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Oviraptor

Say it: OH-vih-rap-tor

Name means: “egg thief”1

Ate: A bit of everythingOdd feathered dinosLate Cretaceous

Oviraptor was a small, feathered dinosaur that lived in the Gobi Desert. It had a strong beak like a parrot and no teeth. For a long time people thought it stole eggs, but now we know it was actually a caring parent.1 2

Lived

90 to 72 million years ago3

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Mongolia and Kazakhstan3 1

Food

A bit of everything2 1

Length

1.6 to 2 m1 2

estimate based on the only known skeleton

Weight

20 kg to 40 kg1 2

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

as long as 4 house cats nose to tailas long as 11 bananas end to endas heavy as 10 house catsas heavy as 8 watermelons

How big was Oviraptor compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Oviraptor had no teeth. Instead it used a horny beak to crush its food.2

The first Oviraptor fossil was found lying on top of a nest of eggs. Scientists thought it was stealing them, but later they realized it was probably protecting its own eggs.1

Oviraptor was covered in feathers. Its tail ended in a pygostyle, a bone that supported a fan of feathers.1

Oviraptor lived about 75 to 71 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.1

Its arms were long and ended in three fingers with curved claws.1

The name Oviraptor means 'egg thief' because the first fossil was found with eggs. But scientists now think it was a good parent, not a thief.1

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

?How big was Oviraptor?

Oviraptor was about 1.6 to 2 metres (5.2 to 6.6 feet) long and weighed between 33 and 40 kilograms (73 to 88 pounds).1

?Did Oviraptor have teeth?

No, Oviraptor had no teeth. It had a horny beak like a parrot that could crush hard food.1 2

?What did Oviraptor eat?

Oviraptor was an omnivore. It ate hard fruits, eggs, and possibly shellfish, using its strong beak to crush them.2

?Did Oviraptor steal eggs?

No, that was a mistake. Scientists once thought Oviraptor stole eggs, but now we know it was actually a caring parent that brooded its own eggs.1

?Did Oviraptor have feathers?

Yes, Oviraptor was covered in feathers. Its tail ended in a pygostyle that supported a fan of feathers.1

?When did Oviraptor live?

Oviraptor lived during the Late Cretaceous period, about 85 to 75 million years ago.2

?Where was Oviraptor found?

Oviraptor fossils were found in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia, at a place called the Flaming Cliffs.1

?What does the name Oviraptor mean?

Oviraptor means 'egg thief' in Latin, because the first fossil was found lying on a nest of eggs. But we now know it was a good parent, not a thief.1

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Myth buster

Myth: Oviraptor stole and ate the eggs of other dinosaurs.

Truth: The Oviraptor fossil was found on a nest, but it was probably sitting on its own eggs to keep them warm, like a bird. It likely ate plants, fruits, and small animals, not eggs.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Oviraptor
Named by: Osborn 19243
Group: Odd feathered dinos
Family / clade: Oviraptoridae3
Classification: Theropoda > Oviraptorosauria3
Age of the rocks: 90 to 72 million years (Coniacian / Campanian)3
Rock formations: Djadokhta, Dabrazhin3
Countries: Mongolia, Kazakhstan3
Fossil records: 3 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Oviraptor was discovered in 1923 in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia during an expedition led by Roy Chapman Andrews. It was named by Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1924.1
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly what Oviraptor ate. Its strong beak could crush hard objects, but whether it mainly ate plants, eggs, or shellfish is still debated.2 1

Where the facts come from

Oviraptor (en.wikipedia.org)
Oviraptor | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
Oviraptor 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.

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