History UsefulNotes / PrehistoricLifeOtherSmallTheropods

* This was confirmed by the more complete skeleton of one close ''Noasaurus'' relative described in 2001, ''Masiakasaurus'' from Madagascar: this one has revealed its unique protruding teeth, whose purpose remains uncertain - some think it used them to catch fish or insects. Recently, the famous Giant Dromaeosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Utahraptor]]'' has also revealed a dentition similar to ''Masiakasaurus''. Other noasaurids include ''Velocisaurus'' (not [[RaptorAttack that]] ''Veloci'') and tiny ''Ligabueino'', both from South America, as well as the Indian ''Compsosuchus'' (known only from neck vertebrae once thought to come from a giant allosauroid), the Madagascan ''Dahalokely'' (an unusually robust form) and the Patagonian ''Austrocheirus'', which had larger hands than most other ceratosaurs. From India comes ''Jubbulpuria'', a late-surviving small ceratosaur of uncertain classification. From Australia comes ''Kakuru'', another small theropod whose one remain, a shin, was transformed in opal (a kind of gemstone) during the fossilization. ''Laevisuchus'' from India is known from a single vertebra, and was originally believed an oviraptorosaur. Several other possibly non-maniraptoran coelurosaurs have been described since the 1990s, such as ''Bagaraatan'' from Late Cretaceous Mongolia (possibly a late-surviving primitive tyrannosaur), ''Nedcolbertia'' from the Early Cretaceous of the U.S. (an unusually long-legged form), ''Lourinhanosaurus'' from Late Jurassic Portugal, long thought to be a megalosaur or allosaur, and ''Xinjiangovenator'' from Early Cretaceous China: maybe the same animal as "Phaedrolosaurus", known only from a tooth -- the latter was originally believed a large dromeosaurid, the size of ''Deinonychus''.

* Few other dinosaurs have had such an intricated ScienceMarchesOn story than ''Elaphrosaurus'' (sometimes misspelled "Elaphosaurus"). This medium-sized, slender-framed theropod (meaning “light lizard”) is known from one skeleton found in the famous Late-Jurassic Tendaguru site in which ''Giraffatitan'' (the universally-known “Brachiosaurus”) has been discovered, while other poor remains found in North America and Cretaceous Northern Africa formerly classified as ''Elaphrosaurus'' actually don't belong to it -- the African ones are now called ''Spinostropheus''. Rightly, the elaphrosaur has usually been shown in dino-sources living along with ''Giraffatitan'' in Late Jurassic Africa. The problem is, the skull of the original proper elaphrosaur is not preserved, and we don’t know if it was toothed or toothless. In old paintings, it was depicted ''Coelophysis''-like and toothed. Then, scientists proposed ''Elaphrosaurus'' was the ancestor of the ornithomimosaurs, and often depicted it toothless. In the nineties, when theropod classification was strongly improved, ''Elaphrosaurus'' was recognized as a much more primitive animal related with ''Ceratosaurus'', and still is today: this caused its mouth to return toothed. However, the discovery in TheNewTens of ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limusaurus Limusaurus]]'', a close relative from China whose skull is quite reminescent of an ornithomimid's, has shuffled the cards again: now it’s possible ''Elaphrosaurus'' [[HilariousInHindsight really looked like an ostrich-dinosaur]], in spite of not being closely related at all. In 2015 a theropod very similar to ''Limusaurus'' was found, ''Chilesaurus'', but has revealed was closer to the great megalosaurs & allosaurs.

* After ''Archaeopteryx'', ''Coelophysis'', and ''Compsognathus'', the couple ''Coelurus'' - ''Ornitholestes'' makes the fourth most portrayed Jurassic/Triassic small theropods, despite their scanty remains. This because both lived in Late Jurassic North America alongside many stock dinosaurs like ''Allosaurus'', ''Stegosaurus'', and ''Apatosaurus'', and both were described more than a century ago: thus, they have often been depicted in many old and recent paleo-art -- although often confused with each other in the past. Both were slender animals the same length/size of the RealLife ''Velociraptor'', and with a rather incospicuous appearance. Within their habitat, ''Coelurus'' and ''Ornitholestes'' arguably played the role of the “small cunning predators” (while ''Allosaurus'' and ''Torvosaurus'' were the top predators and ''Ceratosaurus'' was between the two extremes). Although there are no evidences, their preys were possibly lizards, mammals, frogs and insects, and sometimes, also ate the eggs and hatchlings of bigger dinosaurs. Found during the Bone Wars, the incomplete skeleton of ''Coelurus'' was the first small theropod remain discovered in USA, a bit later than ''Compsognathus'' in Europe. Its full scientifical name is ''Coelurus fragilis'', "fragile hollow tail" -- recalling that of the contemporary ''Allosaurus fragilis''. Despite its scantiness, the coelurus has had a great historical relevance. As soon as the XIX century, ''Coelurus'' gave its name to the Coelurosaurs, aka all small/slender theropods, countered against the Carnosaurs aka large/robust theropods such as ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. "-coelurus" has even become a suffix itself for a bunch of small theropods like ''Sinocoelurus'', ''Thecocoelurus'', and ''Chuandongocoelurus'', or even a prefix: ''Coeluroides'' and the non-dinosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Coelurosauravus]]'' (meaning "ancestor of coelurosaurs")! In the very first classifications carnosaurs & coelurosaurs were not originally thought to be closely related (with carnosaurs being closer to sauropods), but most later studies indeed believed distinct lineages of theropods, arisen independently in the Triassic and evolved through the epochs until the end of the Cretaceous with a succession of animals like these: COELUROSAURS: ''Coelophysis'' --> ''Compsognathus'' --> Dromeosaurids & Ornithomimids; CARNOSAURS: ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Ornithosuchus]]'' (at the time the 4 m long "crocodilian" ''Ornithosuchus'' was believed the ancestors of carnosaurs because of its bipedal stance)--> ''Megalosaurus'' --> ''Allosaurus'' --> ''Tyrannosaurus''. Then, [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1970s]], "coelurosaurs" was restricted to the most generic & primitive small theropods (the subject of this page), while the most recent & specialized sickle-clawed and toothless coelurosaurs were separated in [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods three new groups]]: Deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurids + troodontids), Oviraptorosaurs (oviraptorids & relatives), and Ornithomimosaurs (ornithomimids & relatives). The modern meaning of "coelurosaur" was created only [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1980s]] after the rise of the new cladistic method of classification; since then, coelurosaurian dinosaurs have re-included deinonychosaurs, ornithomimosaurs & oviraptorosaurus and (ironically) exclude several traditional members of the group like ''Coelophysis'' as well as the ceratosaurians ''Elaphrosaurus'' and ''Noasaurus''. But the most revolutionary change is another: the former '''carnosaur''' ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' has been reclassified as an overgrown '''coelurosaur'''. In short, big & small theropods were not distinct lineages: big meat-eaters originated indipendently across the Mesozoic from several distinct small-sized ancestors, and are too different among each other to make a natural lineage. A 2007 analysis seems to indicate ''Coelurus'' may have been a basal tyrannosauroid, along with a recently discovered larger-sized relative from the same habitat, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanycolagreus Tanycolagreus]]''. These two may form to form the group Coeluridae, which was once treated as a "wastebasket" family including ''Coelurus'', ''Ornitholestes'', and dozens of undetermined small theropods like ''Calamospondylus'', ''Inosaurus'', ''Jubbulpuria'', ''Kakuru'', ''Ngexisaurus'', ''Ornithomimoides'', ''Teinurosaurus'', ''Tugulusaurus'' etc. However, even this reduced Coeluridae may not exist; instead, ''Coelurus'' may be closer to maniraptorans, with ''Tanycolagreus'' as a very primitive coelurosaur or staying with tyrannosauroids.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg]] [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with [[{{Pun}} plenty of guts.]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg]] [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with plenty of guts.]]

