Bahariasauridae
Bahariasauridae
Probable family of averostran theropods
Bahariasauridae is a potential family of averostran theropods that might include a handful of African and South American genera, such as Aoniraptor, Bahariasaurus, Deltadromeus, and Gualicho.[1][2] The placement of these theropods is controversial, with some studies placing them as basal ceratosaurs possibly related to Noasauridae (which they may also include the otherwise noasaurid subfamily Elaphrosaurinae),[1] others classifying them as megaraptorans,[2][3] basal neovenatorids,[4] or basal coelurosaurs.[5][6] There is also a possibility the group might not be monophyletic, as a monograph on the vertebrate diversity in the Kem Kem Beds published in 2020 found Bahariasaurus to be nomen dubium.[7] In the same paper Deltadromeus is classified as an noasaurid,[7] a result also recovered by some previous studies.[8][9][10] A 2024 analysis found Aoniraptor, Bahariasaurus, Deltadromeus, Elaphrosaurus and Gualicho to form a monophyletic clade at the base of Ceratosauria. [11]