Alvarezsaurus facts for kids
Quick facts for kids AlvarezsaurusTemporal range: Upper Cretaceous
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Alvarezsauridae
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Alvarezsaurus
Bonaparte, 1991
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A. calvoi Bonaparte, 1991 (type) |
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Alvarezsaurus is a small dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of Argentina, about 86-83 million years ago. It measured about 2 meters in length and weighed 20 kilograms.
It was named by paleontologist Jose Bonaparte in 1991. It walked on two legs, had a long tail, and its leg structure suggests that it was a fast runner. It may have eaten insects. It was more primitive than other, better-known members of its family, such as Mononykus and Shuvuuia.
In popular culture
Alvarezsaurus was featured in the Discovery Channel television series Dinosaur Planet, which speculated that it was a predator of young Saltasaurus, although these species did not exist at the same time, Alvarezsaurus being about 5 million years older than Saltasaurus.
Images for kids
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Restoration.
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Skeletal diagram of known remains.
See also
In Spanish: Alvarezsaurus calvoi para niños
