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sharp-clawed runner
Compsognathus
Say it like this: “komp-SOG-na-thus”
Compsognathus longipes
Compsognathus ate meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Late Jurassic. Bones have been found in Germany.
- When
- Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian · Tithonian) · roughly 154.8 to 143.1 million years ago
- Named in
- 1861 · Wagner, J. A.
- Hip height
- 0.2 m · 1 ft
- Length
- 0.7–1.4 m · 2–5 ft
- Weight
- 1–4 kg · 2–9 lb
- Found in
- Germany · Painten
- Food and walking
- Carnivore · Two legs
- Kind
- sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
- Family branch
- Compsognathidae
The story in short
The genus Compsognathus dates to 1861, the year J. A. Wagner described it.
It lived in the Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian · Tithonian), roughly 154.8 to 143.1 million years ago. Finds come from Germany, including the Painten Formation. It was a carnivore and walked on two legs.
Published estimates put Compsognathus at a length near 0.7–1.4 m, hips about 0.2 m high, and a body mass around 1–4 kg.
On the family tree it sits in Compsognathidae, among the theropod dinosaurs.
Close relatives
Aristosuchus
Aristosuchus pusillus
Early Cretaceous (Barremian) · roughly 125.8 to 121.4 million years ago
Beipiaognathus
Beipiaognathus jii
Early Cretaceous (Barremian) · roughly 125.8 to 121.4 million years ago
Huadanosaurus
Huadanosaurus sinensis
Early Cretaceous (Barremian) · roughly 125.8 to 121.4 million years ago