Vespersaurus
"western lizard"
Type species Vespersaurus paranaensis
- Lived
- Cretaceous
- Diet
- Carnivore
- Group
- Theropods, Noasauridae
- Found in
- Brazil
- Named by
- Langer et al. 2019
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
Habitat
Sand dunes surrounded patches of lasting water in a desert in what is now Brazil. Caiuajara, a pterosaur, and Berthasaura also lived in this region.
Field notes
About Vespersaurus
What it was like
Vespersaurus was a small, slender predator from the noasaurid family. Its feet were unusual: it seems to have walked mainly on its middle toe, with the other toes held off the ground. That made it a lightweight runner, well suited to loose sand.
Its world
It lived in the Cretaceous in what is now Brazil. Its bones come from the Goio-Erê Formation, a desert of sand dunes where the toothless Berthasaura also lived.
How it was found
Langer and colleagues named it in 2019. The type species is Vespersaurus paranaensis.
Field gallery
More views of Vespersaurus
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
The evidence
The science behind Vespersaurus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- Its narrow outer toes flank a stronger middle toe that probably carried most of its weight.
- The outer toe claws are flattened sideways into blade-like shapes.
- Skull fragments, vertebrae, arm bones and hindlimb bones preserve parts of its slender skeleton.
Borrowed from relatives
- Missing parts of the skull and body are restored by comparison with noasaurid relatives such as Masiakasaurus and Velocisaurus.
Still unknown
- Its color and skin covering.
- Exactly how it used its blade-like toe claws.
- Which prey it hunted most often.
Discovery timeline
- 2019Named itLanger et al.
- 2020Growing upSouza et al.
- 2023How it fedBarbosa et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Vespersaurus
Named it
Described a small desert predator whose unusual feet probably supported its weight mainly on the middle toes.
A new desert-dwelling dinosaur (Theropoda, Noasaurinae) from the Cretaceous of south Brazil. Scientific Reports 9
Read the paper : A new desert-dwelling dinosaur (Theropoda, Noasaurinae) from the Cretaceous of south Brazil (opens in a new tab)Growing up
Bone tissue records growth stages and suggests slower growth than in most other theropods.
Osteohistology and growth dynamics of the Brazilian noasauridVespersaurus paranaensisLanger et al., 2019 (Theropoda: Abelisauroidea). PeerJ 8: e9771
Read the paper : Osteohistology and growth dynamics of the Brazilian noasauridVespersaurus paranaensisLanger et al., 2019 (Theropoda: Abelisauroidea) (opens in a new tab)How it fed
Tests of a tooth and toe claws suggest a varied diet of small prey and carcasses.
Assessing the palaeobiology of Vespersaurus paranaensis (Theropoda, Noasauridae), Cretaceous, Bauru Basin – Brazil, using Finite Element Analysis. Cretaceous Research 150: 105594
Read the paper : Assessing the palaeobiology of Vespersaurus paranaensis (Theropoda, Noasauridae), Cretaceous, Bauru Basin – Brazil, using Finite Element Analysis (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Noasauridae
Sources: Wikidata