Alvarezsaurus (Alvarez’s lizard)
Al-vah-rez-sore-us
Jose F. Bonaparte - 1991
Carnivore maybe Insectivore
Estimated 1.2 – 2 meters long
Small Theropod
A. calvoi (type)
Argentina - Bajo de la Carpa Formation
Late Cretaceous, 89-85 million years ago
Alvarezsaurus Facts
Alvarezsaurus (/,aelv@rez’so:r@s”Alvarez’s lizard”) is an extinct genus of alvarezsaurid dinosaurs of the Late Cretaceous, living in Argentina between 86 and 83 million years ago. It was discovered inside the Bajo de la Carpa Formation and was named by paleontologist Jose Bonaparte in 1991 after the historian Don Gregorio Alvarez.
The most common species of the species is A. calvoi, which was estimated to be around 1.4 meters (4.6 feet) long and weighs in the range of 2.27-9.1 kg (5-20 pounds). Gregory S. Paul estimated the weight of 3 kg and its length at 1 one meter.
Alvarezsaurus is a bipedal theropod that was light with a long tail and the leg’s structure suggests it was a swift runner. It was distinct in that the metatarsal III of its skull was the longest of its kind, and was followed by an extremely large metatarsal IV. It could have been an insectivore.
