Oviraptor
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phylum | Chordata | Oviraptor is a genus of small Mongolian theropod dinosaur. Its name is Latin for 'egg taker' or "egg seizer", referring to the fact that the first fossil specimen was discovered atop a pile of what were thought to be Protoceratops eggs. In the 1990s, the discovery of nesting oviraptorids like Citipati showed that the eggs in question probably belonged to Oviraptor itself, and that the specimen was actually brooding its eggs, when it died at the nest.
Because Oviraptor is only known from incomplete specimens, many figures labelled "Oviraptor" are actually based on the appearance related species, like Citipati and the unnamed Zamyn Khondt oviraptorid. For more information, visit the Wikipedia entry. Get back to Theropoda |
clade | Sauropsida | |
infraclass | Dinosauria | |
order | Saurischia | |
Suborder | Theropoda | |
family | Oviraptoridae | |
genus | Oviraptor | |
Period | Late Cretaceous |
Oviraptor philoceratops
Zamyn Khondt oviraptorid
Zamyn Khondt oviraptorid skeleton
Go to Oviraptor page