Authentic fossilized Oviraptor philoceratops dinosaur eggshell fragment, 2.3 cm length, 75 million years old, Cretaceous, China

Description

Oviraptor is a genus of dinosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous period, in Asia, approximately 84–66 million years ago. The Oviraptor was a relatively small feathered dinosaur, estimated at 1.6 m in length and 33–40 kg in body mass. It had a broad lower jaw and a robust skull that probably bore a crest. Both jaws were toothless and formed a beak used for feeding. Its well-developed, elongated forelimbs ended in three fingers with curved claws. Its long hindlimbs ended in four-toed feet, with a reduced first toe. Its tail was probably relatively short and ended in a fan of large feathers.

Due to the morphology of its beak, which is very similar to that of modern parrots, it most likely fed on fruits and seeds, but there are also theories that propose that it was omnivorous, as the beak may have been capable of being used for cutting. Oviraptor eggs are extremely numerous in the Nanxiong Formation of Guangdong Province in China, and Oviraptor nests are extremely well organized and have a highly specific architecture, the role of which is not yet fully understood.

When it was first described, Oviraptor was interpreted as an egg thief, a dinosaur that fed on the eggs of others, given the close association of its remains with dinosaur nests. Hence its name (the name of Oviraptor is composed of the Latin terms for "egg" and "robber"). Later, the discoveries of numerous fossils of Oviraptors in a nesting position demonstrated that this dinosaur actually brooded on its own nests and did not steal or feed on eggs.