They already have a fearsome reputation as the top predator of their time , but it seems the Tyrannosaurs were also prone to eating each other . A new study has uncovered evidence that a relative of Tyrannosaurus rex , called Daspletosaurus , may have indulged in cannibalism . Paleontologists have found bite marks on the fossilised skull of a juvenile Daspletosaurus , which lived around 75 million years ago . This artist 's reconstruction shows a Daspletosaurus feeding on the body of another in an act of cannibalism . While some of the injuries appear to have been sustained during combat with other tyrannosaurs , others appear to have occurred after death . The scientists believe that another Daspletosaurus , which could grow to nine metres ( 30ft ) as adults and weigh up to four tons , fed on the youngster 's body . Tyrannosaurus rex and its relatives were more intelligent than previously thought and hunted in gangs which included young and older members , researchers have claimed . Scientists believe they have evidence that the top predatory dinosaurs were highly intelligent pack animals , despite T-rex being popularly depicted as a dangerous but dim-witted loner . This is a myth that has grown up because for many years their fossil skeletons tended to be found on their own , researchers say . The new theory follows an analysis of skeletons of the tyrannosaur Tarbosaurus bataar from 90 sites in the Gobi Desert , Mongolia . Tarbosaurus , a cousin of T-rex that lived around 70 million years ago , was a two-legged predator up to 12 metres long and weighing five tonnes . At least half a dozen of the animals appear to have belonged to a single social group , including adults and juveniles , that died together . The findings help to shed light on the brutal world in which the dinosaurs inhabited . Dr David Hone , a paleontologist at Queen Mary University of London , who led the research said : 'This animal clearly had a tough life , suffering numerous injuries across the head including some that must have been quite nasty . 'The most likely candidate to have done this is another member of the same species , suggesting some serious fights between these animals during their lives . ' The researchers , whose work is published in the journal PeerJ , were examining the skull of a Daspletosaurus found in a quarry in the Dinosaur Provincial Park close to Calgary , Alberta in Canada in 1994 . Daspletosaurus , which means 'frightful lizard ' , is thought to be a close relative of the more famous Tyrannosaurus rex and roamed north America between 77 million and 74 million years ago . With a massive , heavy skull that could be more than 3ft ( 1 metre ) in length , it would have had a powerful bite and probably preyed on large armoured ceratopsid dinosaurs . The dinosaur latest study was thought to be a juvenile , measuring just under 19.7 feet ( 6 metres ) and weighed around half a tonne . The researchers found numerous injuries on the skull , several of which appeared to match the teeth of tyrannosaurs . The skull of the juvenile Daspletosaurus ( above ) was covered in bite marks made by Tyrannosaur teeth . David Hone ( left ) and Darren Tanke ( right ) studied the fossilised skull at the Royal Tyrrell Museum . One bite to the back of the head broke off part of the skull and left a circular tooth-shaped puncture through the bone . However , there are signs the bone had begun healing , suggesting the injury was not fatal and that the animal lived for some time after it was inflicted . While the researchers can not say what killed the Daspletosaurus , damage on the jaw bones suggest that a large tyrannosaur bit into the dead creature between one and three times in what appears to be feeding behaviour . Daspletosaurus is thought to have not just hunted but also scavenged for food and the research team say the injuries appear to have occurred after it had begun to decay . Cannibalism is relatively common in the natural world , with more than 1,000 species known to eat their own species . The fossilised skull of Daspletosaurus was found in a quarry in Dinosaur Provincial Park in Alberta , Canada . Daspletosaurus , shown in the artists reconstruction above , led a violent life the study suggests . Tyrannosaurus rex is also thought to have indulged in cannibalism , according to a study in 2010 . Writing in the journal , Dr Hone and his colleague Darren Tanke from the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller , Alberta , said the Daspletosaurus appeared to have lived a violent life involving battles with other members of its own species . They said : 'Numerous wounds were inflicted during life and despite some considerable damage the animal clearly survived as shown by the evidence of healing . 'These were likely inflicted at least in part by one or more conspecifics and perhaps as a result of numerous separate instances of conflict . 'After death , the animal suffered at least one major bite to the right dentary , and perhaps two more from another tyrannosaurid , possibly another Daspletosaurus . 'The specimen must have been decaying prior to the delivery of the bite to the dentary , and the condition of other material suggests scavenging , rather than simply late-stage carcass consumption . '
Fossilised skull of Daspletosaurus - a close relative of Tyrannosaurus rex - found to be covered in bite marks that suggest it was eaten after it had died . Palaeontologists believe another Daspletosaurus scavenged on the body . Score: 6