Gigantoraptor is a genus of large oviraptorosaur dinosaur that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous period. It is known from the Iren Dabasu Formation of Inner Mongolia, where the first remains were found in 2005.
Gigantoraptor
A manual ungual of the holotype
Fossilized Macroelongatoolithus nest from Zhengzhou, featuring the large center region devoid of eggs
Restoration of a Gigantoraptor pair protecting their nest from two Archaeornithomimus and an Alectrosaurus
Oviraptorosaurs are a group of feathered maniraptoran dinosaurs from the Cretaceous Period of what are now Asia and North America. They are distinct for their characteristically short, beaked, parrot-like skulls, with or without bony crests atop the head. They ranged in size from Caudipteryx, which was the size of a turkey, to the 8-meter-long, 1.4-ton Gigantoraptor. The group is close to the ancestry of birds. Some researchers such as Maryanska et al (2002) and Osmólska et al. (2004) have proposed that they may represent primitive flightless birds. The most complete oviraptorosaur specimens have been found in Asia. The North American oviraptorosaur record is sparse.
Oviraptorosauria
Hatchling specimen known as "baby Louie"