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Compsognathids
Compsognathidae is a family of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs. Compsognathids were small carnivores, generally conservative in form, hailing from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. The bird-like features of these species, along with other dinosaurs such as ''Archaeopteryx'' inspired the idea for the connection between dinosaur reptiles and modern-day avian species. Compsognathid fossils preserve diverse integument — skin impressions are known from four genera commonly placed in the group, ''Compsognathus'', ''Sinosauropteryx'', ''Sinocalliopteryx'', and ''Juravenator''.Xu, Xing. "Palaeontology: Scales, feathers and dinosaurs." ''Nature'' 440.7082 (2006): 287-288. While the latter three show evidence of a covering of some of the earliest primitive feathers over much of the body, ''Juravenator'' and ''Compsognathus'' also show evidence of scales on the tail or hind legs. '' Ubirajara'', described in 2020, had elaborate integumentary structures on its back and shoulders superf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Compsognathus
''Compsognathus'' (; Greek ''kompsos''/κομψός; "elegant", "refined" or "dainty", and ''gnathos''/γνάθος; "jaw") is a genus of small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. Members of its single species ''Compsognathus longipes'' could grow to around the size of a turkey. They lived about 150 million years ago, during the Tithonian age of the late Jurassic period, in what is now Europe. Paleontologists have found two well-preserved fossils, one in Germany in the 1850s and the second in France more than a century later. Today, ''C. longipes'' is the only recognized species, although the larger specimen discovered in France in the 1970s was once thought to belong to a separate species and named ''C. corallestris''. Many presentations still describe ''Compsognathus'' as "chicken-sized" dinosaurs because of the size of the German specimen, which is now believed to be a juvenile. ''Compsognathus longipes'' is one of the few dinosaur species whose diet is known with ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Compsognathus Longipes
''Compsognathus'' (; Greek ''kompsos''/κομψός; "elegant", "refined" or "dainty", and ''gnathos''/γνάθος; "jaw") is a genus of small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. Members of its single species ''Compsognathus longipes'' could grow to around the size of a turkey. They lived about 150 million years ago, during the Tithonian age of the late Jurassic period, in what is now Europe. Paleontologists have found two well-preserved fossils, one in Germany in the 1850s and the second in France more than a century later. Today, ''C. longipes'' is the only recognized species, although the larger specimen discovered in France in the 1970s was once thought to belong to a separate species and named ''C. corallestris''. Many presentations still describe ''Compsognathus'' as "chicken-sized" dinosaurs because of the size of the German specimen, which is now believed to be a juvenile. ''Compsognathus longipes'' is one of the few dinosaur species whose diet is known wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinocalliopteryx
''Sinocalliopteryx'' (meaning 'Chinese beautiful feather') is a genus of carnivorous compsognathid theropod dinosaurs from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of China (Jianshangou Beds, dating to 124.6 Ma). While similar to the related ''Huaxiagnathus'', ''Sinocalliopteryx'' were larger. The type specimen, at 2.37 meters (7.78 ft) in length, in 2007 was the largest known compsognathid exemplar. In 2012 an even larger specimen was reported. Discovery The type species ''Sinocalliopteryx gigas'' was named and described in 2007 by Ji Shu'an, Ji Qiang, Lü Junchang and Yuan Chongxi. The generic name is derived from ''Sinae'', Latin for the Chinese and Greek καλός, ''kalos'', "beautiful", and πτέρυξ, ''pteryx'', "feather". The large size of this "giant compsognathid" lent ''Sinocalliopteryx'' its specific name (zoology), specific name, ''gigas'', meaning 'giant'.Ji, S., Ji, Q., Lu J., and Yuan, C. (2007). "A new giant compsognathid dinosaur with long filamento ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Huaxiagnathus
