs eat, woo and take temperature." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 27 June 2017] However, a more recent study reviewing the evolution of the trigeminal canals among sauropsids notes that a much denser network of neurovascular canals in the snout and lower jaw is more commonly encountered in aquatic or semiaquatic taxa (e.g., Spinosaurus, Halszkaraptor, Plesiosaurus), and taxa that developed a rhamphotheca (e.g., Caenagnathasia), while terrestrial taxa such as tyrannosaurids and Neovenator may have had average facial sensitivity for non-edentulous terrestrial theropods, although further research is needed.{{Cite journal|last=Benoit|first=Florian Bouabdellah, Emily Lessner, and Julien|date=2022-01-20|title=The rostral neurovascular system of Tyrannosaurus rex|url=https://palaeo-electronica.org/content/2022/3518-t-rex-trigeminal-canals|journal=Palaeontologia Electronica|language=English|volume=25|issue=1|pages=1–20|doi=10.26879/1178|issn=1094-8074|doi-access=free}}

{{Main|Theropod palaeopathology}}

As with many specimens of Allosaurus, the holotype of Neovenator salerii was highly pathological.Molnar, R. E., 2001, Theropod paleopathology: a literature survey: In: Mesozoic Vertebrate Life, edited by Tanke, D. H., and Carpenter, K., Indiana University Press, p. 337-363. The pathologies listed in the 1996 paper and the 2008 monograph: are the fusion of two caudal vertebrae and their associated chevron into a single mass (also seen in certain Allosaurus and likely the result of neoplastic ankylosis); healed fractures to the gastralia; a fracture to the scapula; one gastralium which appears to exhibit regrowth across its entire length, and osteophytes on some of the pedal (foot) phalanges. One of the left pedal phalanges has been almost completely covered by exostotic bone growth and small lesions, suggesting osteomyelitis, similar to one specimen of Allosaurus.

The only definite remains of Neovenator are known from the Barremian-age Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, though teeth identical to the genus are known from the Berriasian-age Angeac-Charente bone bed in France.