* Well, it’s true: the undisputable charm of ''[[KingOfTheDinosaurs T. rex]]'' is also due to the [[{{Pun}} long]] travel it made to become the Ultimate-King. Tyrannosaurs were already around in the Jurassic, but were still small, uncospicuous animals similar to ''Ornitholestes''. But this is an extremely recent knowledge, confirmed as recently as in 2006. The merit belongs to a very undinosaur-sounding dinosaur: ''Guan[[RunningGag long]]''. Today, ''Guanlong wucaii'' may be the most famed dinosaur with “long” (in Chinese means [[DinosaursAreDragons dragon]]). The trend to call Chinese dinosaurs with this suffix has started only in the early 2000s; since then “dino-long”s have become more and more common, with at least one new-entry for every year. Easily recognizable thanks to its bizarre helmet-like crest pointing backwards, the 10-ft-[[OverlyLongGag long]] ''Guanlong'' lived in Late Jurassic; despite its vaguely ''Coelophysis''-like look, ''Guanlong'' was the most ancient tyrannosaur known in 2006. Another "dino-long", the surely-feathered ''Dilong paradoxus'', was found some year earlier in the famed Liaoning fossil site, was about the same size but lacking any known crest, and lived later, in Early Cretaceous. However, in the last years ''Guanlong'' has lost the record in favor of ''Proceratosaurus''. This was a Middle Jurassic European theropod found at the beginning of the XX century; as its only-known remain is a partial skull with a horn on the nose similar to the younger ''Ceratosaurus'' (hence its name, "before ''Ceratosaurus''"), it was reclassified as a basal tyrannosaur only in the latest part of 2009. Another basal tyrannosauroid possibly relative of ''Proceratosaurus'' was the Late Jurassic ''Stokesosaurus'', known from North American remains since the 1970s. Some thought that ''Stokesosaurus'' was the same as the mysterious small theropod ''Iliosuchus''; in turn, the European ''Juratyrant'' was long thought to be a species of ''Stokesosaurus''. But it was too late: the sensationalism which surrounded ''Guanlong'' as “The First Tyrannosaur!” soon gave it the general attention in media, to the point that it appeared as the protagonist of one documentary appositely dedicated to it: a rare honor for every dinosaur that is not ''T.rex''. And then, ''Guanlong'' was also portrayed in the third movie within the ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' series in place of the usual dromaeosaurids.

'''The first Tyrannosauroids?:''' ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stokesosaurus Stokesosaurus]]'' & ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proceratosaurus Proceratosaurus]]''

* Before the Early Cretaceous ''Yutyrannus'' ''Eotyrannus'' & ''Dilong'', there were ''Proceratosaurus'' and ''Stokesosaurus'' other than ''Guanlong'' among Jurassic tyrannosaurs. Both the european Middle Jurassic ''Proceratosaurus'' and the north american Late Jurassic ''Stokesosaurus'' were primitive tyrannosaurs named years before all their chinese relatives. Discovered in Utah in 1974 by William Lee Stokes (for whom the genus was named) and his assistant James Madsen, ''Stokesosaurus'' was one of the first of the Jurassic tyrannosauroids to be found; it's only known from hip elements, but those hip elements have enough to distinct it from other Late Jurassic theropods from the same fauna. Interestingly, ''Stokesosaurus'' was found in the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry in Utah, the same place in which the huge ''Allosaurus'' graveyard comes from. ''Proceratosaurus'' and ''Stokesosaurus'' are today classified in the Proceratosaurid family of tyrannosaurs: because of their scrappy remains, it's hard to get a clear image of what they looked like. Proceratosaurids likely differed from more evolved tyrannosaurs in a plethora of ways: for one, their skull would not be as large or tall. For another, their arms would have been fairly elongate with three funtional fingers, each tipped with a claw. Their legs would probably have been quite elongate and gracile, unlike those of later tyrannosaurids, and their neck was longer than other tyrannosaurs. And, considering their relative ''Guanlong'', they may have sported some kind of cranial crest - indeed ''Proceratosaurus'' has a small crest on its nose, hence its name "before Ceratosaurus". The fact that the former "Stokesosaurus" species ''Juratyrant'' lacks a cranial crest could point to it not existing in ''Stokesosaurus'' proper, either. ''Stokesosaurus'' likely wasn't the most powerful predator on the block in it's time; as it lived in the Morrison Formation, it was living alongside ''Ceratosaurus'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshosaurus Marshosaurus]]'' (a megalosauroid probably basal respect to more evolved relatives, that owes its name to famous dino-hunter Othniel Marsh), ''Torvosaurus'' and ''Allosaurus''; all of whom were at least slightly bigger than ''Stokesosaurus''. While ''Proceratosaurus'' lived in Europe together with much larger megalosauroids/allosauroids, like ''Megalosaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', and ''Eustreptospondylus'': like the latest two, it was originally put in the notorious "Megalosaurus wastebin". Even though the earliest tyrannosauroids got eclipsed, their lineage would have the last laugh in the predatory dinosaur rush; the descendants, tyrannosaurids, became the top predator in North America and Asia for most of the Cretaceous Period, pushing out the other large predators before being wiped out in the Cretaceous/Palaeogene extinction 66 million years ago.

'''Squirrel-Dinosaurs:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sciurumimus Sciurumimus]]'' & ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juravenator Juravenator]]''

* Recently, the famous Late Jurassic Germany fossil sites, the same from which ''Archaeopteryx'' and the original ''Compsognathus'' come from, gave us two exquisitely preserved animals that may be juvenile megalosauroids, but are placed in this page because of the size of the specimens, only few feet long from nose to tail, as well as the uncertainty surrounding their true affinities. The best-preserved one was announced in 2011 -- incidentally, the same year of ''Yutyrannus'': named ''Sciurumimus'' ("squirrel mimic": "Sciurus" is Latin for squirrel), this is a reference to its bushy tail covered in filamentous structures which recalls a bit that of the eponymous rodent. The interesting this is: if ''Sciurumimus'' is a megalosauroid, it pushes the origin of feathers very far back, if not as far back as ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifePrimitiveOrnithischians Tianyulong]]''. ''Juravenator'' ("Jurassic hunter") was first described as a compsognathid in 2006, but may be close to ''Sciurumimus'' instead. Despite the recentness of its finding, it has already had a complex ScienceMarchesOn story. As its tail seems showing signs of scales, it was initially described as a traditionally-scaly theropod, giving fuel to those that still are doubtful about the dinosaurian origins of birds. But recent research has shown that ''true proto-feathers'' are also present. The most surprising thing is, this was only revealed under ultraviolet light.

* When talking about dinosaur fossils, our mind immediately thinks “bones”. Sometimes, also skin prints, footprints, and petrified eggs. And then, the rare “mummies” with hardened muscles like the famous hadrosaurian ones. But things such as hearts, guts, livers, lungs, kidneys, are not usually heard about; this because the preservation of soft tissues and internal organs in vertebrates in an extremely rare event. So, the Early Cretaceous ''Scipionyx samniticus'' from Southern Italy made waves when was discovered in 1995, and with reason. This tiny theropod (still a juvenile when it died), still-today of uncertain placement in the theropod tree -- in TheNewTens was long believed a compsognathid, but now some even think is actually a juvenile [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeLargeTheropods allosauroid]] -- was the ''very first'' dinosaur ever found with fossilized internal organs. The windpipe, intestines, feces, part of the liver, skeletal muscles, and even signs of ''muscle cells and bone cells'', all these were preserved in the fine limestone which has preserved the usual bones as well. Since the relative positions of dinosaurian organs could only be guessed before ''Scipionyx'', this has been rightly celebrated as one of the most important discoveries within the whole paleontological science. As for now, no other prehistoric dinosaur has left such complete remains of internal organs. Like many other compsognathid specimens, ''Scipionyx'' also preserves evidence of its last meals: in this case several smaller reptiles and some fish. Some think the size of one of these reptiles indicates the baby was a nestling feeded by its parents, but this cannot be proven. It had also some teeth longer than the others, and some originally speculated they were sorta "venomous fangs" but this in not accepted anymore (no venom channels are present in the teeth, see also ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods Sinornithosaurus]]''). ''Scipionyx samniticus'' means "Scipio's claw from Samnium" (all references to the location it was found), and it has preserved also keratinous sheats around its small claws other than the inner bone. Its skeleton, the first of a nonbird dinosaur ever found in Italy (a country poor of dino-remains), was articulated and with the classic "death pose" with the head put fairly backwards, and is visible in the Nature History Museum of Milan, Italy, together with a lifesize (featherless) model.

