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Cristatusaurus is a genus of theropod dinosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous period of what is now Niger, 112 million years ago. It was a baryonychine member of the Spinosauridae, a group of large Bipedalism with well-built forelimbs and elongated, crocodile-like skulls. The type species Cristatusaurus lapparenti was named in 1998 by scientists Philippe Taquet and Dale Russell, on the basis of jaw bones and some . Two claw were also later assigned to Cristatusaurus. The animal's generic name, which means "crested reptile", alludes to a sagittal crest on top of its snout; while the specific name is in honor of the French paleontologist Albert-Félix de Lapparent. Cristatusaurus is known from the Albian to Aptian Erlhaz Formation, where it would have coexisted with Sauropoda and dinosaurs, other theropods, and various Crocodylomorpha.
Originally proposed to be an indeterminate species of Baryonyx, the identity of Cristatusaurus has been subject to debate, in part due to the fragmentary nature of its fossils. Some argue that it is probably the same dinosaur as Suchomimus, which has also been found in Niger, in the same sediment layers. In that case the genus Cristatusaurus would have priority, since it was named more than two months earlier. Others have concluded, however, that Cristatusaurus is a nomen dubium, considering it indistinguishable from both Suchomimus and Baryonyx. Some distinctions between the fossils of Cristatusaurus and Suchomimus have been pointed out, but it is uncertain whether these differences separate the two genera or if they are due to ontogeny (changes in an organism during growth).
In a 1986 publication, British paleontologists Alan Charig and Angela Milner considered Taquet's jaw elements nearly indistinguishable from those of the spinosaurid Baryonyx walkeri; which they were describing on the basis of a partial skeleton from the Barremian of the Weald Clay, England. A 1997 followup to this preliminary paper referred MNHN GDF 365 and 366 to an indeterminate Baryonyx species, regardless of their younger geological age. In 1998, Taquet and American geologist Dale Russell used the bones to erect the new genus Cristatusaurus, with the type species being Cristatusaurus lapparenti. Its generic name is derived from the Latin crista (for "crest"), and refers to a sagittal crest on the snout. The specific name honors the late French paleontologist Albert-Félix de Lapparent, due to his contributions to dinosaur-related discoveries in the Sahara. In the same paper, several skull and vertebral fossils from the Tademaït of Algeria were attributed to a new species of Spinosaurus called S. maroccanus, which was described and compared to Cristatusaurus. Spinosaurus maroccanus is now considered by most paleontologists either a nomen dubium (name of uncertain application) or one synonymous with S. aegyptiacus. More than two months after Taquet and Russel published their paper, another spinosaurid genus and species was named from the Erlhaz Formation, Suchomimus tenerensis. Its describers, the American paleontologist Paul Sereno and colleagues, agreed with Charig and Milner in that there was no distinction between the skull fossils of Baryonyx and Cristatusaurus; concluding that the latter was a nomen dubium. In a 2003 analysis, German paleontologist Oliver Rauhut concurred with this.
When describing the taxon, Taquet and Russell based Cristatusauruss separation from Baryonyx on the former's "brevirostrine condition of premaxilla" (having a short snout). The meaning of this diagnosis has been considered obscure by various subsequent authors, who describe the specimens as almost identical to those of Baryonyx and Suchomimus. In 2002, French paleontologist Éric Buffetaut and his Tunisian colleague Mohamed Ouaja supported Cristatusauruss with Baryonyx. The same year, American paleontologist Hans-Dieter Sues and colleagues regarded both Cristatusaurus and Suchomimus as junior synonyms of Baryonyx, stating that there is no fossil evidence indicating more than one spinosaur lived in the Elrhaz Formation. More recent research has retained Suchomimus and Baryonyx as distinct genera. Others, such as Tor Bertin in 2010, and Matthew Carrano and colleagues in 2012, have referred to Cristatusaurus as an indeterminate baryonychine, because of how fragmentary its remains are.
