The Saltrio Formation is a geological formation in Italy. It dates back to the Early Sinemurian, and would have represented a pelagic or near-epicontinental environment, judging by the presence of marine fauna such as the nautiloid Cenoceras. The Fossils of the Formation were described on the late 1880s and revised on 1960s, finding first marine biota, such as Crinoids, Bivalves and other fauna related to Epicontinental basin deposits.
“Salnova” quarry, where most of the fossils come from
Machinery suitable for processing the stone extracted in the Salnova Quarry
Nautiloid found in situ on the Salnova Quarry
Dimorphodon, a coeval Pterosaur from UK
Saltriovenator is a genus of ceratosaurian dinosaur that lived during the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic in what is now Italy. The type and only species is Saltriovenator zanellai; in the past, the species had been known under the informal name "saltriosaur". Although a full skeleton has not yet been discovered, Saltriovenator is thought to have been a large, bipedal carnivore similar to Ceratosaurus.
Reconstruction of the pectoral girdle and forelimb of Saltriovenator zanellai
Restoration of Saltriovenator
Selected elements of the holotype
Saltriovenator on a beach. The holotype was recovered from a shelf deposit, being probably washed from a nearby emerged landmass