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Anzu

Say it: AN-zoo

Name means: “chicken from hell”4 1

Ate: A bit of everythingOdd feathered dinosLate Cretaceous

Anzu was a bird-like dinosaur that lived about 68 to 66 million years ago. It had feathers, a toothless beak, and a tall crest on its head. Scientists nicknamed it the 'chicken from hell' because it looked like a giant, scary chicken!1

Lived

72 to 66 million years ago4

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

North Dakota and South Dakota, USA1 4

Food

A bit of everything1 4

Length

3.35 m1

about 11 feet

Weight

200 kg to 300 kg2 3

range from Wikipedia and volumetric study

Height

1.5 m1

at the hips

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How tall was it?

at the hips

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 10 big dogs

as long as 3 dogs nose to tailas long as 19 bananas end to endas heavy as 60 watermelonsup to the handle of a door

How big was Anzu compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Anzu had feathers on its arms and tail, making it look like a big flightless bird.1

Its forelimbs ended in large, sharp claws, unlike modern birds.1

Two of the Anzu skeletons show injuries: one had a broken and healed rib, and another had an arthritic toe bone.1

Anzu lived at the same time as Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops.1

The fossils were found in the Hell Creek Formation, which is famous for many dinosaur fossils.1

Anzu belongs to a group called oviraptorosaurs, which are closely related to birds.1

AI-made picture of Anzu — An AI-made picture of how Anzu might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Anzu

?How big was Anzu?

Anzu was about 3.5 to 3.75 metres (11.5 to 12.3 feet) long, up to 1.5 metres (4.9 feet) tall at the hip, and weighed 200 to 300 kilograms (440 to 660 pounds).2 1

?What did Anzu eat?

Anzu was probably an omnivore or herbivore, eating plants, small animals, and possibly eggs. Its beak was toothless but not as strong as in some Asian relatives.2

?Did Anzu have feathers?

Yes, Anzu had feathers on its arms and tail, making it look like a big flightless bird. It is known from fossils that preserve feather traces.1 2

?Why is Anzu called the chicken from hell?

Scientists nicknamed it the chicken from hell because it looked like a giant bird and was found in the Hell Creek Formation.1 2

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Anzu
Named by: Lamanna et al. 20144
Group: Odd feathered dinos
Family / clade: Caenagnathidae4
Classification: Theropoda > Oviraptorosauria4
Age of the rocks: 72 to 66 million years (Maastrichtian)4
Rock formations: Hell Creek4
Countries: USA4
Fossil records: 6 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: Anzu was named in 2014 by a team led by Matthew Lamanna. The fossils were found by private collectors and scientists in North and South Dakota. The species name wyliei honors the grandson of two museum supporters.1 4
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly what Anzu ate, but its skull suggests it was an omnivore.1

Where the facts come from

Feathered Dinosaur, Anzu wyliei | Smithsonian Institution (si.edu)
Anzu wyliei (en.wikipedia.org)
Constraining the body mass range of Anzu wyliei using volumetric and extant-scaling methods | Vertebrate Anatomy Morphology Palaeontology (journals.library.ualberta.ca)
Anzu 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.

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