Eoraptor

dawn plunderer (dawn thief)

• eos · Greek · dawn
• raptor · Latin · plunderer, robber (seizer)

The name combines the Greek word for "dawn" with the Latin word for "plunderer" or "robber". It was chosen because Eoraptor was one of the earliest known dinosaurs, living near the dawn of dinosaur history. It was a small, lightly built, bipedal dinosaur.

Named by

Sereno et al.

Year named

1993

Period

Late Triassic

Stage

Carnian

Found in

Ischigualasto Formation, San Juan Province, Argentina

The type species is Eoraptor lunensis. Its exact position within Dinosauria is debated; it has been classified as an early sauropodomorph or as an early theropod.