Dinosaurs · Small theropod

Sarcosaurus

Say it sahr-koh-sore-us. The name means ‘flesh lizard’.

Sarcosaurus beside a person 1.75 m tall. Ticks mark every metre.Body shape drawn for this site, showing the general build of small theropods

Length: 3 m
Diet: Meat-eater
When: Early Jurassic202 to 195 million years ago
Fossils found in: England
Named by: Andrews (1921)
Family tree: Dinosauria › Saurischia › Theropoda › Ceratosauria

Where Sarcosaurus sits in the age of dinosaurs.Periods from the ICS chart; dinosaur dates from the Natural History Museum

Small theropods. Small two-legged dinosaurs, many feathered, the group that includes birds. See all 60

Found in Britain. Fossils of Sarcosaurus have been found in the United Kingdom. Read about how Britain moved across the globe in Britain's journey.

Lived at the same time

Other small theropods

Liliensternus Late Triassic
Podokesaurus Mid Jurassic
Segisaurus Mid Jurassic
Procompsognathus Late Triassic
Coelophysis Late Triassic
Eoraptor Late Triassic
Gasosaurus Mid Jurassic
Proceratosaurus Mid Jurassic

Source: Sarcosaurus in the Natural History Museum Dino Directory, read 12 November 2026. Sizes are the museum's estimates for a typical adult. "Lived at the same time" lists dinosaurs whose dates overlap, which does not always mean they met.