* When talking about dinosaur fossils, our mind immediately thinks “bones”. Sometimes, also skin prints, footprints, and petrified eggs. And then, the rare “mummies” with hardened muscles like the famous hadrosaurian ones. But things such as hearts, guts, livers, lungs, kidneys, are not usually heard about; this because the preservation of soft tissues and internal organs in vertebrates in an extremely rare event. So, the Early Cretaceous ''Scipionyx samniticus'' from Southern Italy made waves when was discovered in 1995, and with reason. This tiny theropod (still a juvenile when it died), long believed unclassifiable but now known to be a compsognathid, was the ''very first'' dinosaur ever found with fossilized internal organs. The windpipe, intestines, feces, part of the liver, skeletal muscles, and even signs of ''muscle cells and bone cells'', all these were preserved in the fine limestone which has preserved the usual bones as well. Since the relative positions of dinosaurian organs could only be guessed before ''Scipionyx'', this has been rightly celebrated as one of the most important discoveries within the whole paleontological science. As for now, no other prehistoric dinosaur has left such complete remains of internal organs. Like many other compsognathid specimens, ''Scipionyx'' also preserves evidence of its last meals: in this case several smaller reptiles and some fish. Some think the size of one of these reptiles indicates the baby was a nestling feeded by its parents, but this cannot be proven. It had also some teeth longer than the others, and some originally speculated they were sorta "venomous fangs" but this in not accepted anymore (no venom channels are present in the teeth, see also ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods Sinornithosaurus]]''). ''Scipionyx samniticus'' means "Scipio's claw from Samnium" (all references to the location it was found), and it has preserved also keratinous sheats around its small claws other than the inner bone. Its skeleton, the first of a nonbird dinosaur ever found in Italy (a country poor of dino-remains), was articulated and with the classic "death pose" with the head put fairly backwards, and is visible in the Nature History Museum of Milan, Italy, together with a lifesize (featherless) model.

'''A Successful Name'''

* Scientific names are a route full of hurdles. It’s almost unbelievable how many living or extinct animals have been described so far (more than 100,000 genera, 90% of which are insects!). Thus, it's not surprising that sometimes scientists make the mistake of giving their newly described animals already used names. This is what happened to ''Syntarsus rhodesiensis'', a coelophysid that lived in Early Jurassic Southern Africa -- some questionable remains found in North America showing a small double-crest similarly to ''Dilophosaurus'' were labeled as a distinct species, ''Syntarsus kayentakatae''. In the 2000s, an entomologist discovered the name “''Syntarsus''” was preoccupied by a living insect (more precisely a beetle), and changed it to ''Megapnosaurus'': “big unbreathing lizard”, under the mistaken impression that the dinosaur's original discoverer had died. ScienceMarchesOn however, and now most scientists consider "Megapnosaurus" just a late surviving, Early Jurassic species of ''Coelophysis'', thus making this name invalid as well. Whatever the name, this dinosaur has the distinction to be the first non-avian dinosaur ever depicted with feathers (in 1975, few years before the description of ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods Avimimus]]''), in a time when this hypothesis was only speculation. Ironically, we don't know if this animal was really feathered; if it was, certainly it didn't have true feathers as shown in the depiction of the 1975, but simple downlike fibers or something else.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg]] [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with [[StealthPun plenty of guts.]][[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Because it was found with internal organs preserved]]]]

'''Early Wishbones:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Segisaurus Segisaurus]]'' & ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podokesaurus Podokesaurus]]''

* Other examples of much smaller coelophysids were the Early Jurassic ''Segisaurus'' and ''Podokesaurus'', and the Late Triassic ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camposaurus Camposaurus]]'', all from North America -- at present, the latter is the oldest named dinosaur from that continent. ''Segisaurus'' is interesting because, together with ''Archaeopteryx'' and ''Oviraptor'', was one of the first non-bird dinosaurs to have revealed a wishbone - a typical bird trait - in a time dinosaurs and birds were still thought not related at all. Later, remnant of wishbones were found in other theropods, ''Coelophysis'' among them. ''Podokesaurus holyokensis'' was described in Eastern North America at the start of the XX century by Mignon Talbot, making it the first non-bird dinosaur officially named by a woman-researcher. Sadly, its skeleton got destroyed by fire; some think it's a juvenile ''Coelophysis''. ''Camposaurus'' was maybe an early specimen of ''Coelophysis'' too; it has not to be confused with the Iguanodon relative ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursOrnithischianDinosaurs Camptosaurus]]'', which was much larger and lived well after it.

* Before the Early Cretaceous ''Yutyrannus'' ''Eotyrannus'' & ''Dilong'', there were ''Proceratosaurus'' and ''Stokesosaurus'' other than ''Guanlong'' among Jurassic tyrannosaurs. Both the european Middle Jurassic ''Proceratosaurus'' and the north american Late Jurassic ''Stokesosaurus'' were primitive tyrannosaurs named years before all their chinese relatives. Discovered in Utah in 1974 by William Lee Stokes (for whom the genus was named) and his assistant James Madsen, ''Stokesosaurus'' was one of the first of the Jurassic tyrannosauroids to be found; it's only known from hip elements, but those hip elements have enough to distinct it from other Late Jurassic theropods from the same fauna. Interestingly, ''Stokesosaurus'' was found in the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry in Utah, the same place in which the huge ''Allosaurus'' graveyard comes from. ''Proceratosaurus'' and ''Stokesosaurus'' are today classified in the Proceratosaurid family of tyrannosaurs: because of their scrappy remains, it's hard to get a clear image of what they looked like. Proceratosaurids likely differed from more evolved tyrannosaurs in a plethora of ways: for one, their skull would not be as large or tall. For another, their arms would have been fairly elongate with three funtional fingers, each tipped with a claw. Their legs would probably have been quite elongate and gracile, unlike those of later tyrannosaurids, and their neck was longer than other tyrannosaurs. And, considering their relative ''Guanlong'', they may have sported some kind of cranial crest - indeed ''Proceratosaurus'' has a small crest on its nose, hence its name "before Ceratosaurus". The fact that the former "Stokesosaurus" species ''Juratyrant'' lacks a cranial crest could point to it not existing in ''Stokesosaurus'' proper, either. ''Stokesosaurus'' likely wasn't the most powerful predator on the block in it's time; as it lived in the Morrison Formation, it was living alongside ''Ceratosaurus'', ''Marshosaurus'',[[note]]''Marshosaurus'' was a megalosauroid probably basal respect to more evolved relatives, and owes its name to famous dino-hunter Othniel Marsh.[[/note]] ''Torvosaurus'' and ''Allosaurus''; all of whom were at least slightly bigger than ''Stokesosaurus''. While ''Proceratosaurus'' lived in Europe together with much larger megalosauroids/allosauroids, like ''Megalosaurus'', ''Metriacanthosaurus'', and ''Eustreptospondylus'': like the latest two, it was originally put in the notorious "Megalosaurus wastebin". Even though the earliest tyrannosauroids got eclipsed, their lineage would have the last laugh in the predatory dinosaur rush; the descendants, tyrannosaurids, became the top predator in North America and Asia for most of the Cretaceous Period, pushing out the other large predators before being wiped out in the Cretaceous/Palaeogene extinction 66 million years ago.