''Huaxiagnathus'' is a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of China. It was a compsognathid, large for that group at about half a meter longer than ''Compsognathus'' and larger specimens of ''Sinosauropteryx'', with the largest specimen about in length. The name ''Huaxiagnathus'' is derived from the Chinese ''Hua Xia'', 華夏, a traditional word for "China", and from the Greek ''gnathos'', Latinised into ''gnathus'', meaning "jaw." Description The holotype (CAGS-IG-02-301, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, Beijing) specimen was collected from the Yixian Formation (Jehol Group, Aptian) at Dabangou Village, Sihetun area, near Beipiao City, in western Liaoning Province. The holotype consists of an essentially complete skeleton, lacking only the end of the tail, preserved on five large slabs. Partially digested bones of an unidentified vertebrate were found within the holotype specimen. Another, larger specimen of ''Huaxiagnathus'' was discovered earlier i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ubirajara Jubatus
"Ubirajara" ("lord of the spear") is an informal genus of compsognathid theropod that lived during the early Cretaceous period in what is now Brazil. It is known by a single species, "Ubirajara jubatus", recovered from the Crato Formation. It has been described as the first Gondwanan non-avian theropod dinosaur discovered with preserved integumentary structures. Such proto-feathers, most likely used for display, include slender monofilaments associated with the base of the neck, increasing in length along the dorsal thoracic region, where they would form a mane, as well as a pair of elongate, ribbon-like structures likely emerging from its shoulders. The taxon was named in 2020 in a now- withdrawn ''in-press'' academic paper. The description caused controversy due to the fossil having been apparently illegally smuggled from Brazil. In July 2022, Germany agreed to return the fossil to Brazil after a legitimate export permit could not be found. Discovery and naming Workers recover ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scipionyx
''Scipionyx'' ( ) was a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous of Italy, around 113 million years ago. There is only one fossil known of ''Scipionyx'', discovered in 1981 by an amateur paleontologist and brought to the attention of science in 1993. In 1998 the type species ''Scipionyx samniticus'' was named, the generic name meaning "Scipio's claw". The find generated much publicity because of the unique preservation of large areas of petrified soft tissue and internal organs such as muscles and intestines. The fossil shows many details of these, even the internal structure of some muscle and bone cells. It was also the first dinosaur found in Italy. Because of the importance of the specimen, it has been intensely studied. The fossil is that of a juvenile only half a metre (twenty inches) long and perhaps just three days old. Its adult size is unknown. ''Scipionyx'' was a bipedal predator, its horizontal rump balanced by a long tail. Its body was probably covered b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mirischia
''Mirischia'' is a small (two meter-long) genus of compsognathid theropod dinosaur from the Albian stage ( Early Cretaceous Period) of Brazil. Discovery and naming In 2000 David Martill and Eberhard Frey reported the find of a small dinosaur fossil present in a chalk nodule, illegally acquired by the German Staatliches Museum für Naturkunde Karlsruhe from an illegal Brazilian fossil dealer who had indicated the piece had been uncovered in the Chapada do Araripe, specifically at Araripina, Pernambuco. In 2004 the type species ''Mirischia asymmetrica'' was named and described by Martill, Frey and Darren Naish. The generic name combines the Latin ''mirus'', 'wonderful', with "ischia", the Latinised plural of Greek ἴσχιον, ''ischion'', 'hip joint'. The specific name ''asymmetrica'' refers to the fact that in the specimen the left ischium differs from its right counterpart. The holotype, SMNK 2349 PAL, has its probable provenance in the Romualdo Formation of the Santana G ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Juravenator
''Juravenator'' is a genus of small (75 cm long) coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur (although a 2020 study proposed it to be a hatchling megalosauroid), which lived in the area which would someday become the top of the Franconian Jura of Germany (Painten Formation), about 151 or 152 million years ago. It is known from a single, juvenile specimen. Description ''Juravenator'' was a small bipedal predator. The holotype of ''Juravenator'' represents a juvenile individual, about seventy-five centimetres in length. In 2006 and 2010 Göhlich established some diagnostic traits. The four teeth of the premaxilla in the front of the snout had serrations on the upper third of the back edge of the tooth crown. Between the tooth row of the premaxilla and that of the maxilla there was no hiatus. The maxillary teeth were few in number, eight with the holotype. The depression or ''fossa'' for the large skull opening, the ''fenestra antorbitalis'', was long and extended far to the front. The hu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinosauropteryx
