In Depth
Named after a demon that appears in Mapuche mythology, Gualicho is a medium sized genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in South America during the early stages of the late Cretaceous. Gualicho would have been a predator of other smaller and similarly sized dinosaurs.
Gualicho was named as a genus in 2016, and also this year a second similarly formed dinosaur from the same approximate location as Gualicho was called Aoniraptor. Similarities in known vertebrae fossils of these two dinosaurs have been noted, which has led to some suggestion that the two dinosaur genera may be synonymous. However the original description of Aoniraptor did not meet naming specifications outlined by the ICZN (the international body that governs the naming of animals), while the description of Gualicho did. For these reasons, Gualicho is considered to be a valid name for a genus, while Aoniraptor is not, which has led to its classification as a Nomen nudum.
Further Reading
- An Unusual New Theropod with a Didactyl Manus from the Upper Cretaceous of Patagonia, Argentina. - PLoS ONE. 11 (7). - Sebasti�n Apestegu�a, Nathan D. Smith, Rub�n Ju�rez Valieri & Peter J. Makovicky - 2016.