In 2016, Christophe Hendrickx, Octávio Mateus, and Buffetaut noted that Taquet and Russel might have interpreted Cristatusaurus as having a shorter snout than Baryonyx by mistaking the notch where the maxillae articulated with the premaxillae for the nostril openings. Since both Suchomimus and Baryonyx have more completely preserved premaxillae, while Cristatusaurus only has the frontmost part of this bone known, Hendrickx and colleagues considered it possible that Cristatusauruss snout was just as long as in Baryonyx. Therefore, they agreed with previous authors in the ambiguity of Taquet and Russel's diagnosis. Hendrickx and colleagues stated that since Cristatusaurus and Suchomimus are nearly identical and both hail from the same stratigraphic unit, they are almost certainly synonyms. The researchers found Cristatusaurus and Suchomimus similar in that they both had premaxillary crests, similar size ratio of tooth sockets, and shallow depressions in front of their nostril openings. However, since these features are minor and may vary within species as well as depending on age and sex, Hendrickx and colleagues did not identify any definitive Autapomorphy (distinguishing features) of Cristatusauruss holotype, and thus considered the taxon a nomen dubium until its remains are more closely examined . Given that it was named first, Cristatusaurus lapparenti has priority over Suchomimus tenerensis in the case that they become synonymized.
In a 2017 study, Brazilian paleontologists Marcos Sales and Cesar Schultz compared the holotype of Cristatusaurus (MNHN GDF 366) to the referred snout of Suchomimus (MNN GDF501). Both of them exhibit a narrow rim across the top of their premaxillae. However, Cristatusauruss convex secondary palate is clearly visible in side view (situated under the premaxillary teeth), whereas in Suchomimus it is discernible only through cracks on the fossil snout. It was also pointed out that where known, the upward-sloping process of Cristatusauruss maxilla is narrower than in Suchomimus. The researchers concluded that further study is needed to determine whether these differences are possible Autapomorphy (distinguishing features) between the taxa, or if they are the result of Ontogeny (developmental) changes, given that the Cristatusaurus holotype represents a younger individual.
The tip of Cristatusauruss premaxilla was short and expanded, while the rear end was narrowed near the suture with the maxilla; this rosette-like snout shape was characteristic of spinosaurids. The front of the upper jaw was concave on the bottom, shaped to interlock with what would have been the convex and also enlarged tip of the mandible's dentary bone. A thin sagittal crest ran lengthwise on top of the premaxillae, a condition present in Baryonyx and Suchomimus, and very prominent in Angaturama (a possible synonym of Irritator). Like all spinosaurids, Cristatusauruss (bony nostrils) were positioned further back on the skull that in typical theropods. Two bony processes extended across the underside of the snout, in a convex structure that formed the animal's secondary palate. This condition is observed in all extant , but not in most theropod dinosaurs; however, it was a common trait among spinosaurids.
Cristatusauruss dental (tooth sockets) were closely spaced, those in the maxilla and dentary were flattened somewhat sideways; while the ones in the premaxillae were large and mostly circular, with the frontmost alveoli being the largest. Partial tooth crowns preserved in some alveoli show that the teeth were finely , with flutes (lengthwise ridges) on their lingual (inward-facing side of teeth) surface. Both premaxilla specimens had seven alveoli on each side, the same number as in Suchomimus, Angaturama, Oxalaia, and the Spinosaurus maroccanus specimen.
One of the dorsal vertebrae (MNHN GDF 358) measured in length, which is equal to the largest known vertebrae of Spinosaurus maroccanus. The preserved base of one of Cristatusauruss vertebral neural spines (MNHN GDF 359) was thick in comparison to the measurement seen in an equivalent Spinosaurus vertebra, indicating that Cristatusauruss neural spines were probably not as tall as those of Spinosaurus. Of the two manual (claws) referred to Cristatusaurus, one was equivalent in size to those found for Suchomimus and Baryonyx, while the other was about 25 to 30 percent smaller. As a spinosaur, it would have wielded these claws with three-fingered hands carried by robust arms.
This environment was home to a variety of fauna including dinosaurs, , chelonians, fish, hybodont sharks, and freshwater Bivalvia. Besides Cristatusaurus lapparenti and Suchomimus tenerensis, theropods such as the Abelisauridae Kryptops palaios, the carcharodontosaurid Eocarcharia dinops (likely a chimaera including spinosaurid bones) and the Noasauridae Afromimus have been found. Herbivorous dinosaurs of the region included like Ouranosaurus nigeriensis, Elrhazosaurus nigeriensis, Lurdusaurus arenatus, and two Sauropoda: Nigersaurus taqueti, and an unnamed titanosaur. Crocodylomorpha were abundant; represented by the giant Pholidosauridae species Sarcosuchus imperator, as well as small notosuchians like Anatosuchus minor, Araripesuchus wegeneri, and Stolokrosuchus lapparenti. The local flora probably consisted mainly of ferns, horsetails, and angiosperms, based on the dietary adaptations of the sauropods that lived there.
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