* After ''Archaeopteryx'', ''Coelophysis'', and ''Compsognathus'', the couple ''Coelurus'' - ''Ornitholestes'' makes the fourth most portrayed Jurassic/Triassic small theropods, despite their scanty remains. This because both lived in Late Jurassic North America alongside many stock dinosaurs like ''Allosaurus'', ''Stegosaurus'', and ''Apatosaurus'', and both were described more than a century ago: thus, they have often been depicted in many old and recent paleo-art -- although often confused with each other in the past. Both were slender animals the same length/size of the RealLife ''Velociraptor'', and with a rather incospicuous appearance. Within their habitat, ''Coelurus'' and ''Ornitholestes'' arguably played the role of the “small cunning predators” (while ''Allosaurus'' and ''Torvosaurus'' were the top predators and ''Ceratosaurus'' was between the two extremes). Although there are no evidences, their preys were possibly lizards, mammals, frogs and insects, and sometimes, also ate the eggs and hatchlings of bigger dinosaurs. Found during the Bone Wars, the incomplete skeleton of ''Coelurus'' was the first small theropod remain discovered in USA, a bit later than ''Compsognathus'' in Europe. Its full scientifical name is ''Coelurus fragilis'', "fragile hollow tail" -- recalling that of the contemporary ''Allosaurus fragilis''. Despite its scantiness, the coelurus has had a great historical relevance. As soon as the XIX century, ''Coelurus'' gave its name to the Coelurosaurs, aka all small/slender theropods, countered against the Carnosaurs aka large/robust theropods such as ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. "-coelurus" has even become a suffix itself for a bunch of small theropods like ''Sinocoelurus'', ''Thecocoelurus'', and ''Chuandongocoelurus'', or even a prefix: ''Coeluroides'' and the non-dinosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Coelurosauravus]]'' (meaning "ancestor of coelurosaurs")! In the very first classifications carnosaurs & coelurosaurs were not originally thought to be closely related (with carnosaurs being closer to sauropods), but most later studies indeed believed distinct lineages of theropods, arisen independently in the Triassic and evolved through the epochs until the end of the Cretaceous with a succession of animals like these: COELUROSAURS: ''Coelophysis'' --> ''Compsognathus'' --> Dromeosaurids & Ornithomimids; CARNOSAURS: ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Ornithosuchus]]'' (at the time the 4 m long "crocodilian" ''Ornithosuchus'' was believed the ancestors of carnosaurs because of its bipedal stance)--> ''Megalosaurus'' --> ''Allosaurus'' --> ''Tyrannosaurus''. Then, [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1970s]], "coelurosaurs" was restricted to the most generic & primitive small theropods (the subject of this page), while the most recent & specialized sickle-clawed and toothless coelurosaurs were separated in [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods three new groups]]: Deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurids + troodontids), Oviraptorosaurs (oviraptorids & relatives), and Ornithomimosaurs (ornithomimids & relatives). The modern meaning of "coelurosaur" was created only [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1980s]] after the rise of the new cladistic method of classification; since then, coelurosaurian dinosaurs have re-included deinonychosaurs, ornithomimosaurs & oviraptorosaurus and (ironically) exclude several traditional members of the group like ''Coelophysis'' as well as the ceratosaurians ''Elaphrosaurus'' and ''Noasaurus''. But the most revolutionary change is another: the former '''carnosaur''' ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' has been reclassified as an overgrown '''coelurosaur'''. In short, big & small theropods were not distinct lineages: big meat-eaters originated indipendently across the Mesozoic from several distinct small-sized ancestors, and are too different among each other to make a natural lineage. A 2007 analysis seems to indicate ''Coelurus'' may have been a basal tyrannosauroid, along with a recently discovered larger-sized relative from the same habitat, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanycolagreus Tanycolagreus]]''. These two may form to form the group Coeluridae, which was once treated as a "wastebasket" family including ''Coelurus'', ''Ornitholestes'', and dozens of undetermined small theropods [[note]]''Calamospondylus'', ''Inosaurus'', ''Jubbulpuria'', ''Kakuru'', ''Ngexisaurus'', ''Ornithomimoides'', ''Teinurosaurus'', ''Tugulusaurus'' etc.[[/note]]. However, even this reduced Coeluridae may not exist; instead, ''Coelurus'' may be closer to maniraptorans, with ''Tanycolagreus'' as a very primitive coelurosaur or staying with tyrannosauroids.

* After ''Archaeopteryx'', ''Coelophysis'', and ''Compsognathus'', the couple ''Coelurus'' - ''Ornitholestes'' makes the fourth most portrayed Jurassic/Triassic small theropods, despite their scanty remains. This because both lived in Late Jurassic North America alongside many stock dinosaurs like ''Allosaurus'', ''Stegosaurus'', and ''Apatosaurus'', and both were described more than a century ago: thus, they have often been depicted in many old and recent paleo-art -- although often confused with each other in the past. Both were slender animals the same length/size of the RealLife ''Velociraptor'', and with a rather incospicuous appearance. Within their habitat, ''Coelurus'' and ''Ornitholestes'' arguably played the role of the “small cunning predators” (while ''Allosaurus'' and ''Torvosaurus'' were the top predators and ''Ceratosaurus'' was between the two extremes). Although there are no evidences, their preys were possibly lizards, mammals, frogs and insects, and sometimes, also ate the eggs and hatchlings of bigger dinosaurs. Found during the Bone Wars, the incomplete skeleton of ''Coelurus'' was the first small theropod remain discovered in USA, a bit later than ''Compsognathus'' in Europe. Its full scientifical name is ''Coelurus fragilis'', "fragile hollow tail" -- recalling that of the contemporary ''Allosaurus fragilis''. Despite its scantiness, the coelurus has had a great historical relevance. As soon as the XIX century, ''Coelurus'' gave its name to the Coelurosaurs, aka all small/slender theropods, countered against the Carnosaurs aka large/robust theropods such as ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. "-coelurus" has even become a suffix itself for a bunch of small theropods like ''Sinocoelurus'', ''Thecocoelurus'', and ''Chuandongocoelurus'', or even a prefix: ''Coeluroides'' and the non-dinosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Coelurosauravus]]'' (meaning "ancestor of coelurosaurs")! In the very first classifications carnosaurs & coelurosaurs were not originally thought to be closely related (with carnosaurs being closer to sauropods), but most later studies indeed believed distinct lineages of theropods, arisen independently in the Triassic and evolved through the epochs until the end of the Cretaceous with a succession of animals like these: COELUROSAURS: ''Coelophysis'' --> ''Compsognathus'' --> Dromeosaurids & Ornithomimids; CARNOSAURS: ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Ornithosuchus]]'' [[note]]At the time the 4 m long "crocodilian" ''Ornithosuchus'' was believed the ancestors of carnosaurs because of its bipedal stance[[/note]]--> ''Megalosaurus'' --> ''Allosaurus'' --> ''Tyrannosaurus''. Then, [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1970s]], "coelurosaurs" was restricted to the most generic & primitive small theropods (the subject of this page), while the most recent & specialized sickle-clawed and toothless coelurosaurs were separated in [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods three new groups]]: Deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurids + troodontids), Oviraptorosaurs (oviraptorids & relatives), and Ornithomimosaurs (ornithomimids & relatives). The modern meaning of "coelurosaur" was created only [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1980s]] after the rise of the new cladistic method of classification; since then, coelurosaurian dinosaurs have re-included deinonychosaurs, ornithomimosaurs & oviraptorosaurus and (ironically) exclude several traditional members of the group like ''Coelophysis'' as well as the ceratosaurians ''Elaphrosaurus'' and ''Noasaurus''. But the most revolutionary change is another: the former '''carnosaur''' ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' has been reclassified as an overgrown '''coelurosaur'''. In short, big & small theropods were not distinct lineages: big meat-eaters originated indipendently across the Mesozoic from several distinct small-sized ancestors, and are too different among each other to make a natural lineage. A 2007 analysis seems to indicate ''Coelurus'' may have been a basal tyrannosauroid, along with a recently discovered larger-sized relative from the same habitat, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanycolagreus Tanycolagreus]]''. These two may form to form the group Coeluridae, which was once treated as a "wastebasket" family including ''Coelurus'', ''Ornitholestes'', and dozens of undetermined small theropods [[note]]''Calamospondylus'', ''Inosaurus'', ''Jubbulpuria'', ''Kakuru'', ''Ngexisaurus'', ''Ornithomimoides'', ''Teinurosaurus'', ''Tugulusaurus'' etc.[[/note]]. However, even this reduced Coeluridae may not exist; instead, ''Coelurus'' may be closer to maniraptorans, with ''Tanycolagreus'' as a very primitive coelurosaur or staying with tyrannosauroids.