''Sinosauropteryx'' (meaning "Chinese reptilian wing", ) is a compsognathid dinosaur. Described in 1996, it was the first dinosaur taxon outside of Avialae (birds and their immediate relatives) to be found with evidence of feathers. It was covered with a coat of very simple filament-like feathers. Structures that indicate colouration have also been preserved in some of its feathers, which makes ''Sinosauropteryx'' the first non-avialian dinosaurs where colouration has been determined. The colouration includes a reddish and light banded tail. Some contention has arisen with an alternative interpretation of the filamentous impression as remains of collagen fibres, but this has not been widely accepted. ''Sinosauropteryx'' was a small theropod with an unusually long tail and short arms. The longest known specimen reaches up to in length, with an estimated weight of It was a close relative of the similar but older genus ''Compsognathus'', both genera belonging to the family Compsog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beipiaognathus
"''Beipiaognathus''" (meaning Beipiao jaw) is a dubious genus of coelurosaurian theropod from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Liaoning, China. The type species is "''Beipiaognathus jii''" and it was named and described by Hu ''et al.'' in 2016. The genus was initially assigned to the Compsognathidae by Hu ''et al.'' (2016) based on the presence of two traits: fan-shaped dorsal neural spines and a robust I-1 phalanx on the hand. However, it also differs from other compsognathids in several ways: the teeth are unserrated and conical; the ulna is proportionally longer; the II-1 phalanx on the hand is longer and more robust; and the tail is much shorter. However, Andrea Cau informally noted a number of points in the fossil that are indicative of it having been artificially assembled, thus rendering the specimen a phylogenetically uninformative chimaera. Additionally, he argued that the characters cited are not unique to compsognathids, with fan-shaped neural spines being als ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aristosuchus
''Aristosuchus'' is a genus of small coelurosaurian dinosaur whose name was derived from the Greek ἄριστος (meaning bravest, best, noblest) and ''σουχος'' (the Ancient Greek corruption of the name of the Egyptian crocodile-headed god Sobek). It shared many characteristics with birds. Discovery The type species, ''Aristosuchus pusillus'', was described in 1876 by Richard Owen and named ''Poekilopleuron pusillus''. The specific epithet means "small" in Latin. Harry Govier Seeley (1839–1909) gave it the name ''Aristosuchus'' in 1887. It was found in the Wealden Group dating to the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) in England, on the Isle of Wight, i.e. from about 125 million years ago. Description ''Aristosuchus'' was a bipedal, meat-eating (carnivorous) theropod dinosaur. This predator is thought to have been about and is estimated to have weighed about . According to Gregory S. Paul, its weight was . The femur of ''Aristosuchus'' has a wing-like anterior ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aniksosaurus
''Aniksosaurus'' (meaning "spring lizard", from Modern Greek Άνοιξη, "Spring", referring to the fact it was found on 21 September 1995, the onset of Spring on the Southern Hemisphere) is a genus of dinosaur from what is now Chubut Province, Argentina. It was a theropod, specifically a coelurosaur, which lived in the Cenomanian to Turonian of the Cretaceous period, between 96-91 million years ago. The type species, ''Aniksosaurus darwini'', was formally described from the Bajo Barreal Formation of the Golfo San Jorge Basin by Rubén Dario Martínez and Fernando Emilio Novas in 2006;Martínez, R.D., and Novas, F.E. (2006)"Aniksosaurus darwini gen. et sp. nov., a new coelurosaurian theropod from the early Late Cretaceous of central Patagonia, Argentina."Revista del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales, n.s. 8(2): 243-259. the name was first coined in 1995 and reported in the literature in 1997. The specific epithet honors Charles Darwin who visited Patagonia in 1832/1833 duri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
