Lythronax — artistic reconstruction

Cretaceous

Lythronax

Lythronax argestes

The catalogue presents Lythronax as a carnivore member of Tyrannosauridae that lived during the Cretaceous, between 80 Ma. Its estimated range is 8.0 m in length and 2.5 t in mass, giving a practical sense of scale. Reference material comes from Utah, USA. Size and mass are approximations and may change with new fossils or methods.

Carnivore80 MaTyrannosauridae

Evidence-backed summary

For Lythronax, the PBDB records the taxonomic attribution as Loewen et al. (2013).

The PBDB places it in Tyrannosaurinae, and the catalogue record assigns it to the family Tyrannosauridae.

In the PBDB record, the reported stratigraphic range is the Campanian.

The PBDB catalogues 1 occurrence, with material from the Wahweap Formation (1). Provenance: United States.

The catalogue records the holotype as UMNH VP 20200 and the type locality as “Utah, USA”.

  • UMNH VP 20200
  • Utah, USA

The catalogue's reference measurements are 8.0 m in length and 2.5 t in mass — estimates, which vary with specimen and method.

  • 8.0 m
  • 2.5 tons

The record gathers 4 bibliographic references registered in the PBDB, listed below.

Records compiled on 2026-08-08

Where it lived

Fossil occurrences on today’s map and in the tectonic reconstruction.

Present-day map1 PBDB
Wahweap
PBDB occurrences
Map at the time · ~80 Ma1 PBDB
Wahweap
PBDB occurrences
Present mean latitude37.2° N
Reconstructed mean latitude48.4° N

Positions reconstructed by PBDB/GPlates, not observed; this is not an exact habitat map.

Paleobiology Database · GPlates · CC BY 4.0

Artistic 3D reconstruction

There is no approved species-specific 3D model yet. Generic anatomy will not be presented as if it were evidence.

Physical Specifications

Length
8.0 m
Weight
2.5 t
Period
Cretaceous
Time range
80 Ma

Discovery Information

First Discovery
2013
Described by
Mark Loewen et al.

Taxonomic Classification

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Reptilia
Order
Saurischia
Family
Tyrannosauridae
Genus
Lythronax
Species
L. argestes

Paleobiology Database · txn:294659

Data status

Taxonomic name matched to PBDB and checked on 2026-08-08.

Taxonomic linkage does not automatically validate size, mass, behaviour or appearance.

Type specimen
UMNH VP 20200
Type locality
Utah, USA