Nerfing the Spinosaurus

Spencer Thomson 

May 9, 2025

Discovered in 1912 during an excavation in Egypt, Spinosaurus aegyptiacus was an incredible scientific discovery as the largest predatory dinosaur in existence and quickly became popular among children and adults alike. As an ancient fossil, scientists were curious as to how the Spinosaurus looked when it was alive, which ended up being a difficult task due to its strange skeleton, and especially, its unique “sail” on its back. Initially, the Spinosaurus seemed terrifying and intimidating, but new research and fossil evidence suggest a different appearance, and many people are concerned about the effect these new designs have on the Spinosaurus’s reputation. 

The initial design of the Spinosaurus in the early 1900s was similar to many other fossils of large theropods, such as the Tyrannosaurus Rex. Paleontologists believed these large creatures stood upright, dragging their tails behind them. This assumption was made because the skeletal structures were similar to other upright animals, such as kangaroos, who supported their large heads on their necks and used their tails for balance. This misconception became popular, and influenced pop culture with the introduction of Godzilla. However, new scientific evidence in the 1960s and 1970s brought forward a new design, where large theropods stood with their spines parallel to the ground. This design is supported by evidence that the Tyrannposaurus’s skull was far too heavy to support on its neck, and instead they used their tails for counter-balances. This new design was applied to the Spinosaurus and was displayed in Steven Spielberg’s “Jurassic Park III” as the violent and menacing antagonist. 

This new design was an improvement over the original Spinosaurus design, but was soon changed as more studies and evidence was provided, once again changing its official design. This new change depicted the Spinosaurus as an amphibious reptile, spending time in the water with behaviors similar to that of modern day crocodilians. This would imply that the Spinosaurus was less physically powerful than initially thought, now using its arms and legs to swim, and adopting a paddle-like tail, which would be very hard to find in the fossil record, where it is very uncommon to find preserved imprints of flesh and skin. The Spinosaurus changed from one of the most powerful dinosaurs in history to an oversized crocodile. 

The Spinosaurus has undergone many changes over the decades, and some people joke that the scientific community is attempting to “nerf” the Spinosaurus, since it was the epitome of dinosaur design and was too good to be true. However, the most recent design of Spinosaurus is the most accurate, and makes the most sense evolutionarily, allowing it to fulfil niches other organisms would be unable to fill. Also, the sail looks really cool and since colores are not preserved in fossils, they could have been any shade of neon pink, which is awesome.