File:Wessex_Formation_dinosaurs.jpgSedimentological data suggests that the depositional environment of the Wessex Formation was a floodplain intersected by fluvial (river) and lacustrine (lake) deposits. Water levels likely varied throughout the year,{{Cite journal |last1=Insole |first1=Allan N. |last2=Hutt |first2=Stephen |date=1994 |title=The palaeoecology of the dinosaurs of the Wessex Formation (Wealden Group, Early Cretaceous), Isle of Wight, Southern England |url=https://academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/article-lookup/doi/10.1111/j.1096-3642.1994.tb00318.x |journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society |language=en |volume=112 |issue=1–2 |pages=197–215 |doi=10.1111/j.1096-3642.1994.tb00318.x|url-access=subscription }} due to there being more evaporation than precipitation, though precipitation was regardless quite high. The Wessex seems to have regularly experienced extreme storms{{Cite journal |last1=Marsden |first1=Marie K. |last2=Gunn |first2=Joshua |last3=Maidment |first3=Susannah C. R. |last4=Nichols |first4=Gary |last5=Wheeley |first5=James R. |last6=Russell |first6=Catherine E. |last7=Boomer |first7=Ian |last8=Stukins |first8=Stephen |last9=Butler |first9=Richard J. |date=2025-01-06 |title=Palaeoenvironment and taphonomy of the Hypsilophodon Bed, Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation, Isle of Wight |journal=Journal of the Geological Society |volume=182 |issue=1 |pages=jgs2024–046 |doi=10.1144/jgs2024-046|doi-access=free |bibcode=2025JGSoc.182...46M }} and periodic flood events, resulting in debris flows which would have deposited dead organisms in ponds.{{Cite journal |last1=Pond |first1=Stuart |last2=Strachan |first2=Sarah-Jane |last3=Raven |first3=Thomas J. |last4=Simpson |first4=Martin I. |last5=Morgan |first5=Kirsty |last6=Maidment |first6=Susannah C. R. |date=2023 |title=Vectipelta barretti , a new ankylosaurian dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, UK |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14772019.2023.2210577 |journal=Journal of Systematic Palaeontology |language=en |volume=21 |issue=1 |doi=10.1080/14772019.2023.2210577 |bibcode=2023JSPal..2110577P |issn=1477-2019|url-access=subscription }} Burned plant and insect material and fusain suggests that the environment experienced frequent wildfires, stifling for the most part the dense growth of gymnosperms. Much of the flora of the formed of low ground cover, consisting primarily of pteridophytes, with occasional stands of conifers, cycads, and the tree fern Tempskya. Most vertebrate material from the Wessex Formation originates from plant debris beds, resulting from the aforementioned flooding events. Aside from Neovenator, the dinosaur fauna of the Isle of Wight include the theropods Aristosuchus, Calamospondylus, Ceratosuchops, Eotyrannus, Ornithodesmus, Riparovenator, and Thecocoelurus, the sauropods Chondrosteosaurus, Eucamerotus, and Ornithopsis,{{cite journal |last1=Barker |first1=C.T. |last2=Hone |first2=D. |last3=Naish |first3=D. |last4=Cau |first4=A. |last5=Lockwood |first5=J. |last6=Foster |first6=B. |last7=Clarkin |first7=C. |last8=Schneider |first8=P. |last9=Gostling |first9=N. |year=2021 |title=New spinosaurids from the Wessex Formation (Early Cretaceous, UK) and the European origins of Spinosauridae |journal=Scientific Reports |volume=11 |issue=1 |page=19340 |bibcode=2021NatSR..1119340B |doi=10.1038/s41598-021-97870-8 |pmc=8481559 |pmid=34588472}}{{Cite journal |last1=Martill |first1=D. M. |last2=Hutt |first2=S. |year=1996 |title=Possible baryonychid dinosaur teeth from the Wessex Formation (Lower Cretaceous, Barremian) of the Isle of Wight, England |journal=Proceedings of the Geologists' Association |volume=107 |issue=2 |pages=81–84 |bibcode=1996PrGA..107...81M |doi=10.1016/S0016-7878(96)80001-0}} the thyreophorans Polacanthus and Vectipelta,{{Cite journal |last1=Pond |first1=Stuart |last2=Strachan |first2=Sarah-Jane |last3=Raven |first3=Thomas J. |last4=Simpson |first4=Martin I. |last5=Morgan |first5=Kirsty |last6=Maidment |first6=Susannah C. R. |date=2023-01-01 |title=Vectipelta barretti, a new ankylosaurian dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, UK |url=https://figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/23528329 |journal=Journal of Systematic Palaeontology |language=en |volume=21 |issue=1 |bibcode=2023JSPal..2110577P |doi=10.1080/14772019.2023.2210577 |issn=1477-2019 |s2cid=259393929|url-access=subscription }} and the ornithopods Brighstoneus, Comptonatus,{{Cite