Dinosaurs A to Z
Troodontidae

Hypnovenator matsubaraetoheorum

"sleep hunter"

Generic raptor body-plan outline
You 1.8 m (5.9 ft) tall
Hypnovenator 5 m (16.4 ft) long
as long as 3 people standing fingertip to fingertip
generic raptor body plan, scaled to length — not a silhouette of Hypnovenator
Length
5 m (16.4 ft)
Period
Early Cretaceous (112.1–106.4 Mya)
Place
Japan
Food
Carnivore
Clade
Troodontidae Dinosauria Saurischia Theropoda Coelurosauria Small, brainy, feathered theropods.
Hypnovenator reconstruction by Ddinodan
Reconstruction · Ddinodan (CC-BY)

Hypnovenator (meaning “sleep hunter”) is an extinct genus of troodontid theropod dinosaurs from the Early Cretaceous (Albian) Ohyamashimo Formation of Japan. The genus contains a single species, Hypnovenator matsubaraetoheorum, known from a partial skeleton. Hypnovenator is the only troodontid currently known from Japan, and it represents the oldest definitive member of the subgroup Troodontinae.

What we know

  • Named by Kubota, Kobayashi & Ikeda, 2024.
  • Fossils found in Japan.

What we guess

The reconstruction notes for Hypnovenator — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.