Anzu
- Lived
- 72 to 66 million years ago, Late Cretaceous
- Diet
- Omnivore
- Group
- Theropods, Caenagnathidae
- Found in
- United States
- Named by
- Lamanna et al. 2014
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
70 million years ago
Habitat
It lived on humid floodplains crossed by rivers, with swampy areas nearby. Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops and Edmontosaurus shared the Hell Creek landscape.
Field notes
About Anzu
What it was like
Anzu was a large caenagnathid, a feathered, toothless theropod about the size of a big horse. It had a tall crest on its head, long legs and long arms with sharp claws. It probably ate plants, small animals and eggs.
Its world
It lived about 72 to 66 million years ago, at the very end of the Cretaceous, in western North America. It comes from the Hell Creek Formation, where it shared the land with Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Ankylosaurus and Edmontosaurus.
How it was found
Lamanna and colleagues named Anzu in 2014, from several partial skeletons. Its name comes from a bird-like monster of ancient myth. It is the best known North American member of its family.
Field gallery
More views of Anzu
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 3
Lived alongside
Found in the same rock formations
A rock formation can hold fossils laid down millions of years apart, so not every animal here met Anzu.
The evidence
The science behind Anzu
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- Several partial skeletons together preserve bones from most parts of the body.
- The skull has toothless jaws and a tall, crescent-shaped bony crest.
- The skeleton shows long arms with clawed hands and long, slender legs.
Borrowed from relatives
- Most of the skeleton comes from its own fossils.
- Feathers on the body, arms and tail are inferred from feathered relatives such as Caudipteryx.
Still unknown
- Its feather colors and patterns.
- Which foods made up most of its diet.
- Whether it cared for its young.
Discovery timeline
- 1998Close relativeQiang et al.
- 2006Close relativeWings & Sander
- 2014Named itLamanna et al.
- 2020Family treeFunston
- 2024Same rocksAtkins-Weltman et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Anzu
Close relative
Documented feathers in Caudipteryx and Protarchaeopteryx, supporting feathered restorations of other oviraptorosaurs.
Two feathered dinosaurs from northeastern China. Nature 393: 753-761
Read the paper : Two feathered dinosaurs from northeastern China (opens in a new tab)Close relative
Supported a food-grinding role for stomach stones in Caudipteryx, showing one digestive strategy used by relatives of Anzu.
No gastric mill in sauropod dinosaurs: new evidence from analysis of gastrolith mass and function in ostriches. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 274: 635-640
Read the paper : No gastric mill in sauropod dinosaurs: new evidence from analysis of gastrolith mass and function in ostriches (opens in a new tab)Named it
Described skeletons covering most of the body, including the toothless jaws and tall crest, and proposed a varied diet on humid floodplains.
A New Large-Bodied Oviraptorosaurian Theropod Dinosaur from the Latest Cretaceous of Western North America. PLoS ONE 9: e92022
Read the paper : A New Large-Bodied Oviraptorosaurian Theropod Dinosaur from the Latest Cretaceous of Western North America (opens in a new tab)Family tree
Separated Citipes, Chirostenotes and Caenagnathus using anatomy and bone growth, and revised their relationships with Anzu.
Caenagnathids of the Dinosaur Park Formation (Campanian) of Alberta, Canada: anatomy, osteohistology, taxonomy, and evolution. Vertebrate Anatomy Morphology Palaeontology 8: 105-153
Read the paper : Caenagnathids of the Dinosaur Park Formation (Campanian) of Alberta, Canada: anatomy, osteohistology, taxonomy, and evolution (opens in a new tab)Same rocks
Identified Eoneophron as a smaller relative rather than a young Anzu, using leg anatomy and microscopic growth marks in bone.
A new oviraptorosaur (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the end-Maastrichtian Hell Creek Formation of North America. PLOS ONE 19: e0294901
Read the paper : A new oviraptorosaur (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the end-Maastrichtian Hell Creek Formation of North America (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Caenagnathidae
Sources: Wikidata