Genus

Valid Extinct

Alnashetri

Makovicky et al. 2012

Alnashetri is an extinct genus of alvarezsauroid coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur known from the early Late Cretaceous of La Buitrera, Río Negro Province, Argentina. It contains one known species, Alnashetri cerropoliciensis. Its remains were discovered in Candeleros Formation.

Temporal range

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

Paleogene

Neogene

252 201 145 66 0 Ma

PBDB occurrences

Group

Dinosaures

Carnivore Ground dwelling, solitary Terrestrial

click to enlarge

Restoration of Ambopteryx longibrachium based on known fossil elements © Audrey.m.horn · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia

PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗

Classification

Dinosauria Unranked clade

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Theropoda Unranked clade

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Neotheropoda Unranked clade

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Averostra Unranked clade

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Tetanurae Unranked clade

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Coelurosauria Unranked clade

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Alvarezsauria Infraorder

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Alvarezsauroidea Unranked clade

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Alvarezsauridae Family

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Alnashetri Genus

Fossil sites 2 geolocated sites

Distribution

Top countries

🇦🇷 Argentina

Geological formations

Candeleros

Temporal distribution

Cenomanian (100.5–93.9 Ma)

Species (1)

Alnashetri cerropoliciensis 101 Ma

News 1

This 2-pound dinosaur is rewriting what scientists know about evolution

fossil Alnashetri Alvarezsaurus Dinosaurus bird +2

A nearly complete dinosaur skeleton discovered in Patagonia is helping scientists crack the mystery of alvarezsaurs, a bizarre group of bird-like dinosaurs. The fossil of Alnashetri cerropoliciensis reveals that these animals became tiny before developing their later specialized features, such as stubby arms and ant-eating adaptations. Weighing under two pounds, the dinosaur is one of the smallest known from South America.

10/03/2026 sciencedaily

Images 1

Bibliography

Original description

P. J. Makovicky, S. Apesteguia, and F. A. Gianechini. 2012. A new coelurosaurian theropod from the La Buitrera fossil locality of Río Negro, Argentina. Fieldiana: Life and Earth Sciences 5:90-98 DOI ↗

Bibliography (2)

P. M. Makovicky, S. Apesteguía, and F. Gianechini. 2016. A new, almost complete specimen of Alnashetri cerropoliciensis (Dinosauria: Theropoda) impacts our understanding of alvarezsauroid evolution. XXX Jornadas Argentinas de Paleontología de Vertebrados. Resúmenes. Ameghiniana 53(6 (suppl.)):62