* Well, it’s true: the undisputable charm of ''[[KingOfTheDinosaurs T. rex]]'' is also due to the [[{{Pun}} long]] travel it made to become the Ultimate-King. Tyrannosaurs were already around in the Jurassic, but were still small, uncospicuous animals similar to ''Ornitholestes''. But this is an extremely recent knowledge, confirmed as recently as in 2006. The merit belongs to a very undinosaur-sounding dinosaur: ''Guan[[RunningGag long]]''. Today, ''Guanlong wucaii'' may be the most famed dinosaur with “long” (in Chinese means [[DinosaursAreDragons dragon]]). The trend to call Chinese dinosaurs with this suffix has started only in the early 2000s; since then “dino-long”s have become more and more common, with at least one new-entry for every year. Easily recognizable thanks to its bizarre helmet-like crest pointing backwards, the 10-ft-[[OverlyLongGag long]] ''Guanlong'' lived in Late Jurassic; despite its vaguely ''Coelophysis''-like look, ''Guanlong'' was the most ancient tyrannosaur known in 2006. Another "dino-long", the surely-feathered ''Dilong paradoxus'', was found some year earlier in the famed Liaoning fossil site, was about the same size but lacking any known crest, and lived later, in Early Cretaceous. However, in the last years ''Guanlong'' has lost the record in favor of ''Proceratosaurus''. This was a Middle Jurassic European theropod found at the beginning of the XX century; as its only-known remain is a partial skull with a horn on the nose similar to the younger ''Ceratosaurus'' (hence its name, "before ''Ceratosaurus''"), it was reclassified as a basal tyrannosaur only in the latest part of 2009. Another basal tyrannosauroid possibly relative of ''Proceratosaurus'' was the Late Jurassic ''Stokesosaurus'', known from North American remains since the 1970s. [[note]]Some thought that ''Stokesosaurus'' was the same as the mysterious small theropod ''Iliosuchus''; in turn, the European ''Juratyrant'' was long thought to be a species of ''Stokesosaurus''.[[/note]] But it was too late: the sensationalism which surrounded ''Guanlong'' as “The First Tyrannosaur!” soon gave it the general attention in media, to the point that it appeared as the protagonist of one documentary appositely dedicated to it: a rare honor for every dinosaur that is not ''T.rex''. And then, ''Guanlong'' was also portrayed in the third movie within the ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' series in place of the usual dromaeosaurids.

* Well, it’s true: the undisputable charm of ''[[KingOfTheDinosaurs T. rex]]'' is also due to the [[{{Pun}} long]] travel it made to become the Ultimate-King. Tyrannosaurs were already around in the Jurassic, but were still small, uncospicuous animals similar to ''Ornitholestes''. But this is an extremely recent knowledge, confirmed as recently as in 2006. The merit belongs to a very undinosaur-sounding dinosaur: ''Guan[[RunningGag long]]''. Today, ''Guanlong wucaii'' may be the most famed dinosaur with “long” (in Chinese means [[DinosaursAreDragons dragon]]). The trend to call Chinese dinosaurs with this suffix has started only in the early 2000s; since then “dino-long”s have become more and more common, with at least one new-entry for every year. Easily recognizable thanks to its bizarre helmet-like crest pointing backwards, the 10-ft-[[OverlyLongGag long]] ''Guanlong'' lived in Late Jurassic; despite its vaguely ''Coelophysis''-like look, ''Guanlong'' was the most ancient tyrannosaur known in 2006. Another "dino-long", the surely-feathered ''Dilong paradoxus'', was found some year earlier in the famed Liaoning fossil site, was about the same size but lacking any known crest, and lived later, in Early Cretaceous. However, in the last years ''Guanlong'' has lost the record in favor of ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeOtherSmallTheropods Proceratosaurus]]''. This was a Middle Jurassic European theropod found at the beginning of the XX century; as its only-known remain is a partial skull with a horn on the nose similar to the younger ''Ceratosaurus'' (hence its name, "before ''Ceratosaurus''"), it was reclassified as a basal tyrannosaur only in the latest part of 2009. Another basal tyrannosauroid possibly relative of ''Proceratosaurus'' was the Late Jurassic ''Stokesosaurus'', known from North American remains since the 1970s. [[note]]Some thought that ''Stokesosaurus'' was the same as the mysterious small theropod ''Iliosuchus''; in turn, the European ''Juratyrant'' was long thought to be a species of ''Stokesosaurus''.[[/note]] But it was too late: the sensationalism which surrounded ''Guanlong'' as “The First Tyrannosaur!” soon gave it the general attention in media, to the point that it appeared as the protagonist of one documentary appositely dedicated to it: a rare honor for every dinosaur that is not ''T.rex''. And then, ''Guanlong'' was also portrayed in the third movie within the ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' series in place of the usual dromaeosaurids.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg]] [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with [[StealthPun plenty of guts.]][[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Because it was found with internal organs preserved.]]]]

* After ''Archaeopteryx'', ''Coelophysis'', and ''Compsognathus'', the couple ''Coelurus'' - ''Ornitholestes'' makes the fourth most portrayed Jurassic/Triassic small theropods, despite their scanty remains. This because both lived in Late Jurassic North America alongside many stock dinosaurs like ''Allosaurus'', ''Stegosaurus'', and ''Apatosaurus'', and both were described more than a century ago: thus, they have often been depicted in many old and recent paleo-art -- although often confused with each other in the past. Both were slender animals the same length/size of the RealLife ''Velociraptor'', and with a rather incospicuous appearance. Within their habitat, ''Coelurus'' and ''Ornitholestes'' arguably played the role of the “small cunning predators” (while ''Allosaurus'' and ''Torvosaurus'' were the top predators and ''Ceratosaurus'' was between the two extremes). Although there are no evidences, their preys were possibly lizards, mammals, frogs and insects, and sometimes, also ate the eggs and hatchlings of bigger dinosaurs. Found during the Bone Wars, the incomplete skeleton of ''Coelurus'' was the first small theropod remain discovered in USA, a bit later than ''Compsognathus'' in Europe. Its full scientifical name is ''Coelurus fragilis'', "fragile hollow tail" -- recalling that of the contemporary ''Allosaurus fragilis''. Despite its scantiness, the coelurus has had a great historical relevance. As soon as the XIX century, ''Coelurus'' gave its name to the Coelurosaurs, aka all small/slender theropods, countered against the Carnosaurs aka large/robust theropods such as ''Tyrannosaurus rex''. "-coelurus" has even become a suffix itself for a bunch of small theropods like ''Sinocoelurus'', ''Thecocoelurus'', and ''Chuandongocoelurus'', or even a prefix: ''Coeluroides'' and the non-dinosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Coelurosauravus]]'' (meaning "ancestor of coelurosaurs")! In the very first classifications carnosaurs & coelurosaurs were not originally thought to be closely related (with carnosaurs being closer to sauropods), but most later studies indeed believed distinct lineages of theropods, arisen independently in the Triassic and evolved through the epochs until the end of the Cretaceous with a succession of animals like these: COELUROSAURS: ''Coelophysis'' --> ''Compsognathus'' --> Dromeosaurids & Ornithomimids; CARNOSAURS: ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Ornithosuchus]]'' [[note]]At the time the 4 m long "crocodilian" ''Ornithosuchus'' was believed the ancestors of carnosaurs because of its bipedal stance[[/note]]--> ''Megalosaurus'' --> ''Allosaurus'' --> ''Tyrannosaurus''. Then, [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1970s]], "coelurosaurs" was restricted to the most generic & primitive small theropods (the subject of this folder), while the most recent & specialized sickle-clawed and toothless coelurosaurs were separated in [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods three new groups]]: Deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurids + troodontids), Oviraptorosaurs (oviraptorids & relatives), and Ornithomimosaurs (ornithomimids & relatives). The modern meaning of "coelurosaur" was created only [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1980s]] after the rise of the new cladistic method of classification; since then, coelurosaurian dinosaurs have re-included deinonychosaurs, ornithomimosaurs & oviraptorosaurus and (ironically) exclude several traditional members of the group like ''Coelophysis'' as well as the ceratosaurians ''Elaphrosaurus'' and ''Noasaurus''. But the most revolutionary change is another: the former '''carnosaur''' ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' has been reclassified as an overgrown '''coelurosaur'''. In short, big & small theropods were not distinct lineages: big meat-eaters originated indipendently across the Mesozoic from several distinct small-sized ancestors, and are too different among each other to make a natural lineage. A 2007 analysis seems to indicate ''Coelurus'' may have been a basal tyrannosauroid, along with a recently discovered larger-sized relative from the same habitat, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanycolagreus Tanycolagreus]]''. These two may form to form the group Coeluridae, which was once treated as a "wastebasket" family including ''Coelurus'', ''Ornitholestes'', and dozens of undetermined small theropods [[note]]''Calamospondylus'', ''Inosaurus'', ''Jubbulpuria'', ''Kakuru'', ''Ngexisaurus'', ''Ornithomimoides'', ''Teinurosaurus'', ''Tugulusaurus'' etc.[[/note]]. However, even this reduced Coeluridae may not exist; instead, ''Coelurus'' may be closer to maniraptorans, with ''Tanycolagreus'' as a very primitive coelurosaur or staying with tyrannosauroids.

