Deltadromeus agilis
"river delta or change runner"
- Length
- 12 m (40 ft)
- Period
- Late Cretaceous (99.6–93.5 Mya)
- Place
- Africa · Morocco · Egypt
- Food
- Carnivore
- Clade
- Noasauridae
Deltadromeus (meaning “river delta or change runner”) is an extinct genus of controversial theropod dinosaur that lived in present-day Morocco during the mid-Cretaceous period. It was described by American paleontologist Paul Sereno and colleagues in 1996. The genus contains a single species, D. agilis, named based on an incomplete postcranial skeleton, the holotype specimen. However, some fossils from the Bahariya Formation of Egypt that were formerly referred to the theropod Bahariasaurus have been suggested to belong to Deltadromeus. The holotype specimen of Deltadromeus was unearthed by a joint expedition by the University of Chicago and the Service Géologique du Maroc in Errachidia Province, eastern Morocco in rock layers coming from the Gara Sbaa Formation of the Kem Kem Beds.
What we know
- Named by Sereno et al., 1996.
- Body length estimated at about 12.2 m.
- Fossils found in Africa and Morocco.
What we guess
The reconstruction notes for Deltadromeus — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.