A creature resembling a monstrous bird from a horror movie has been unearthed at a fossil site in Tambasasayama, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan.
A research team led by paleontologist Katsuhiro Kubota from Hyogo University (Japan) revealed that this bizarre creature is actually a reptile: It belongs to the Troodontidae lineage.
The Troodontidae family includes several species of bird-like theropod dinosaurs that thrived during the Late Cretaceous period.
Japanese monstrous bird Hypnovenator matsubaraetoheorum.
The creature recently excavated in Japan has been named Hypnovenator matsubaraetoheorum, which roamed the Earth during the early Late Cretaceous, approximately 112 to 106 million years ago.
Troodontids varied in size, ranging from the size of a kiwi to that of a South American ostrich.
The nearly complete postcranial skeleton of Hypnovenator matsubaraetoheorum was discovered accidentally in the Ohyamashimo Formation in Tambasasayama.
The first bone fragments were uncovered in 2010 during the construction of a park, with additional fragments collected sporadically in the following years.
Ultimately, through an extensive research process, the true nature of this peculiar creature has been revealed.
This is the first Troodontid species identified in Japan. It is related to Gobivenator mongoliensis, which was previously discovered in Mongolia.
Earlier, several Troodontid species had also been found in China and Canada.
Detailed analysis shows that the Japanese monstrous bird still retains some remnants of forelimb movement in its “hands,” which have gradually developed into wing-like structures, indicating that it is a significant specimen representing the evolution of theropods into birds.
The detailed study of this monstrous bird has been published in the scientific journal Scientific Reports.