Dino card No. 1902 of 2,027

Vorona

Say it: VOR-oo-nuh

Name means: “bird in Malagasy”1

Ate: MeatEarly birdsLate Cretaceous

Vorona was a bird that lived during the time of dinosaurs, about 72 to 66 million years ago. It had a mix of old and new bird features, which makes it special. Scientists found its bones in Madagascar.1 3

Lived

72 to 66 million years ago3

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Madagascar, near the village of Berivotra in Mahajanga Province1 2

Food

Meat3

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

cool stuff

Fun facts

Vorona is known from only a few leg bones, possibly from a single bird.1

Its name comes from the Malagasy word for 'bird'.1

Vorona lived on the island of Madagascar during the Late Cretaceous period.1 3

The fossil bones show a strange mix of ancient and advanced bird features.1

Scientists are not sure exactly where Vorona fits in the bird family tree. Some think it was an early ornithuromorph, others think it was an enantiornithean.1

The type specimen includes a left lower leg bone and a complete foot bone found still connected.2

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

?Was Vorona a dinosaur?

Yes, Vorona was a bird, and birds are a type of dinosaur called avialan dinosaurs.1

?How big was Vorona?

Scientists do not know exactly how big Vorona was because only a few leg bones have been found.1

?What did Vorona eat?

Vorona was a ground-dwelling carnivore, meaning it ate meat.3

?When did Vorona live?

Vorona lived during the Late Cretaceous period, about 72 to 66 million years ago.1

Ask Rex about Vorona

Rex only answers questions about this page. 10 questions a month.

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.

For dino experts

Scientific name: Vorona
Named by: Forster et al. 19963
Group: Early birds
Family / clade: Ornithuromorpha3
Classification: Theropoda > Avialae3
Age of the rocks: 72 to 66 million years (Maastrichtian)3
Rock formations: Maevarano3
Countries: Madagascar3
Fossil records: 5 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Vorona was named in 1996 by Catherine Forster and her team. They found the fossils in Madagascar, near the village of Berivotra.1 3
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Vorona was a primitive ornithuromorph or an enantiornithean bird.1

Where the facts come from

Vorona (en.wikipedia.org)
PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
Vorona 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