“Spinosaur Tales: The Biology and Ecology of the Spinosaurs” by David Hone, Mark Paul Witton

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Rating: 4/5 Stars.

A fascinating book that gathers together what is known about Spinosaurus, and related species, and presents them in a way that will interest both general readers and specialist (dinosaur and fossil lovers). The author is careful to state what the fossils actually tell us about Spinosaurus, and to provide speculations based on comparisons with other dinosaur families. At various times, the author does say that new fossil discoveries can invalidate what he says, so this should be not be considered an authoritative book with the final word on Spinosaurus.

The book starts out with an introduction to Spinosaurus and why it now in the limelight. Being the main dinosaur ‘villain’ in the film “Jurassic Park 3” made Spinosaurus well known to the public. Fewer fossils of Spinosaurus are known, especially compared to those for T. rex, and are fragmentary, resulting in media headlines whenever new significant fossils of Spinosaurus are discovered, helping to keep it in the news. But much of the public info on Spinosaurus is incorrect and not based on fossil evidence, which is fragmentary and more prone to reinterpretation.

Next, the author gives a brief history of dinosaurs and the position of Spinosaurus in the family tree, which is somewhat speculative due to a lack of early Spinosaur fossils that would help to place its location and origins.

The anatomy of Spinosaurus is then presented, starting with the head (which has more complete fossils), the neck, body, arms, legs and tail. Despite the lack of a complete skeleton of Spinosaurus, the fossil fragments reveal a very unusual dinosaur: one with a long head, a huge sail that rises above the back (with another sail above the tail) and comparatively short legs. This starts a debate over how Spinosaurus moved (two versus four legs) and whether it could swim. For now, the consensus is that it moved on two legs and can wade in water, but not swim.

The long head, which resembles alligators, presents a case that Spinosaurus was a fish eater. But this does not mean that Spinosaurus did not feed on other animals, like turtles or reptiles. The location of Spinosaur fossils indicates that it inhabits waterways and coastlines, and probably interacted with other animals (and dinosaurs) in those locations. While there is (yet) little evidence on what the sail on Spinosaurus is used for, the author speculates that it may be used as a social display or a mating display.

In the end, the author does a good job of separating fact from fiction about what is now known about Spinosaurs, making this a good book to read to learn about what it really is, rather than what is presented about it in films or hyperbolic press releases.

Book read from 2025/12/15 to 2025/12/19.