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sharp-clawed runner
Oviraptor
Say it like this: “OH-vi-RAP-tor”
Oviraptor philoceratops
Oviraptor ate plants and meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in Mongolia.
- When
- Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago
- Named in
- 1924 · Osborn, H. F.
- Hip height
- 0.5 m · 2 ft
- Length
- 1.6–2 m · 5–7 ft
- Weight
- 33–40 kg · 73–88 lb
- Found in
- Mongolia · Djadokhta
- Food and walking
- Omnivore · Two legs
- Kind
- sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
- Family branch
- Oviraptoridae
The story in short
Oviraptor was formally named in 1924 by H. F. Osborn. The name means “egg thief.”
Fossils referred to Oviraptor date to the Late Cretaceous (Campanian), roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago. Finds come from Mongolia, including the Djadokhta Formation. It was an omnivore and walked on two legs.
Published estimates put Oviraptor at a length near 1.6–2 m, hips about 0.5 m high, and a body mass around 33–40 kg.
On the family tree it sits in Oviraptoridae, among the theropod dinosaurs.