Reconstruction of the noasaurid Kiyacursor longipes from the Early Cretaceous of the Kemerovo Region (Russia). The partial skeleton of this dinosaur was found in 2023 at the Shestakovo 1 locality. It consists of the left scapulocoracoid, humeri, cervical and trunk vertebrae and ribs, and most of the articulated hind limbs. In addition, a partial cervical vertebra was attributed to Kiyacursor. The holotype could have reached 2.5 meters in length, but histology of the leg bones showed that it was not fully grown. The hind legs are long, with a very narrow metatarsus, which indicates the ability to run quickly. Unlike other cursorial theropods, Kiyacursor has a highly developed third (middle) metatarsal and reduced second and fourth. The humeri are very small. Due to the lack of a skull, it is difficult to judge the diet of the animal. Kiyacursor is part of a fauna characterized by the presence of relics from the Jurassic period.

​Berthasaura is just *barely* losing @a-dinosaur-a-day​‘s DMM poll and if the only remaining Noasaur loses to a friggin Spinosaur I might actually riot

A vote for Berthasaura is a vote for all Noasaurs, arguably the weirdest collection of non-avian theropods to ever exist. A vote for Berthasaura is, by extension, a vote for:

- Masiakasaurus “why are your teeth like that“ knopfleri of Prehistoric Planet fame, a genuíne Madagascan weirdo

-  Vespersaurus “only dinosaur that walks on one toe” paranaensis (yes that includes all birds), tragic second place of the previous round

- Limusaurus “are you sure that’s even a theropod” inextricabilis, which started out like normal little baby theropods before losing their teeth and becoming quasi-ornithomimid beaked herbivores, and its fellow Elaphrosaurines

- Noasaurids are also the closest relatives of Abelisaurs, which should be worth extra brownie points

And Berthasaura itself was no slouch either! In addition to being arguably The Most Ornithopod of any theropod (vote for wacky convergent evolution!), it evolved its toothlessness independently of the Elaphrosaurines, and was toothless its entire life! Friggin Noasaurs don’t even do toothlesness the same way twice apparently. Berthasaura also holds the distinction of being the second ever toothless non-ceolosaurian theropod to be described, and it had a nearly complete skeleton! Berthasaura was an ornithomimid before ornithomimids became cool (or even existed), an early-cretaceous throwback to Shuvosaurids, the first of a long line of weirdo theropods. Peak dinosaur, 9/10.

Meanwhile Ceratosuchops is what, a Baryonychine with a horn on its head? Boo, unoriginal, 4/10. The horn ain’t even that big. It’s only known from some fragments of a skull (again: compare to Berthasaura’s remarkably complete skeleton) and in all honesty I’m just tired of Spinosaurs at this point. I couldn’t even keep track of whatever Spinosaurus drama was happening back when I was deep in my early Covid paleo hyperfixation and I'm kinda scared to check in on it. Apologies to Darren Naish, but I’ve had a petty grudge against spotlight-stealing Spinosaurs since like the third post-2014 Spinosaurus paper and it sure as hell-herons ain’t going away now. Sure, Ceratosuchops was a heron-analogue with a cool name, but it’s not even a proper heron mimic. If you want some real convergent evolution, vote for Berthasaura. 

Am I deliberately skimping on Baryonychine facts due to a petty grudge against the most famous member of the family? Yes definitely absolutely. They get enough attention as is. And what do they have that Noasaurs don’t? Weird teeth and an aquatic diet? See Masiakasaurus. Big fore-claws? See Noasaurus. Large size? Overrated, and Deltadromeus might be a Noasaur so they even have that covered. Sail-backs and a semiaquatic lifestyle? That’s Spinosaurus bias talking, vote for Bajadasaurus or Annakacygna instead. Spinosaurs may be fan-favorite weirdo dinosaurs, but I think that Noasaurs were objectively weirder and deserve to advance in the polls. Vote Berthasaura for a weirder, wackier theropod (and a way to unload that pent-up anti-Spinosaurus grudge, if you like)

Day 9: Masiakasaurus

For around 50 years some very unusual dinosaur tracks have been found in ancient desert sediments in South America: strange footprints showing the impression of only a single toe, a walking style never before seen in any reptiles.

And recently a fossil of what might be the track maker has actually been found.

Named Vespersaurus paranaensis, this new species lived during the Late Cretaceous of Brazil (~90 mya) and was a member of the noasaurid family of theropods, closely related to the weird-jawed Masiakasaurus from Madagascar.

Measuring about 1.5m long (~5′), Vespersaurus was fairly lightly built with legs proportioned for running -- and its feet were absolutely unique. Although it had the standard three main toes of a theropod, it bore its weight entirely on the middle toe and held the other digits off the ground. The two raised toes on each foot also had large knife-like claws which may have been used during hunting, vaguely similar to the sickle claws on the feet of dromaeosaurs. But unlike dromaeosaurs these claws weren’t highly curved or pointed, suggesting Vespersaurus used more of a scratching and slashing technique rather than the raptors’ puncture-and-restraint strategy.

Much like ancient horses, it may have developed its single-toed stance as an adaptation for more efficient fast running, possibly to avoid larger predators or to chase down small fast-moving prey like hopping desert mammals.

The known one-toed fossil footprints are actually slightly older than the Vespersaurus fossil, and similar tracks in Argentina have been found dating back to the Late Jurassic (~150mya), so there may have been a long lineage of “one-toed” desert-dwelling noasaurids in South America that haven’t been found yet.

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The last day of dinocember 2023 is day 15: Vespersaurus.