Kayentavenator

Say it like this: “KAI-en-tuh-VEN-uh-tuh”

Kayentavenator elysiae

Kayentavenator ate meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Early Jurassic. Bones have been found in the United States.

Quiz me on Kayentavenator

When: Early Jurassic (Sinemurian · Pliensbachian) · roughly 199.5 to 184.2 million years ago
Named in: 2010 · Gay, R.
Hip height: 0.5 m · 2 ft
Length: Not established
Weight: Not established
Found in: the United States · Kayenta
Food and walking: Carnivore · Two legs
Kind: sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
Family branch: Neotheropoda

The story in short

Kayentavenator was formally named in 2010 by R. Gay. The name means “kayenta hunter.”

Fossils referred to Kayentavenator date to the Early Jurassic (Sinemurian · Pliensbachian), roughly 199.5 to 184.2 million years ago. Finds come from the United States, including the Kayenta Formation. It was a carnivore and walked on two legs.

Published estimates put Kayentavenator at hips about 0.5 m high.

On the family tree it sits in Neotheropoda, among the theropod dinosaurs.

Close relatives

Cryolophosaurus

Cryolophosaurus ellioti

Early Jurassic (Sinemurian · Pliensbachian) · roughly 199.5 to 184.2 million years ago

Dilophosaurus

Dilophosaurus wetherilli

Early Jurassic (Hettangian · Sinemurian · Pliensbachian) · roughly 201.4 to 184.2 million years ago

Dolichosuchus

Dolichosuchus cristatus

Late Triassic (Norian) · roughly 227.3 to 205.7 million years ago