Chirostenotes was an oviraptorid dinosaur from Canada.
In the Series
Walking with Dinosaurs: The Movie
A group are seen at night in forest preying on a pair of juvenile Pachyrhinosaurus.
Facts
At almost 3 meters in length, it was almost a third larger than its Asian cousins (such as Oviraptor). It is also a member of the caenagnathid family - a side branch of the oviraptorids proper. As such it wasn't as highly specialized as Oviraptor and the rest of its Asian cousins, but it did have a spectacular crest (see the picture).
Chirostenotes was discovered for the first time in 1924, but it was recognized as a proper (and single) species only in 1988.
Trivia
- This is the first seen Oviraptorid in the series, as Protarchaeopteryx was only mentioned in The Complete Guide To Prehistoric Life.
- Chirostenotes' feet, hand and jaws were found separately, at different times and it was identified as a single dinosaur - i.e. Chirostenotes - only in 1988.
- At almost 3 m long Chirostenotes is one of the biggest oviraptorids, though it is still much smaller than Gigantoraptor.
Gallery
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