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Alvarezsaurus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Superorder: Dinosauria
Order: Saurischia
Suborder: Theropoda
Infraorder: Coelurosauria
Family: Alvarezsauridae
Genus: Alvarezsaurus
Species: A. calvoi
Binomial name
Alvarezsaurus calvoi
Bonaparte, 1991
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Alvarezsaurus ("Alvarez's lizard") was a small alvarezsaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period of Argentina, approximately 89 - 85 million years ago. Estimates suggest that it measured about 2 metres in length and weighed approximately 20 kg. It was found in the Bajo de la Carpa Formation and was named by paleontologist José Bonaparte in 1991 after the historian Don Gregorio Alvarez.
The type species is A. calvoi. It was bipedal, had a long tail and its leg structure suggests that it was a fast runner. It may have been insectivorous and was basal to better-known members of its family, such as Mononykus and Shuvuuia. It has been alternately classified with both non-avian theropod dinosaurs and early birds.
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