journal |last1=Lockwood |first1=Jeremy A. F. |last2=Martill |first2=David M. |last3=Maidment |first3=Susannah C. R. |date=2024-12-31 |title=Comptonatus chasei, a new iguanodontian dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, southern England |journal=Journal of Systematic Palaeontology |language=en |volume=22 |issue=1 |bibcode=2024JSPal..2246573L |doi=10.1080/14772019.2024.2346573 |issn=1477-2019 |doi-access=free}} Hypsilophodon, Iguanodon, Mantellisaurus,{{Cite journal |author1=Carpenter, K. |author2=Ishida, Y. |name-list-style=amp |year=2010 |title=Early and "Middle" Cretaceous Iguanodonts in Time and Space |journal=Journal of Iberian Geology |volume=36 |issue=2 |pages=145–164 |doi=10.5209/rev_JIGE.2010.v36.n2.3 |doi-access=free}} Valdosaurus, and Vectidromeus.{{Cite journal |last1=Longrich |first1=Nicholas R. |last2=Martill |first2=David M. |last3=Munt |first3=Martin |last4=Green |first4=Mick |last5=Penn |first5=Mark |last6=Smith |first6=Shaun |date=2024-02-01 |title=Vectidromeus insularis, a new hypsilophodontid dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation of the Isle of Wight, England |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0195667123002355 |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=154 |pages=105707 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105707 |bibcode=2024CrRes.15405707L |issn=0195-6671|url-access=subscription }} The pterosaur fauna of the Wessex Formation consists of Coloborhynchus, Caulkicephalus, Istiodactylus,{{Cite journal |last1=Martill |first1=David M. |last2=Coram |first2=Robert A. |date=2020-08-01 |title=Additional evidence for very large wing-span pterosaurs in the Wessex Formation (Early Cretaceous, Barremian) of southern England |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0016787819300446 |journal=Proceedings of the Geologists' Association |volume=131 |issue=3 |pages=293–300 |doi=10.1016/j.pgeola.2019.05.002 |bibcode=2020PrGA..131..293M |issn=0016-7878}} Vectidraco,{{Cite journal |last1=Naish |first1=D. |last2=Simpson |first2=M. |last3=Dyke |first3=G. |year=2013 |editor1-last=Farke |editor1-first=Andrew A |title=A New Small-Bodied Azhdarchoid Pterosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of England and Its Implications for Pterosaur Anatomy, Diversity and Phylogeny |journal=PLOS ONE |volume=8 |issue=3 |pages=e58451 |bibcode=2013PLoSO...858451N |doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0058451 |pmc=3601094 |pmid=23526986 |doi-access=free}} and Wightia;{{Cite journal |last1=Martill |first1=David M. |last2=Green |first2=Mick |last3=Smith |first3=Roy E. |last4=Jacobs |first4=Megan L. |last5=Winch |first5=John |date=2020-09-01 |title=First tapejarid pterosaur from the Wessex Formation (Wealden Group: Lower Cretaceous, Barremian) of the United Kingdom |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0195667120301737 |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=113 |pages=104487 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2020.104487 |bibcode=2020CrRes.11304487M |issn=0195-6671}} multiple unnamed pterosaur taxa, including a ctenochasmatid, are also known. Neosuchian crocodyliforms include Bernissartia, Koumpiodontosuchus,{{Cite journal |last1=Sweetman |first1=Steven |last2=Pedreira-Segade |first2=Ulysse |last3=Vidovic |first3=Steven |date=2014 |title=A new bernissartiid crocodyliform from the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation (Wealden Group, Barremian) of the Isle of Wight, southern England |url=https://www.app.pan.pl/article/item/app000382013.html |journal=Acta Palaeontologica Polonica |language=en |doi=10.4202/app.00038.2013 |issn=0567-7920}} and Vectisuchus.{{Cite journal |last1=Buffetaut |first1=Eric |last2=Hutt |first2=Stephen |date=1980-07-31 |title=Vectisuchus leptognathus, n. g. n. sp., a slender-snouted goniopholid crocodilian from the Wealden of the Isle of Wight |url=https://www.schweizerbart.de/papers/njgpm/detail/1980/96289/Vectisuchus_leptognathus_n_g_n_sp_a_slender_snouted_goniopholid_crocodilian_from_the_Wealden_of_the_Isle_of_Wight |journal=Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Monatshefte |issue=7 |language=en |pages=385–390 |doi=10.1127/njgpm/1980/1980/385|url-access=subscription }} Limited evidence exists of elasmosaurids and leptocleidid plesiosaurs.