Dinosaurs A to Z
Caenagnathidae

Microvenator celer

"small hunter"

Generic theropod body-plan outline
You 1.8 m (5.9 ft) tall
Microvenator 1.3 m (4.3 ft) long
as long as 2 people standing fingertip to fingertip
generic theropod body plan, scaled to length — not a silhouette of Microvenator
Length
1.3 m (4.3 ft)
Period
Early Cretaceous (110 Mya)
Place
India · Montana, USA
Food
Omnivore
Clade
Caenagnathidae

Microvenator (meaning “small hunter”) is a genus of oviraptorosaurian theropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Cloverly Formation in what is now south central Montana. The holotype fossil is an incomplete skeleton, most likely a juvenile with a length of 1.3 m, and consequently, the adult size remains uncertain. Microvenator is primitive and may be the “sister taxon to all other oviraptorosaurs.”

What we know

  • Named by Ostrom, 1970.
  • Body length estimated at about 1.3 m.
  • Fossils found in India and Montana, USA.

What we guess

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