Albertonykus
Albertonykus was a tiny dinosaur that used its strong, short arms to dig into insect nests for food. It was one of the smallest meat-eating dinosaurs ever found in North America, about as long as a big cat.23
When did it live?
How big was it?
How long was it?
How heavy was it?
How big was Albertonykus compared to YOU?
Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.
Fun facts
Albertonykus is the smallest alvarezsaur ever found in North America, measuring only 1.1 metres (3.6 feet) long.2
Its arms were very short but extremely strong, with a huge claw on the thumb for digging.3
Scientists think Albertonykus ate wood-nesting termites because fossil wood from its time contains termite-like tunnels.3
It lived about 72 to 66 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.1
Albertonykus had long, slender legs and could probably run fast to escape predators.3
Its fossils were found in the same bonebed as the giant predator Albertosaurus.3
Most asked questions about Albertonykus
?How big was Albertonykus?
Albertonykus was about 1.1 metres (3.6 feet) long and weighed around 5 kilograms (11 pounds), making it the smallest alvarezsaur ever found in North America.2
?What did Albertonykus eat?
Scientists think Albertonykus ate wood-nesting termites. It used its strong thumb claw to tear open rotten logs and dig into insect nests.23
?When did Albertonykus live?
Albertonykus lived about 68.5 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.2
?Is Albertonykus a dinosaur?
Yes, Albertonykus is a dinosaur. It is a type of theropod called an alvarezsaurid.2
Ask Rex about Albertonykus
Rex only answers questions about this page. 3 questions a day.
Rex is an AI and can make mistakes. He runs on servers in the EU and questions are never saved. Never type your name or other personal things.
Myth buster
Myth: Some people think Albertonykus used its claws to dig burrows like a mole.
Truth: Its arms were too short and its legs too long for burrowing. Instead, it used its claws to tear open insect nests.3
For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Albertonykus
- Named by
- Longrich and Currie 20094
- Group
- Odd feathered dinos
- Family / clade
- Alvarezsauridae4
- Classification
- Theropoda > Alvarezsauridae4
- Age of the rocks
- 72 to 66 million years (Maastrichtian)4
- Rock formations
- Horseshoe Canyon, Hell Creek4
- Countries
- Canada, USA4
- Fossil records
- 2 in the Paleobiology Database4
- Discovery
- Albertonykus was named in 2009 by Nicholas Longrich and Philip Currie based on fossils from the Horseshoe Canyon Formation in Alberta, Canada.13
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure if Albertonykus was more closely related to Asian alvarezsaurs like Mononykus or to South American ones.3
Where the facts come from
- PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
- Albertonykus (en.wikipedia.org)
- Albertonykus borealis , a new alvarezsaur (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Early Maastrichtian of Alberta, Canada: implications for the systematics and ecology of the Alvarezsauridae (sciencedirect.com)
- Albertonykus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
Rex is hungry! Dino Wiki is a dad's project for his dino-loving son, free with no ads. Grown-ups can feed Rex a snack to help keep it online.Feed Rex
Therizinosaurus
Oviraptor
Chirostenotes
Citipes
Leptorhynchos
Avimimus
Tyrannosaurus
Triceratops
Velociraptor
Spinosaurus
Ankylosaurus
Parasaurolophus