Megalosaurus ingens Janensch, 1920

Megalosaurus ingens Janensch, 1920

The original species description for Megalosaurus ingens was based exclusively on tooth specimens, the largest of which was fifteen centimeters (roughly six inches) long. Janensch assigned them to an existing genus, Megalosaurus , but had clear reservations about the classification: “I am tentatively introducing the species from German East Africa under the genus name of Megalosaurus (this name serving as a kind of umbrella term), and because of its unusual size, I am calling it Megalosaurus (?) ingens n. sp. ” 85 The question mark following the genus name reflects Janensch’s uncertainty regarding his assignment of the newly discovered species to this genus. The genus name derives from the Greek μέγας / mégas, meaning “great,” and the Latin specific name ingens means “huge” or “enormous,” making the name as a whole—“enormous giant lizard”—a tautology. The specimen is currently thought to be a member of the Carcharodontosauridae (“shark-toothed lizards”), but it does not display any species-specific characteristics. Megalosaurus (?) ingens is consequently considered a nomen dubium, i.e., a questionable name. 86