Kayentavenator
Name:
Kayentavenator
(Kayenta hunter).
Phonetic: Kay-en-ta-ven-ah-tor.
Named By: Robert Gay - 2010.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Dinosauria,
Saurischia, Theropoda.
Species: K. elysiae (type).
Diet: Carnivore.
Size: Uncertain due to lack of fossils and the fact
that the holotype is of a juvenile. Still holotype is estimated to
have been around 50 centimetres tall at the hip.
Known locations: USA, Arizona, Navajo
Reservation - Kayenta Formation.
Time period: Sinemurian/Pliensbachian of the
Jurassic.
Fossil representation: Partial post cranial
remains, including vertebrae, pelvis and parts of the hind limbs.
The
holotype fossils of Kayentavenator were originally
described as
Syntarsus kayentakatae until later study
declared them to represent
a distinct genus of theropods (additionally Syntarsus
has now been
declared a synonym of Megapnosaurus).
Not a lot can be said for
Kayentavenator because the skeletal remains are
incomplete and of a
juvenile dinosaur; combined together this has resulted in a lot of
speculation of if’s, but’s and maybe’s. One tantalizing theory
however is that Kayentavenator may actually be what
is termed a
tetenuran theropod. Tetatnurans are more loosely termed stiff tailed
theropods, but include many of the more famous genera such as
Tyrannosaurus,
Allosaurus
and Spinosaurus.
If this interpretation
is correct then Kayentavenator will be known as one
of if not the first
tetanuran theropod from North America.
Kayentavenator
was recovered from land on the Navajo Reservation of Arizona from a
fossil deposit that has been identified as part of the Kayenta
Formation. Other dinosaurs from this formation include Sarahsaurus
and Scutellosaurus
which may have been prey items for larger and fully
grown Kayentavenator. The aforementioned Megapnosaurus
is also
present in this formation and may have been a predatory rival to
Megapnosaurus. Perhaps of most importance to the
survival of
Kayentavenator is the presence of Dilophosaurus,
a relatively large
(by early Jurassic standards at least) theropod that is so far the
largest predator discovered from the Kayenta Formation, and one that
probably thought nothing about including smaller theropods like
Kayentavenator into its diet.
Further reading
- Kayentavenator elysiae, a new tetanuran from the Early Jurassic of
Arizona. Notes on Early Mesozoic Theropods 27-43. - Robert Gay - 2010.
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