{{Cite journal |last1=KEAR |first1=BENJAMIN P. |last2=BARRETT |first2=PAUL M. |date=2011-03-01 |title=Reassessment of the Lower Cretaceous (Barremian) pliosauroid Leptocleidus superstes Andrews, 1922 and other plesiosaur remains from the nonmarine Wealden succession of southern England |url=https://academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/article-abstract/161/3/663/2732045?redirectedFrom=fulltext |journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society |volume=161 |issue=3 |pages=663–691 |doi=10.1111/j.1096-3642.2010.00648.x |issn=0024-4082|url-access=subscription }} The mammal fauna of the Wessex Formation includes the multituberculate Eobataar{{Cite journal |last=Sweetman |first=Steven C. |date=2009 |title=A New Species of the Plagiaulacoid Multituberculate MammalEobaatarfrom the Early Cretaceous of Southern Britain |url=https://www.app.pan.pl/article/item/app20080003.html |journal=Acta Palaeontologica Polonica |language=en |volume=54 |issue=3 |pages=373–384 |doi=10.4202/app.2008.0003 |issn=0567-7920|doi-access=free }} and the spalacotheriid Yaverlestes.{{Cite journal |last=Sweetman |first=Steven C. |date=2008 |title=A Spalacolestine Spalacotheriid (mammalia, Trechnotheria) from the Early Cretaceous (barremian) of Southern England and Its Bearing on Spalacotheriid Evolution |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4983.2008.00816.x |journal=Palaeontology |language=en |volume=51 |issue=6 |pages=1367–1385 |doi=10.1111/j.1475-4983.2008.00816.x |bibcode=2008Palgy..51.1367S |issn=1475-4983|url-access=subscription }} Albanerpetontid amphibians are represented by Wesserpeton. The fish fauna of the Wessex Formation, both bony and cartilaginous, is extensive, including hybodontiform and modern sharks (Selachii), pycnodontiforms, Lepidotes, and Scheenstia.{{Cite journal |last1=Sweetman |first1=Steven C. |last2=Goedert |first2=Jean |last3=Martill |first3=David M. |date=2014-11-01 |title=A preliminary account of the fishes of the Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation (Wealden Group, Barremian) of the Isle of Wight, southern England |url=https://academic.oup.com/biolinnean/article-abstract/113/3/872/2416004?redirectedFrom=fulltext |journal=Biological Journal of the Linnean Society |volume=113 |issue=3 |pages=872–896 |doi=10.1111/bij.12369 |issn=0024-4066}} Invertebrates are represented by an assortment of non-biting midges,{{Cite journal |last1=Baranov |first1=Viktor |last2=Giłka |first2=Wojciech |last3=Zakrzewska |first3=Marta |last4=Jarzembowski |first4=Edmund |date=2019-03-01 |title=New non-biting midges (Diptera: Chironomidae) from Lower Cretaceous Wealden amber of the Isle of Wight (UK) |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0195667118303689 |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=95 |pages=138–145 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2018.11.012 |bibcode=2019CrRes..95..138B |issn=0195-6671|url-access=subscription }} hymenopterans (wasps) including multiple parasitoid taxa,{{Cite journal |last1=Perkovsky |first1=Evgeny E. |last2=Olmi |first2=Massimo |last3=Müller |first3=Patrick |last4=Guglielmino |first4=Adalgisa |last5=Jarzembowski |first5=Edmund A. |last6=Capradossi |first6=Leonardo |last7=Rasnitsyn |first7=Alexandr P. |date=2021-05-01 |title=A review of the fossil Embolemidae (Hymenoptera: Chrysidoidea), with description of seven new species and history of the family |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195667120303955 |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=121 |pages=104708 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2020.104708 |bibcode=2021CrRes.12104708P |issn=0195-6671|url-access=subscription }} coleopterans (beetles), the avicularoid spider Cretamygale,{{Cite journal |last=Selden |first=Paul A. |date=2002 |title=First British Mesozoic Spider, From Cretaceous Amber Of The Isle Of Wight, Southern England |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1475-4983.00271 |journal=Palaeontology |language=en |volume=45 |issue=5 |pages=973–983 |doi=10.1111/1475-4983.00271 |bibcode=2002Palgy..45..973S |issn=1475-4983|hdl=1808/8357 |hdl-access=free }} and the ostracod Cypridea.{{Cite journal |last1=Penn |first1=Simon J. |last2=Sweetman |first2=Steven C. |date=2023-03-01 |title=Microvertebrate-rich gutter casts from the basal Wessex Formation (Wealden Group, Lower Cretaceous) of Dungy Head, Dorset: Insights into the palaeoecology and palaeoenvironment of a non-marine wetland |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0195667122002610 |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=143 |pages=105397 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2022.105397 |bibcode=2023CrRes.14305397P |issn=0195-6671|url-access=subscription }}