'''Big Dead Lizard:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelophysis_rhodesiensis Coelophysis rhodesiensis]]''

* Scientific names are a route full of hurdles. It’s almost unbelievable how many living or extinct animals have been described so far (more than 100,000 genera, 90% of which are insects!). Thus, it's not surprising that sometimes scientists make the mistake of giving their newly described animals already used names. This is what happened to ''Syntarsus rhodesiensis'', a coelophysid that lived in Early Jurassic Southern Africa -- some questionable remains found in North America showing a small double-crest similarly to ''Dilophosaurus'' were labeled as a distinct species, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelophysis_kayentakatae Syntarsus kayentakatae]]''. In the 2000s, an entomologist discovered the name “''Syntarsus''” was preoccupied by a living insect (more precisely a beetle), and changed it to ''Megapnosaurus'': “big unbreathing lizard”, under the mistaken impression that the dinosaur's original discoverer had died. ScienceMarchesOn however, and now most scientists consider "Megapnosaurus" just a late surviving, Early Jurassic species of ''Coelophysis'', thus making this name invalid as well. Whatever the name, this dinosaur has the distinction to be the first non-avian dinosaur ever depicted with feathers (in 1975, few years before the description of ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods Avimimus]]''), in a time when this hypothesis was only speculation. Ironically, we don't know if this animal was really feathered; if it was, certainly it didn't have true feathers as shown in the depiction of the 1975, but simple downlike fibers or something else.

'''Ceratosaur Relatives:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noasaurus Noasaurus]]'' & ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masiakasaurus Masiakasaurus]]''

* ScienceMarchesOn has strongly involved a small basal theropod, ''Noasaurus'' from Late Cretaceous South America. Discovered in 1980, ''Noasaurus'' ("lizard from North-Western Argentina": N=north, O=west A=Argentina) was initially thought similar to dromaeosaurids and depicted with sickle-claws on its feet, making it the “southern dromeosaur”. However, more careful researches showed ''Noasaurus'' was far more archaic than a “raptor”: even though hard to believe, it was closely related with its neighbour ''Carnotaurus'' (which was found 5 years later). One scientist suggested that both were late megalosaurs, but they are more likely ceratosaurs. The alleged [[HookHand Hook Foot]] of the noasaur has revealed a HookHand, almost like a miniaturized ''Megaraptor''. This was confirmed by the more complete skeleton of one close ''Noasaurus'' relative described in 2001, ''Masiakasaurus'' from Madagascar: this one has revealed its unique protruding teeth, whose purpose remains uncertain - some think it used them to catch fish or insects. Recently, the famous Giant Dromaeosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Utahraptor]]'' has also revealed a dentition similar to ''Masiakasaurus''. Other noasaurids include ''Velocisaurus'' (not [[RaptorAttack that]] ''Veloci'') and tiny ''Ligabueino'', both from South America, as well as the Indian ''Compsosuchus'' (known only from neck vertebrae once thought to come from a giant allosauroid), the Madagascan ''Dahalokely'' (an unusually robust form) and the Patagonian ''Austrocheirus'', which had larger hands than most other ceratosaurs. From India comes ''Jubbulpuria'', a late-surviving small ceratosaur of uncertain classification. From Australia comes ''Kakuru'', another small theropod whose one remain, a shin, was transformed in opal (a kind of gemstone) during the fossilization. ''Laevisuchus'' from India is known from a single vertebra, and was originally believed an oviraptorosaur. Several other possibly non-maniraptoran coelurosaurs have been described since the 1990s, such as ''Bagaraatan'' from Late Cretaceous Mongolia (possibly a late-surviving primitive tyrannosaur), ''Nedcolbertia'' from the Early Cretaceous of the U.S. (an unusually long-legged form), ''Lourinhanosaurus'' from Late Jurassic Portugal, long thought to be a megalosaur or allosaur, and ''Xinjiangovenator'' from Early Cretaceous China: maybe the same animal as "Phaedrolosaurus", known only from a tooth -- the latter was originally believed a large dromeosaurid, the size of ''Deinonychus''.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with [[StealthPun plenty of guts.]][[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Because it was found with internal organs preserved.]]]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with [[StealthPun plenty of guts.]][[note]][[DontExplainTheJoke Because it was found with internal organs preserved.]]]]
]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with [[StealthPun plenty of guts.]]]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg [[caption-width-right:350:''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with plenty of guts.]]]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg ''Scipionyx'', a dinosaur with plenty of guts.]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/figura_1.jpg]]

The most common in popular documentary works (other than ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Compsognathus]]'' and ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Coelophysis]]'') include ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Ornitholestes]]'', ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Coelurus]]'', ''Elaphrosaurus'', "Syntarsus", ''Procompsognathus'', and the alleged theropod ''Saltopus''. In recent media, ''Guanlong'' and ''Scipionyx'' have gained notable consideration as well. [[{{TropesaurusIndex}} Here]] you can see a (quite affected by RuleOfScary) close-up of ''Masiakasaurus''.

* Well, it’s true: the undisputable charm of ''[[TyrannosaurusRex T. rex]]'' is also due to the [[{{Pun}} long]] travel it made to become the Ultimate-King. Tyrannosaurs were already around in the Jurassic, but were still small, uncospicuous animals similar to ''Ornitholestes''. But this is an extremely recent knowledge, confirmed as recently as in 2006. The merit belongs to a very undinosaur-sounding dinosaur: ''Guan[[RunningGag long]]''. Today, ''Guanlong wucaii'' may be the most famed dinosaur with “long” (in Chinese means [[DinosaursAreDragons dragon]]). The trend to call Chinese dinosaurs with this suffix has started only in the early 2000s; since then “dino-long”s have become more and more common, with at least one new-entry for every year. Easily recognizable thanks to its bizarre helmet-like crest pointing backwards, the 10-ft-[[OverlyLongGag long]] ''Guanlong'' lived in Late Jurassic; despite its vaguely ''Coelophysis''-like look, ''Guanlong'' was the most ancient tyrannosaur known in 2006. Another "dino-long", the surely-feathered ''Dilong paradoxus'', was found some year earlier in the famed Liaoning fossil site, was about the same size but lacking any known crest, and lived later, in Early Cretaceous. However, in the last years ''Guanlong'' has lost the record in favor of ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeOtherSmallTheropods Proceratosaurus]]''. This was a Middle Jurassic European theropod found at the beginning of the XX century; as its only-known remain is a partial skull with a horn on the nose similar to the younger ''Ceratosaurus'' (hence its name, "before ''Ceratosaurus''"), it was reclassified as a basal tyrannosaur only in the latest part of 2009. Another basal tyrannosauroid possibly relative of ''Proceratosaurus'' was the Late Jurassic ''Stokesosaurus'', known from North American remains since the 1970s. [[note]]Some thought that ''Stokesosaurus'' was the same as the mysterious small theropod ''Iliosuchus''; in turn, the European ''Juratyrant'' was long thought to be a species of ''Stokesosaurus''.[[/note]] But it was too late: the sensationalism which surrounded ''Guanlong'' as “[[TyrannosaurusRex The First Tyrannosaur]]!” soon gave it the general attention in media, to the point that it appeared as the protagonist of one documentary appositely dedicated to it: a rare honor for every dinosaur that is not ''T.rex''. And then, ''Guanlong'' was also portrayed in the third movie within the ''WesternAnimation/IceAge'' series in place of the usual dromaeosaurids.

