Name:
Kol (Mongolian for "foot"); pronounced COAL
Habitat:
Deserts of central Asia
Historical Period:
Late Cretaceous (75 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 6 feet long and 40-50 pounds
Diet:
Meat
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Bipedal stance; possibly feathers
About Kol:
As you can guess from its name--Mongolian for "foot"--Kol is represented in the fossil record by a single, well-preserved foot. Still, this sole anatomical remnant is enough for paleontologists to classify Kol as an alverezsaur, a family of small theropods exemplified by the South American Alvarezsaurus. Kol shared its central Asian habitat with the larger, more bird-like Shuvuuia, with which it probably shared a coat of feathers, and it may have been preyed on by the ubiquitous Velociraptor. (By the way, Kol is only the second three-letter dinosaur ever to be named, the other being the Asian Mei.)
