Urbacodon
"URBAC tooth"
- Lived
- 101 to 72 million years ago, Late Cretaceous
- Diet
- Omnivore
- Length
- about 1 m (3 ft)
- Group
- Theropods, Troodontidae
- Found in
- China and Uzbekistan
- Named by
- Averianov and Sues 2007
Size comparison
To scale
Scale in metersOutline: typical theropod shape
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
90 million years ago
Habitat
The Chinese species comes from the Iren Dabasu Formation, which records a vegetated floodplain crossed by branching rivers, with temporary ponds and smaller channels. Aquatic algae grew in the water, and dinosaurs included Bactrosaurus, Gilmoreosaurus and Archaeornithomimus.
Field notes
About Urbacodon
What it was like
Urbacodon was a small troodontid about 1 meter (3 feet) long, a feathered dinosaur related to Troodon. It is known only from lower jaws. Unlike most of its relatives, its teeth had no serrations.
Its world
It lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now Uzbekistan and northern China. One species comes from the Dzharakuduk Formation in Uzbekistan and another from the Iren Dabasu Formation in China.
How it was found
Averianov and Sues named Urbacodon in 2007. The name comes from the initials of an expedition to the region.
Field gallery
More views of Urbacodon
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 Urbacodon.
The evidence
The science behind Urbacodon
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- The named species are known from lower jaws with small teeth that lack serrated edges. The type species has a long, shallow lower jaw with an inward-curving front.
- The jaw from China preserves replacement teeth growing beneath the tooth row. These teeth were replaced in an alternating pattern.
- Isolated skull, backbone and limb bones from younger rocks in Uzbekistan have been assigned to Urbacodon without a species identification.
Borrowed from relatives
- Jianianhualong offers comparisons for the missing skull roof, limbs, tail and feather covering.
Still unknown
- Its exact body proportions and feather covering.
- Which foods it ate.
- Its color.
Discovery timeline
- 2005Its worldVan Itterbeeck et al.
- 2007Named itAverianov & Sues
- 2016New findAverianov & Sues
- 2017Family treeXu et al.
- 2024New findWang et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Urbacodon
Its world
Reconstructed the Iren Dabasu landscape as a vegetated floodplain with branching rivers, temporary ponds and aquatic algae.
Stratigraphy and palaeoenvironment of the dinosaur-bearing Upper Cretaceous Iren Dabasu Formation, Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China. Cretaceous Research 26: 699-725
Read the paper : Stratigraphy and palaeoenvironment of the dinosaur-bearing Upper Cretaceous Iren Dabasu Formation, Inner Mongolia, People's Republic of China (opens in a new tab)Named it
Named Urbacodon from a lower jaw in Uzbekistan and compared its smooth-edged teeth with those of other troodontids.
A new troodontid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Cenomanian of Uzbekistan, with a review of troodontid records from the territories of the former Soviet Union. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 27: 87-98
Read the paper : A new troodontid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Cenomanian of Uzbekistan, with a review of troodontid records from the territories of the former Soviet Union (opens in a new tab)New find
Described isolated skull, limb and backbone remains assigned to Urbacodon in younger rocks of Uzbekistan.
Troodontidae (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous of Uzbekistan. Cretaceous Research 59: 98-110
Read the paper : Troodontidae (Dinosauria: Theropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous of Uzbekistan (opens in a new tab)Family tree
Described Jianianhualong with preserved feathers on its limbs and tail, offering a comparison for the missing covering of Urbacodon.
Mosaic evolution in an asymmetrically feathered troodontid dinosaur with transitional features. Nature Communications 8
Read the paper : Mosaic evolution in an asymmetrically feathered troodontid dinosaur with transitional features (opens in a new tab)New find
Named another species from a Chinese lower jaw, traced its tooth replacement and placed Urbacodon close to Zanabazar in one analysis.
A new Urbacodon (Theropoda, Troodontidae) from the Upper Cretaceous Iren Dabasu Formation, China: Implications for troodontid phylogeny and tooth biology. Cladistics 41: 104-134
Read the paper : A new Urbacodon (Theropoda, Troodontidae) from the Upper Cretaceous Iren Dabasu Formation, China: Implications for troodontid phylogeny and tooth biology (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Troodontidae
Sources: Wikidata