* After ''Archaeopteryx'', ''Coelophysis'', and ''Compsognathus'', the couple ''Coelurus'' - ''Ornitholestes'' makes the fourth most portrayed Jurassic/Triassic small theropods, despite their scanty remains. This because both lived in Late Jurassic North America alongside many stock dinosaurs like ''Allosaurus'', ''Stegosaurus'', and ''Apatosaurus'', and both were described more than a century ago: thus, they have often been depicted in many old and recent paleo-art -- although often confused with each other in the past. Both were slender animals the same length/size of the RealLife ''Velociraptor'', and with a rather incospicuous appearance. Within their habitat, ''Coelurus'' and ''Ornitholestes'' arguably played the role of the “small cunning predators” (while ''Allosaurus'' and ''Torvosaurus'' were the top predators and ''Ceratosaurus'' was between the two extremes). Although there are no evidences, their preys were possibly lizards, mammals, frogs and insects, and sometimes, also ate the eggs and hatchlings of bigger dinosaurs. Found during the Bone Wars, the incomplete skeleton of ''Coelurus'' was the first small theropod remain discovered in USA, a bit later than ''Compsognathus'' in Europe. Its full scientifical name is ''Coelurus fragilis'', "fragile hollow tail" -- recalling that of the contemporary ''Allosaurus fragilis''. Despite its scantiness, the coelurus has had a great historical relevance. As soon as the XIX century, ''Coelurus'' gave its name to the Coelurosaurs, aka all small/slender theropods, countered against the Carnosaurs aka large/robust theropods such as ''TyrannosaurusRex''. "-coelurus" has even become a suffix itself for a bunch of small theropods like ''Sinocoelurus'', ''Thecocoelurus'', and ''Chuandongocoelurus'', or even a prefix: ''Coeluroides'' and the non-dinosaur ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Coelurosauravus]]'' (meaning "ancestor of coelurosaurs")! In the very first classifications carnosaurs & coelurosaurs were not originally thought to be closely related (with carnosaurs being closer to sauropods), but most later studies indeed believed distinct lineages of theropods, arisen independently in the Triassic and evolved through the epochs until the end of the Cretaceous with a succession of animals like these: COELUROSAURS: ''Coelophysis'' --> ''Compsognathus'' --> Dromeosaurids & Ornithomimids; CARNOSAURS: ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Ornithosuchus]]'' [[note]]At the time the 4 m long "crocodilian" ''Ornithosuchus'' was believed the ancestors of carnosaurs because of its bipedal stance[[/note]]--> ''Megalosaurus'' --> ''Allosaurus'' --> ''Tyrannosaurus''. Then, [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1970s]], "coelurosaurs" was restricted to the most generic & primitive small theropods (the subject of this folder), while the most recent & specialized sickle-clawed and toothless coelurosaurs were separated in [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods three new groups]]: Deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurids + troodontids), Oviraptorosaurs (oviraptorids & relatives), and Ornithomimosaurs (ornithomimids & relatives). The modern meaning of "coelurosaur" was created only [[ScienceMarchesOn in the 1980s]] after the rise of the new cladistic method of classification; since then, coelurosaurian dinosaurs have re-included deinonychosaurs, ornithomimosaurs & oviraptorosaurus and (ironically) exclude several traditional members of the group like ''Coelophysis'' as well as the ceratosaurians ''Elaphrosaurus'' and ''Noasaurus''. But the most revolutionary change is another: the former '''carnosaur''' ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' has been reclassified as an overgrown '''coelurosaur'''. In short, big & small theropods were not distinct lineages: big meat-eaters originated indipendently across the Mesozoic from several distinct small-sized ancestors, and are too different among each other to make a natural lineage. A 2007 analysis seems to indicate ''Coelurus'' may have been a basal tyrannosauroid, along with a recently discovered larger-sized relative from the same habitat, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanycolagreus Tanycolagreus]]''. These two may form to form the group Coeluridae, which was once treated as a "wastebasket" family including ''Coelurus'', ''Ornitholestes'', and dozens of undetermined small theropods [[note]]''Calamospondylus'', ''Inosaurus'', ''Jubbulpuria'', ''Kakuru'', ''Ngexisaurus'', ''Ornithomimoides'', ''Teinurosaurus'', ''Tugulusaurus'' etc.[[/note]]. However, even this reduced Coeluridae may not exist; instead, ''Coelurus'' may be closer to maniraptorans, with ''Tanycolagreus'' as a very primitive coelurosaur or staying with tyrannosauroids.

'''One of the Earliest Dinosaurs''': ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herrerasaurus Herrerasaurus]]''

* Thanks to dino-books and documentaries like those of the ''Series/WalkingWithDinosaurs'' series, several people have become conscious about the existence of ''Coelophysis'', which has become “the forerunner of the dinosaur world”. However, some carnivorous dinosaurs lived ''even before'' it; but are so ancient, that could not even be real theropods. In Triassic world, dinosaurs still were not so differentiated each other, and the familiar “Coelophysis” shape was shared by several other animals, obviously with some degree of variation. ''Herrerasaurus'', ''Staurikosaurus'' and ''Eoraptor'' are the three most classic examples. Together, the first two form their own dinosaur subgroup, the Herrerasaurians, whose namesake ''Herrerasaurus'' is the official prototype. Their shape was typically theropodian, but the skeleton was more archaic and less bird-like; both ''Herrerasaurus'' and ''Staurikosaurus'' had ''five'' digits in their feet, more similarly to sauropodomorphs like ''Apatosaurus'' or ''Plateosaurus'' than to neotheropods [[note]]lit. "new theropods", this is the technical name for theropods more evolved than herrerasaurians, when the latter are considered true members of the lineage[[/note]], which have only four like most modern birds as well. Also their pelvis were unique. This bony-puzzle was responsable of many headaches among paleotaxonomists: ''Staurikosaurus'' and ''Herrerasaurus'', indeed, have been variably classified as true theropods, true sauropod-relatives, generic primitive saurischians, the only dinosaurs neither-saurischians nor-ornithischians, and in the most extreme case, even [[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs non-dinosaurs]] at all! ''Herrerasaurus'' was discovered in the 1960s in what is now Argentina. It was a bit longer than a ''Coelophysis'' (3-4 m) but much more robust, with a larger, stronger head and shorter neck, almost-recalling more a miniature "carnosaur" than a "coelurosaur" (in the former senses of these words). ''Herrerasaurus'' was arguably a more powerful predator, hunting relatively larger animals than those hunted by the coelophysis: possible preys for it could have been the beaked [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeNonDinosaurianReptiles rhynchosaurs]], mammal-ancestors, and small-sized dinosaurs like ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursOrnithischianDinosaurs Pisanosaurus]]''. But ''Herrerasaurus'' was still small compared with other early carnivorous dinosaurs like ''Dilophosaurus'', and arguably retreated against giant prosauropods like ''Riojasaurus'' (even bigger than ''Plateosaurus'', being 11 m long) or the 7 m-long carnivorous dinosaur-relative ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeNonDinosaurianReptiles Saurosuchus]]''. Some ''Herrerasaurus'' remains were [[ScienceMarchesOn put in their own genuses]], "''Frenguellisaurus''" and "''Ischisaurus''". ''Herrerasaurus'' was found in Ischigualasto, the formation in Argentina in which it and other dinosaurs & non-dinosaurs have been found -- the complete name of this dinosaur is indeed ''[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis]]''.

'''Starry Dinosaur:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Staurikosaurus Staurikosaurus]]''

* Discovered in 1970 slightly after ''Herrerasaurus'', ''Staurikosaurus'' shared the same body-structure of the latter (with some differences) but unlike ''Herrerasaurus'' was smaller than ''Coelophysis'', only the size of the real-life ''Velociraptor'': 2 m (6 ft) long. It arguably hunted smaller preys, perhaps young rhynchosaurs or smaller mammal-ancestors. ''Staurikosaurus'' was originally put in its own family, the Staurikosaurids (''Herrerasaurus'' was put in the Herrerasaurids); among primitive traits of both they had only two vertebrae in their sacrum (like modern reptiles), not four or five like the typical dinosaurs and birds. ''Staurikosaurus'' is also one of the most poetically named dinosaurs, “[[UsefulNotes/{{Constellations}} Southern Cross]] lizard”: it has been for several decades the only dinosaur found in Brazil, and Brazilian flag shows just [[UsefulNotes/ConstellationTrip this constellation]]. However, the staurikosaur was found in the southernmost part of Brazil, just near the boundary with Argentina. Its complete name is ''Staurikosaurus pricei''; one alleged relative, ''"Teyuwasu"'', has recently been reclassified in its genus. Together, ''Staurikosaurus'' and ''Herrerasaurus'' have long disputed the title of “the first/most primitive dinosaur ever appeared on Earth”, with some books preferring one and others preferring the other. Anyway, among the numerous hypotheses made in the eighties, some paleontologists went to claim herrerasaurians were the ancestors of ''all'' the other dinosaurs: now this hypothesis is totally discarded, since they had their specializations on their own, included some evolved traits (ex the shape of their pelvis). Monotremes (platypus & echidnas) are the most primitive mammals today, but this doesn't mean they are the ancestor of [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeMammals marsupials and placental mammals]] after all, and they too have specialized traits (electric sensors, or venom-spurs in the case of the platypus) that lack in the other living mammals.

