With razor-sharp claws and lightning speed, was Banjo the most fearsome hunting dinosaur ever?



If you thought the flesh-ripping dinosaurs in Jurassic Park were terrifying, those fearsome creatures were just puppydogs compared to the giant teeth-gnasher that once roamed the plains of Australia.

Weighing in at half a ton and measuring 16ft, Australovenator Wintonesis with its slashing claws would have been a terrifying sight to behold.



Researchers have revealed the discovery of its bones as well as two other new species of dinosaurs that roamed the huge continent, when it was joined to the rest of Asia, millions of years ago.

However, he might have been less impressed by the name 'Banjo' conferred on him by scientists who found his bones in the Outback.

Nicknamed Banjo, Matilda and Clancy the large dinosaurs are the first unearthed in Australia since 1981 and date back 98million years to the mid-Cretaceous period.

'Banjo' was the fiercest of the three new species of dinosaurs discovered by scientists in a prehistoric watering hole in Queensland

This image shows the relative size of 'Banjo; to a human being

The fearsome Velociraptors make their appearance in Jurassic Park. At 5m the new type of fierce dinosaur found in Australia would have towered over this species

Although 'Banjo' is unlikely to strike fear into your heart, this was the fiercest of the three dinosaurs. It was a giant velociraptor which could race across the plains at 40mph, the same as the meat-eating creature that frightened movie-goers watching Jurassic Park.

'Banjo possess similar speed, razor-sharp teeth and had three large slashing claws on each hand. this was a terrifying creature,' said Anna Bligh, the Premier of Queensland.



The ancient bones of Australovenator Wintonensis - nicknamed Banjo after Australian poet Banjo Paterson - were found with two other species near the Queensland outback town of Winton, Australia. Numerous other fossilised bones have been uncovered in recent years.

Palaeontologist Scott Hocknull analyses the dinosaur fossils retrieved from the Outback site

Researchers excavate at the Queensland site where three new species of dinosaurs were found

'Banjo was the fast-running cheetah of his time - light and agile,' Queensland Museum's palaeontologist Scott Hocknull, one of the scientists who discovered the dinosaurs said.



'He could run down most prey with ease over open ground. Unlike some theropods that have small arms - think T.rex - Banjo was different. His arms were a primary weapon.



'He's Australia's answer to the velociraptor, but many times bigger and more terrifying.'

Matilda (above) was a solid animal similar to a hippo. Clancy (below) was more graceful like a giraffe. Both were plant eaters.

This graphic shows the fossils found of the newly-discovered Diamantinasaurus matildae species dubbed 'Matilda' (right and left cross section)

The other two dinosaurs have been given named Clancy, as in Clancy of the Overflow who features in a famous Australian poem, and Matilda, of waltzing fame.

Scientists say that Matilda was no small fry. It weighed 20 tons, stood 14ft high and was up to 70ft long. It was a solid and robust animal, similar to the hippopotamus of today.



Clancy was a much taller and more graceful animal and may have been Australia's prehistoric answer to the giraffe.

Two of the dinosaurs were found buried together in an ancient 'billabong' or waterhole.



'Billabongs are a built-in part of the Australian mind because we associate them with mystery, ghosts and monsters,' said Scott Hocknull, lead author of the discovery.

The fossils retrieved of 'Clancy', Wintonotitan wattsi, and 'Banjo', Australovenator wintonensis are shown

Palaeontologist Ben Kear at La Trobe University in Melbourne said the discovery will pave the way for new studies on Australian dinosaurs and their environments.



'Australia is one of the great untapped resources in our current understanding of life from the age of dinosaurs,' Mr Kear said.

'The discoveries... will definitely reinvigorate interest in the hitherto tantalizingly incomplete, but globally significant record from this continent.'