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Dinosaur Home  A-Z Dinosaurs List Byronosaurus Dinosaur
Byronosaurus
Byronosaurus was a troodontid dinosaur which lived throughout the Late
Cretaceous Period. It was named for Byron Jaffe, "in recognition
of his family's hold for the Mongolian Academy of Sciences-American Museum
of Natural History Paleontological Expeditions." The first example
of Byronosaurus was exposed in 1993 at Ukhaa Tolgod, Gobi Desert, Mongolia;
a second was found in 1996 at Bolor's Hill, about five miles away.
Byronosaurus was a small, agile dinosaur that was almost certainly only
five feet (1.5 meters) long and 17 inches (50 centimeters) high. It weighed
only about 9 pounds (4 kilograms). Unlike other troodontids, its teeth
seem to lack serrations. They are in its place needle-like, probably best
suited for catching small birds, lizards and mammals. Specifically, they
look like those of Archeopteryx, the bird-like dinosaur.
The remains of two folks have been found, including two skulls. One,
measuring eight inches long (23 centimeters), is better potted than any
other troödontid skull found to date. |
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It has a chamber in the snout
where air enters from the nostrils before transitory through to the mouth--another
characteristic similar to that found in birds.
According to its Encephalization Quotient, Byronosaurus was extremely
intelligent as compared to other dinosaurs.
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