'''The Other Compy:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procompsognathus Procompsognathus]]''

* ''Procompsognathus'' lived in the Triassic Period in Europe together with ''Plateosaurus''. It shared with ''Compsognathus'' the same overall shape, the same size (about 4 ft long), the same country (Germany) and a [[NamesTheSame very similar name]] (“before ''Compsognathus''”). Despite all this, ''Procompsognathus'' was not related to its Late Jurassic namesake, nor was it its direct ancestor at all as one might believe: it was a small coelophysoid, maybe more primitive than ''Coelophysis'' itself. A skull once assigned to it likely came from a non-dinosaurian archosaur. The confusion with ''Compsognathus'' carried over into ''Franchise/JurassicPark''; the novels explicitly mention ''Procompsognathus'' while the movies appear to use ''Compsognathus''.

'''Big Dead Lizard:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelophysis_rhodesiensis Coelophysis rhodesiensis]]''

* Scientific names are a route full of hurdles. It’s almost unbelievable how many living or extinct animals have been described so far (more than 100,000 genera, 90% of which are insects!). Thus, it's not surprising that sometimes scientists make the mistake of giving their newly described animals already used names. This is what happened to ''Syntarsus rhodesiensis'', a coelophysid that lived in Early Jurassic Southern Africa -- some questionable remains found in North America showing a small double-crest similarly to ''Dilophosaurus'' were labeled as a distinct species, ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelophysis_kayentakatae Syntarsus kayentakatae]]''. In the 2000s, an entomologist discovered the name “''Syntarsus''” was preoccupied by a living insect (more precisely a beetle), and changed it to ''Megapnosaurus'': “big unbreathing lizard”, under the mistaken impression that the dinosaur's original discoverer had died. ScienceMarchesOn however, and now most scientists consider "Megapnosaurus" just a late surviving, Early Jurassic species of ''Coelophysis'', thus making this name invalid as well. Whatever the name, this dinosaur has the distinction to be the first non-avian dinosaur ever depicted with feathers (in 1975, few years before the description of ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods Avimimus]]''), in a time when this hypothesis was only speculation. Ironically, we don't know if this animal was really feathered; if it was, certainly it didn't have true feathers as shown in the depiction of the 1975, but simple downlike fibers or something else.

'''Early Wishbones:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Segisaurus Segisaurus]]'' & ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podokesaurus Podokesaurus]]''

* Other examples of much smaller coelophysids were the Early Jurassic ''Segisaurus'' and ''Podokesaurus'', and the Late Triassic ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camposaurus Camposaurus]]'', all from North America -- at present, the latter is the oldest named dinosaur from that continent. ''Segisaurus'' is interesting because, together with ''Archaeopteryx'' and ''Oviraptor'', was one of the first non-bird dinosaurs to have revealed a wishbone - a typical bird trait - in a time dinosaurs and birds were still thought not related at all. Later, remnant of wishbones were found in other theropods, ''Coelophysis'' among them. ''Podokesaurus holyokensis'' was described in Eastern North America at the start of the XX century by Mignon Talbot, making it the first non-bird dinosaur officially named by a woman-researcher. Sadly, its skeleton got destroyed by fire; some think it's a juvenile ''Coelophysis''. ''Camposaurus'' was maybe an early specimen of ''Coelophysis'' too; it has not to be confused with the Iguanodon relative ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursOrnithischianDinosaurs Camptosaurus]]'', which was much larger and lived well after it.

'''Hopping Foot:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saltopus Saltopus]]''

* One of the very first theropods ever lived (but only if herrerasaurians and ''Eoraptor'' were not proper theropods), ''Procompsognathus'' lived in the Triassic Period in Europe together with ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Plateosaurus]]''. Another alleged theropod from Triassic Europe was once believed the most ancient dinosaur of this landmass, and was smaller than ''Procompsognathus'' both in its size and in its name: ''Saltopus''. A rare Scottish speciality (almost all British dinosaurs have been found in southern England), being merely 2 ft long, ''Saltopus'' was sometimes referred as “the smallest dinosaur” in old books when ''Compsognathus'' wasn't already, but now it seems to be only a non-dinosaurian dinosauromorph. Both ''Procompsognathus'' and ''Saltopus'' were found at the start of the twentieth century. ''Saltopus'' was often confounded with ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs Saltoposuchus]]'', a tiny crocodilomorph from Triassic Europe also common in old books because was once thought the common ancestor of dinos, birds and crocs.

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'''Bird-Ancestors?:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protoavis Protoavis]]'' and "Proavis"

* Yes, ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Archaeopteryx]]'' was not alone. There was also "Protoavis". Discovered in 1990, this very incomplete Triassic fossil from Texas has originated much discussion among paleontologists: its describer thought that it, and not ''Archaeopteryx'', was ''the true'' "first bird", basing this upon some skeletal features (he thought it was older but more advanced than ''Archaeopteryx''). He chose to name its “sensational” find ''Protoavis'', which just means [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin “first bird”]]. Not surprisingly, our animal has often been mentioned in books and documentaries in those years, even portrayed with small imaginary “wings” on its forearms. However, its legacy with birds is now heavily contested if not totally discredited. This alleged “protobird” is more probably a primitive theropod, a basal saurischian, or a non-dino archosaur, and it was likely described from a mixup of dinosaurian and non-dinosaurian bones, thus not even a real animal. But others still think "Protoavis" really contains the bones of an early bird-relative, perhaps the most ancient coelurosaur known: nonetheless, it almost certainly wasn't an actual bird. There is also a HilariousInHindsight detail about the “first-bird” argument. Many decades before the discovery of "Protoavis", in a time when birds were still thought to have directly descended from a bipedal archosaur (thecodonts like ''Euparkeria'' or ''Saltoposuchus''), the [[NamesTheSame similar name]] “Proavis” (“before birds”) was invented for an imaginative missing-link between thecodonts and ''Archaeopteryx''. This critter was depicted as a tree-climbing animal with small wings and capable to glide from a tree to another, but still not capable to fly actively. Then, in year 2000, somewhere in the Chinese province of Liaoning, the "proavis" was ''really'' found... in the shape of the four-winged ''[[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursSaurischianDinosaurs Microraptor]]''.

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* When talking about dinosaur fossils, our mind immediately thinks “bones”. Sometimes, also skin prints, footprints, and petrified eggs. And then, the rare “mummies” with hardened muscles like the famous hadrosaurian ones. But things such as hearts, guts, livers, lungs, kidneys, are not usually heard about; this because the preservation of soft tissues and internal organs in vertebrates in an extremely rare event. So, the Early Cretaceous ''Scipionyx samniticus'' from Southern Italy made waves when was discovered in 1995, and with reason. This tiny theropod (still a juvenile when it died), long believed unclassifiable but now known to be a compsognathid, was the ''very first'' dinosaur ever found with fossilized internal organs. The windpipe, intestines, feces, part of the liver, skeletal muscles, and even signs of ''muscle cells and bone cells'', all these were preserved in the fine limestone which has preserved the usual bones as well. Since the relative positions of dinosaurian organs could only be guessed before ''Scipionyx'', this has been rightly celebrated as one of the most important discoveries within the whole paleontological science. As for now, no other prehistoric dinosaur has left such complete remains of internal organs. Like many other compsognathid specimens, ''Scipionyx'' also preserves evidence of its last meals: in this case several smaller reptiles and some fish. Some think the size of one of these reptiles indicates the baby was a nestling feeded by its parents, but this cannot be proven. It had also some teeth longer than the others, and some originally speculated they were sorta "venomous fangs" but this in not accepted anymore (no venom channels are present in the teeth, see also ''[[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLifeBirdlikeTheropods Sinornithosaurus]]''). ''Scipionyx samniticus'' means "Scipio's claw from Samnium" (all references to the location it was found), and it has preserved also keratinous sheats around its small claws other than the inner bone. Its skeleton, the first of a nonbird dinosaur ever found in Italy (a country poor of dino-remains), was articulated and with the classic "death pose" with the head put fairly backwards, and is visible in the Nature History Museum of Milan, Italy together with a lifesize (featherless) model.