If Neovenator was indeed present during in the older Angeac-Charente bone bed, it would have been part of an entirely different, less well-understood faunal assemblage. The depositional environment of the Angeac-Charente was likely a tropical or subtropical floodplain combined with a poorly-oxygenated swamp, with a flora dominated by cheirolepidiacean conifers. Most of the vertebrate fauna of the locality appear to have inhabited and been preserved in the swamp, making it among the few swamp bonebeds{{Cite journal |last1=Rozada |first1=Lee |last2=Allain |first2=Ronan |last3=Vullo |first3=Romain |last4=Goedert |first4=Jean |last5=Augier |first5=Dominique |last6=Jean |first6=Amandine |last7=Marchal |first7=Jonathan |last8=Peyre de Fabrègues |first8=Claire |last9=Qvarnström |first9=Martin |last10=Royo-Torres |first10=Rafael |date=2021 |title=A Lower Cretaceous Lagerstätte from France: a taphonomic overview of the Angeac-Charente vertebrate assemblage |url=https://www.idunn.no/doi/10.1111/let.12394 |journal=Lethaia |language=en |volume=54 |issue=2 |pages=141–165 |doi=10.1111/let.12394 |bibcode=2021Letha..54..141R |issn=0024-1164}} The most well-known dinosaur fossils from the Angeac-Charente are an indeterminate basal ornithomimosaur, whose fossils are known in great numbers.{{Cite journal |last1=Pintore |first1=Romain |last2=Cornette |first2=Raphaël |last3=Houssaye |first3=Alexandra |last4=Allain |first4=Ronan |date=2023-06-13 |editor-last=Ibrahim |editor-first=Nizar |editor2-last=Rutz |editor2-first=Christian |editor3-last=Benton |editor3-first=Michael |title=Femora from an exceptionally large population of coeval ornithomimosaurs yield evidence of sexual dimorphism in extinct theropod dinosaurs |journal=eLife |volume=12 |pages=e83413 |doi=10.7554/eLife.83413 |doi-access=free |pmid=37309177 |pmc=10264075 |issn=2050-084X}} Other theropod clades are represented by teeth, including large teeth which have been tentatively assigned to megalosaurids. Remains of a dacentrurine stegosaurian, similar to Dacentrurus, are also known. Some ornithischians are known, including camptosaurs, hypsilophodontids, an indeterminate ankylosaur, and Echinodon sp. Two indeterminate pterodactyloid pterosaurs have been identified.

Neovenator was likely similar to other allosauroids in terms of feeding and hunting behaviour, likely targeting smaller species (or juveniles of larger species). There is evidence in the form of bite marks that Neovenator likely preyed on Mantellisaurus.

The holotype of Neovenator was recovered from a plant debris bed, underlain by sandstone and mudstone, and overlain by further mudstone. Its remains were found in association with multiple fossil logs, bivalves of the family Unionidae, and a partial skeleton of the iguanodontid Brighstoneus. Despite being discovered close to one another, it is likely that the two specimens were swept together by one of two sedimentary pulses (one indicative of a small flood, the other indicative of a far larger flood) which formed the locality.

{{Reflist}}

• {{Wikispecies-inline|Neovenator}}
• [http://www.dinowight.org.uk/neovenator.html Neovenator at DinoWight]
• [http://www.dinosaurisle.com/neovenator.aspx Dinosaur Isle on Neovenator]
• [http://www.gavinrymill.com/dinosaurs/holiday/neobits.jpg Fossil pieces of Neovenator]

{{Theropoda|A.}}

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Category:Carnosauria

Category:Dinosaur genera

Category:Barremian dinosaurs

Category:Wessex Formation

Category:Fossil taxa described in 1996

Category:Dinosaurs of the United Kingdom