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Nanotyrannus

By Bob Strauss, About.com

Nanotyrannus (Wikimedia Commons)

Name:

Nanotyrannus (Greek for "tiny tyrant"); pronounced NAH-no-tih-RAN-us

Habitat:

Woodlands of North America

Historical Period:

Late Cretaceous (70 million years ago)

Size and Weight:

About 17 feet long and one ton

Diet:

Herbivorous dinosaurs

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Small size; forward-facing eyes; sharp teeth

About Nanotyrannus:

When the skull of Nanotyrannus was discovered in 1942, it was identified as belonging to another dinosaur, Albertosaurus--but upon closer study, researchers speculated that it might have been left by an entirely new genus of tyrannosaur. Today, opinion is divided into two camps: some paleontologists believe Nanotyrannus is indeed its own genus, while others insist it's a juvenile T. Rex.

Further complicating matters, it's possible that Nanotyrannus wasn't a tyrannosaur at all, but a dromaeosaur (a class of carnivorous, bipedal dinosaurs better known as raptors). Until more fossils are found--and until now, the evidence has been scarce--the arguments will likely continue.

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