Carcharadonotosaurus, original watercolor art

The Carcharodontosaurus, often called the "Shark-toothed Lizard," was one of the largest and most fearsome land predators to ever walk the Earth. Living in North Africa during the mid-Cretaceous period, it was roughly the same size as (or even larger than) Tyrannosaurus rex, reaching lengths of up to 13 meters (43 feet) and weighing nearly 8 tons.

While T. rex was built for a bone-crushing bite, Carcharodontosaurus specialized in slicing. Its mouth was packed with 8-inch-long, serrated teeth that resembled those of a Great White Shark. These were designed to tear through the flesh of massive sauropods, causing extreme blood loss rather than simply snapping bone.

A fun fact about this giant is that despite its massive body, it had a relatively small brain—about half the size of a T. rex brain. However, what it lacked in "grey matter," it made up for with an incredible sense of smell. Its olfactory bulbs were highly developed, allowing it to track prey across the vast, river-crossed floodplains of ancient Africa from miles away.