Pneumatoraptor
Name:
Pneumatoraptor
(Air thief).
Phonetic: New-mat-oh-rap-tor.
Named By: Attila Osi, Sebastian Apesteguia
& Michal Kowalewski - 2010.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Dinosauria,
Theropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora,
Chuniaoae, Paraves.
Species: P. fodori (type).
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: Uncertain due to lack of remains, but
estimated to be about 70 centimetres long.
Known locations: Hungary - Csehbanya Formation.
Time period: Santonian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Left shoulder girdle. Other
remains recovered from the location including teeth, claws,
vertebrae and a tibia (lower leg bone) might also belong to the
genus.
The
holotype fossils of Pneumatoraptor are noted for
containing numerous
air cavities, which in turn inspired the name Pneumatoraptor
which
means ‘air thief’. The type species name is in honour of Geza
Fodor, the person who provided funding for the expedition the
expedition that recovered the Pneumatoraptor
remains.
Pneumatoraptor
was a small maniraptorian dinosaur that may likely be a member of
the Paraves group. However, the remains of Pneumatoraptor
are
currently too incomplete to allow for a more accurate description and
placement amongst other dinosaurs. What can be said is that
Pneumatoraptor would have been a predator of other
small animals, and
probably shared its habitat with nodosaurs
like Hungarosaurus,
ornithopods like Rhabdodon
and ceratopsians
like Ajkaceratops.
In
addition to dinosaurs, pterosaurs
like Bakonydraco
would have also
been present.
Further reading
- Non-avian theropod dinosaurs from the early Late Cretaceous of
central Europe, Attila Osi, Sebastian Apesteguia & Michal
Kowalewski - 2010.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Random favourites
 |
 |
 |