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Unquillosaurus

Say it: un-KEE-loh-SORE-us

Name means: “Unquillo river lizard”1

Ate: MeatMeat-eating dinosLate Cretaceous

Unquillosaurus was a huge meat-eating dinosaur that lived in what is now Argentina. It is known from just one hip bone, but that bone shows it was a giant, bird-like predator.1 5

Lived

84 to 72 million years ago5

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Salta Province, Argentina1 5

Food

Meat5

Length

3 to 11 m3

Originally thought to be a giant 11 m long theropod; later re-estimated as 3 m long

Weight

40 kg3

Height

1.4 m3

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 house cats

as long as 2.5 cars parked in a rowas long as 61 bananas end to endas heavy as 8 watermelonsup to the handle of a door

How big was Unquillosaurus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Unquillosaurus is only known from a single left pubis bone, which is 51.4 centimeters (1 foot 8.2 inches) long.1

Scientists disagree on what type of dinosaur Unquillosaurus was. Some think it was a carcharodontosaurid, others a maniraptoran, and some even think it might be a bird relative.1

The pubis bone of Unquillosaurus points backward, a feature seen in bird-like dinosaurs called maniraptorans.1

Unquillosaurus lived during the Maastrichtian age, about 72 million years ago.1

The name Unquillosaurus comes from the Unquillo River in Argentina, where the fossil was found.1

Unquillosaurus was one of the largest known maniraptorans, a group that includes birds and their closest dinosaur relatives.2

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

?How big was Unquillosaurus?

Scientists estimate it was a giant, bird-like predator, but only one hip bone has been found. The pubis bone is 51.4 centimeters (20.2 inches) long, and it was one of the largest known maniraptorans.1 4

?What did Unquillosaurus eat?

It was a meat-eating theropod dinosaur, so it likely hunted other animals. Its exact diet is not known because only a hip bone has been found.1

?When did Unquillosaurus live?

It lived during the Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous, about 72 million years ago.1

?Was Unquillosaurus a bird?

Scientists disagree. Some think it was a bird-like maniraptoran, and some even think it might be a bird relative, but it is not confirmed to be a bird.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Unquillosaurus
Named by: Powell 19795
Group: Meat-eating dinos
Family / clade: Carcharodontosauridae5
Classification: Theropoda > Allosauroidea > Carcharodontosauridae5
Age of the rocks: 84 to 72 million years (Campanian)5
Rock formations: Los Blanquitos5
Countries: Argentina5
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database5
Discovery: Unquillosaurus was named by Jaime Eduardo Powell in 1979. The single fossil, a left pubis, was found at Arroyo Morterito in the Los Blanquitos Formation of Argentina.1 5
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Unquillosaurus was a carcharodontosaurid, a maniraptoran, or even a bird.1

Where the facts come from

Unquillosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
Unquillosaurus eeibali Powell, a giant maniraptoran (Dinosauria, Theropoda) from the Late Cretaceous of Argentina (pdfs.semanticscholar.org)
Unquillosaurus ceibalii (es.wikipedia.org)
Vista de Unquillosaurus ceibali Powell, a giant maniraptoran (Dinosauria, Theropoda) from the Late Cretaceous of Argentina (revista.macn.gob.ar)
Unquillosaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

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