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Elopteryx

Say it: el-OP-ter-iks

Name means: “marsh wing”1

Ate: MeatOdd feathered dinosLate Cretaceous

Elopteryx was a small, bird-like dinosaur that lived on an island in the ancient sea. It had feathers and might have been able to fly, but scientists think it may have lost that ability later. It was a meat-eater that hunted small animals.1

Lived

72 to 66 million years ago5

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Romania, in the Hațeg Basin of Transylvania1 5

Food

Meat5

Length

0.9 m2

largest known specimen

Weight

2.7 kg2

largest known specimen

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 23 bananas

as long as 2 house cats nose to tailas long as 5 bananas end to endabout as heavy as a house catas heavy as 23 bananas

How big was Elopteryx compared to YOU?

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

cool stuff

Fun facts

Elopteryx lived about 70 to 66 million years ago, near the very end of the Age of Dinosaurs.1

Its fossils were found on Hațeg Island, which was a large island in the ancient sea that covered parts of Europe.1

For a long time, scientists thought Elopteryx was a bird, not a dinosaur. Now they think it was a bird-like dinosaur.1

A 2024 study found that Elopteryx was secondarily flightless, meaning it evolved from flying ancestors but lost the ability to fly.1

Some scientists think Elopteryx might be the same animal as Balaur bondoc, another dinosaur from Romania.1

Elopteryx is known from only a few leg bones, so scientists are still unsure exactly what it looked like.1

AI-made picture of Elopteryx — An AI-made picture of how Elopteryx 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 Elopteryx

?How big was Elopteryx?

Elopteryx was small, about the size of a large pelican or a big cormorant, based on its leg bones. Scientists are still unsure of its exact size because only a few fossils have been found.1 3

?Could Elopteryx fly?

Scientists are not certain if Elopteryx could fly. While some studies suggest it may have been flightless, more evidence is needed to confirm its flight capabilities.1 4

?What did Elopteryx eat?

Elopteryx was a meat-eater that hunted small animals. Its sharp teeth and claws helped it catch prey.1

?Is Elopteryx the same as Balaur bondoc?

Maybe. Some scientists think Elopteryx might be the same animal as Balaur bondoc, another dinosaur from Romania. More fossils are needed to be sure.1 4

?When did Elopteryx live?

Elopteryx lived about 70 to 66 million years ago, near the very end of the Age of Dinosaurs.1

?Where was Elopteryx found?

Elopteryx fossils were found on Hațeg Island, which was a large island in the ancient sea that covered parts of what is now Romania.1

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Myth buster

Myth: Elopteryx was a bird like a pelican or an owl.

Truth: Scientists now think Elopteryx was a non-avian dinosaur, not a bird. It was a feathered theropod related to birds.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Elopteryx
Named by: Andrews 19135
Group: Odd feathered dinos
Family / clade: Alvarezsauridae5
Classification: Theropoda > Alvarezsauridae5
Age of the rocks: 72 to 66 million years (Maastrichtian)5
Rock formations: Sînpetru, Râul Mare5
Countries: Romania5
Fossil records: 3 in the Paleobiology Database5
Discovery: The famous Hungarian paleontologist Franz Nopcsa found the first bones near Sînpetru in Romania. In 1913, Charles William Andrews named the dinosaur Elopteryx nopcsai in his honor.1
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Elopteryx was a bird-like dinosaur or an early bird, and whether it is the same species as Balaur bondoc.1

Where the facts come from

Elopteryx (en.wikipedia.org)
Elopteryx nopcsai | Dinosaur Database by DinoAnimals.com (dinoanimals.com)
ELOPTERYX REVISITED - A NEW BIRD-LIKE SPECIMEN FROM THE MAASTRICHTIAN OF THE HAŢEG BASIN (ROMANIA) (actapalrom.geo-paleontologica.org)
Elopteryx at Nălaț-Vad: new theropod material described from the Hațeg Basin (Romania) (biozoojournals.ro)
Elopteryx in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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