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Ornitholestes

Say it: or-nith-oh-LES-teez

Name means: “bird robber”1

Ate: MeatMeat-eating dinosLate Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Ornitholestes was a small, fast dinosaur that lived about 154 million years ago. It had long fingers with claws to grab quick prey like lizards and early mammals. Its name means 'bird robber', but scientists think it probably didn't eat many birds.1 2

Lived

158 to 143 million years ago4

Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Wyoming, USA, and possibly Colorado1 4

Food

Meat1

Length

2 to 2.22 m1

estimates vary

Weight

12.6 kg to 15 kg1

Height

0.7 m3

hip height, estimate

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?

hip height, estimate

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 4 house cats

as long as 4 house cats nose to tailas long as 12 bananas end to endas heavy as 120 bananas

How big was Ornitholestes compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Ornitholestes had big eyes, which were more than one quarter of the length of its skull. This might have helped it see at night.1

Its tail was very long and whiplike, making up more than half of its body length. The tail helped it balance while running.1

The front teeth of Ornitholestes were cone-shaped and not very serrated, but the back teeth were curved and had sharp serrations like steak knives.1

Only one nearly complete skeleton of Ornitholestes has been found. It was discovered in Wyoming in 1900 by a team from the American Museum of Natural History.1

Some scientists once thought Ornitholestes was the same dinosaur as Coelurus, but most now agree they are different genera.1 2

An early drawing by Charles R. Knight showed Ornitholestes chasing the bird Archaeopteryx, but scientists today think it mostly ate ground animals.1

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

?How big was Ornitholestes?

About 2 metres (6.6 feet) long and weighed around 12.6 kilograms (27.8 pounds).1 2

?What did Ornitholestes eat?

It ate small, speedy animals like lizards, early mammals, and maybe baby dinosaurs. Some scientists think it might have also caught fish or an occasional bird.1 2

?Could Ornitholestes fly?

No, Ornitholestes was a dinosaur that walked and ran on two legs. It could not fly.1 2

?Was Ornitholestes a dinosaur?

Yes, Ornitholestes was a small meat-eating theropod dinosaur.1 2

?When did Ornitholestes live?

It lived during the Late Jurassic Period, about 154 million years ago.1 2

?Where was Ornitholestes found?

A nearly complete skeleton was found in Wyoming, USA, in 1900.1 2

?How fast could Ornitholestes run?

Scientists do not know its exact speed, but it had strong running muscles and a long tail for balance, so it was probably fast.1 2

?Did Ornitholestes have feathers?

No fossil feathers have been found with Ornitholestes, but since it was a close relative of feathered dinosaurs, some scientists think it might have had simple feathers.1

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Myth buster

Myth: Ornitholestes mainly ate birds.

Truth: Its name means 'bird robber', but scientists now think it mostly ate small land animals like lizards, mammals, and baby dinosaurs. It may have also eaten fish.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Ornitholestes
Named by: Osborn 19034
Group: Meat-eating dinos
Family / clade: Compsognathidae4
Classification: Theropoda > Compsognathidae4
Age of the rocks: 158 to 143 million years ()4
Rock formations: Morrison4
Countries: USA4
Fossil records: 4 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: Ornitholestes was named by Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1903. The skeleton was dug up in July 1900 in Wyoming by a team from the American Museum of Natural History.1
Still debated: Scientists are not sure if Ornitholestes hunted at night. One researcher suggested its big eyes were for night vision, but there is no proof yet.1

Where the facts come from

Ornitholestes (en.wikipedia.org)
Ornitholestes | Small, carnivorous, Jurassic | Britannica (britannica.com)
Ornitholestes — Grokipedia (grokipedia.com)
Ornitholestes in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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