Megaraptor

Megaraptor Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Turonian – Coniacian) 90–88 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓ [1]
Reconstructed hand
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Clade:	Dinosauria
Clade:	Saurischia
Clade:	Theropoda
Clade:	†Megaraptora
Family:	†Megaraptoridae
Genus:	†Megaraptor Novas 1998
Species:	†M. namunhuaiquii
Binomial name
†Megaraptor namunhuaiquii Novas 1998

Megaraptor (lit. 'large thief') is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived during the Turonian and Coniacian ages of the Late Cretaceous. Its fossils have been discovered in the Patagonian Portezuelo Formation of Argentina, South America. The type specimen of Megaraptor consists of a fragmentary assemblage of limb bones, discovered in 1996 by Argentine palaeontologist Fernando E. Novas. Believing that a large claw found at the site came from the animal's foot, he determined that it was probably a coelurosaur related to dromaeosaurs and troodontids, and named it accordingly. Subsequent discoveries revealed that Megaraptor's large claw actually came from its hand. The taxonomic position of it and related genera (collectively known as megaraptorans) is unknown, though it is generally regarded as either a neovenatorid allosauroid or a coelurosaur, possibly related to tyrannosaurs.

No complete skeletons of Megaraptor are known, so its anatomy has been pieced together over the years through only a few fragmentary specimens. It has been estimated that Megaraptor measured 8 m (26 ft) in length, and weighed around 1 t (2,200 lb). Its skull was long, low, and slender. Similar to tyrannosaurs, it had small, conical teeth at the front of its jaws, and longer, more curved teeth near the back. The hand claws of Megaraptor were very long and strongly curved, with the claw of the first finger measuring 35 cm (14 in). The claw of the third finger was the smallest, only 6.5 cm (2.6 in) in length.