Rahonavis Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian)
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Reconstructed skeleton, Royal Ontario Museum | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Clade: | Dinosauria |
Clade: | Saurischia |
Clade: | Theropoda |
Clade: | Paraves |
Genus: | †Rahonavis Forster et al., 1998b |
Type species | |
†Rahonavis ostromi | |
Synonyms | |
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Rahonavis is a genus of bird-like theropod from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian, from about 72.1 to 66 mya) of what is now northwestern Madagascar. It is known from a partial skeleton (UA 8656) found by Catherine Forster and colleagues in Maevarano Formation rocks at a quarry near Berivotra, Mahajanga Province.[1] Rahonavis was a small predator, at about 70 centimetres (2.3 ft) long and 0.45-2.27 kg (1-5 lbs),[2] with the typical dromaesaurid-like raised sickle claw on the second toe. It was originally the first African coelurosaur until the discovery of Nqwebasaurus in 2000.[3]
The name Rahonavis means, approximately, "cloud menace bird", from Malagasy rahona (RA-hoo-na, "cloud" or "menace") + Latin avis "bird". The specific name, R. ostromi, was coined in honor of John Ostrom.