Parvicursor
Encyclopedia
Parvicursor is a genus
of tiny maniraptora
n dinosaur
with long slender legs for fast running. At only about 39 cm
(~15 in) from snout to end of tail, and 162 grams (5.7 ounces) in weight, it is one of the smallest non-avian dinosaurs known from an adult specimen.
Like other members of the family
Alvarezsauridae
, the forelimbs of Parvicursor were short and stubby, with hands all but completely reduced to a single large claw, possibly useful for opening tough termite
mounds or other types of digging. It is unlikely that the claw could have served much for defense, as it was short and not adapted for flexible movements — it is more likely it would do as the animal's name implies: cursor means runner.
Parvicursor is known from Late Cretaceous Campanian
sediments at Khulsan, Mongolia
. The type species, P. remotus, is only known from one incomplete specimen, mostly pelvis
and hind legs. Close relatives include Shuvuuia
and Mononykus
, and together with these it is classified in the alvarezsaurid subfamily Alvarezsauridae
.
There may be a second, yet-unnamed, species of Parvicursor. Two specimens of tiny alvarezsaurids were described by Suzuki et al. in 2002. These authors considered the specimens to be juvenile Shuvuuia
, which lived in the same formation. However, a study by Nick Longrich and Phil Currie
in 2009 suggested that several characters of the skeleton, including fused wrist and pelvic bones, indicated that these specimens were in fact adults of a tiny alvarezsaurid species. A phylogenetic analysis found that they grouped together with Parvicursor, and the authors provisionally referred them to Parvicursor sp. pending further study.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of tiny maniraptora
Maniraptora
Maniraptora is a clade of coelurosaurian dinosaurs which includes the birds and the dinosaurs that were more closely related to them than to Ornithomimus velox. It contains the major subgroups Avialae, Deinonychosauria, Oviraptorosauria and Therizinosauria. Ornitholestes and the Alvarezsauroidea...
n dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
with long slender legs for fast running. At only about 39 cm
1 E-1 m
To help compare different orders of magnitude this page lists lengths between 10 centimetres and 100 centimetres .Distances shorter than 10 centimetres-Conversions:10 centimetres is equal to...
(~15 in) from snout to end of tail, and 162 grams (5.7 ounces) in weight, it is one of the smallest non-avian dinosaurs known from an adult specimen.
Like other members of the family
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Alvarezsauridae
Alvarezsauridae
Alvarezsauridae is an enigmatic family of small, long-legged running dinosaurs. Although originally thought to represent the earliest known flightless birds, a consensus of recent work suggests that they are primitive members of the Maniraptora. Other work found them to be the sister group to the...
, the forelimbs of Parvicursor were short and stubby, with hands all but completely reduced to a single large claw, possibly useful for opening tough termite
Termite
Termites are a group of eusocial insects that, until recently, were classified at the taxonomic rank of order Isoptera , but are now accepted as the epifamily Termitoidae, of the cockroach order Blattodea...
mounds or other types of digging. It is unlikely that the claw could have served much for defense, as it was short and not adapted for flexible movements — it is more likely it would do as the animal's name implies: cursor means runner.
Parvicursor is known from Late Cretaceous Campanian
Campanian
The Campanian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch . The Campanian spans the time from 83.5 ± 0.7 Ma to 70.6 ± 0.6 Ma ...
sediments at Khulsan, Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
. The type species, P. remotus, is only known from one incomplete specimen, mostly pelvis
Pelvis
In human anatomy, the pelvis is the lower part of the trunk, between the abdomen and the lower limbs .The pelvis includes several structures:...
and hind legs. Close relatives include Shuvuuia
Shuvuuia
Shuvuuia is a genus of bird-like theropod dinosaur from the late Cretaceous period of Mongolia. It is a member of the family Alvarezsauridae, small coelurosaurian dinosaurs which are characterized by short but powerful forelimbs specialized for digging. The type species is Shuvuuia deserti, or...
and Mononykus
Mononykus
Mononykus was a theropod dinosaur from late Cretaceous Mongolia with long, skinny legs. It moved about on two legs, was very nimble, and could run at high speeds, something that would have been useful in the open desert plains where it lived...
, and together with these it is classified in the alvarezsaurid subfamily Alvarezsauridae
Alvarezsauridae
Alvarezsauridae is an enigmatic family of small, long-legged running dinosaurs. Although originally thought to represent the earliest known flightless birds, a consensus of recent work suggests that they are primitive members of the Maniraptora. Other work found them to be the sister group to the...
.
There may be a second, yet-unnamed, species of Parvicursor. Two specimens of tiny alvarezsaurids were described by Suzuki et al. in 2002. These authors considered the specimens to be juvenile Shuvuuia
Shuvuuia
Shuvuuia is a genus of bird-like theropod dinosaur from the late Cretaceous period of Mongolia. It is a member of the family Alvarezsauridae, small coelurosaurian dinosaurs which are characterized by short but powerful forelimbs specialized for digging. The type species is Shuvuuia deserti, or...
, which lived in the same formation. However, a study by Nick Longrich and Phil Currie
Phil Currie
Philip John Currie, AOE is a Canadian palaeontologist and museum curator who helped found the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Drumheller, Alberta and is now a professor at the University of Alberta in Edmonton...
in 2009 suggested that several characters of the skeleton, including fused wrist and pelvic bones, indicated that these specimens were in fact adults of a tiny alvarezsaurid species. A phylogenetic analysis found that they grouped together with Parvicursor, and the authors provisionally referred them to Parvicursor sp. pending further study.
External links
- Parvicursor remotus in the Dinosaur Encyclopedia
- Parvicursor from Palaeos (technical)