Pronunciation: SHEEN-JEE-yon-go VEN-uh-tuh
Meaning: Xinjiang hunter
Author/s: Rauhut and Xu (2005)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Xinjiang, China
Discovery Chart Position: #567
Xinjiangovenator parvus
Xinjiangovenator is a small carnivorous dinosaur, most probably a maniraptoran, whose remains, amounting to a partial hind leg, were initially assigned to an obscure theropod called Phaedrolosaurus in 1973. The problem is that Phaedrolosaurus was based on and inseparably tied to just a single tooth by Zhiming Dong, whose own diagnosis failed to list a single feature to distinguish it from any other theropod teeth, so it's anyone's guess what possessed him to assign a partial leg to it, especially a leg from a different quarry. Just as surprising is that tooth and leg were intertwined for over three decades.
When Oliver Rauhut and Xu Xing performed a re-evaluation of small theropod dinosaurs from the Early Cretaceous of Xinjiang in 2005, they concluded that Phaedrolosaurus was dubious on account of its lousy holotype and that there was no way to assign other remains to it with any certainty. But they were impressed by the leg, so they gave it a new name, Xinjiangovenator parvus (small Xianjiang hunter), referring to its modest size, place of discovery and presumed predatory lifestyle.
When Oliver Rauhut and Xu Xing performed a re-evaluation of small theropod dinosaurs from the Early Cretaceous of Xinjiang in 2005, they concluded that Phaedrolosaurus was dubious on account of its lousy holotype and that there was no way to assign other remains to it with any certainty. But they were impressed by the leg, so they gave it a new name, Xinjiangovenator parvus (small Xianjiang hunter), referring to its modest size, place of discovery and presumed predatory lifestyle.
(Small Xinjiang Hunter)
Etymology
Xinjiangovenator is derived from "Xinjiang" (for the autonomous region of Xinjiang, China) and the Latin "venator" (hunter).
The species epithet (or specific name), parvus, means "small" in Latin.
Discovery
The remains of Xinjiangovenator were discovered in the Lianmuqin Formation of Wuerho, Xinjiang, China, by Zhiming Dong in 1973.The holotype (IVPP 4024-2) is a partial right lower leg—including a 312 millimetre long shin (tibia), three pieces of calf (fibula), and some ankle bones (calcaneum and the astragalus)—with some similarities to both Bagaraatan and maniraptorans.
