Experts say it is one of the oldest meat-eating reptiles ever discovered.
The fierce predator stalked the swamps. Storia Naturale di Milano Fossil remains of the predator were found entombed in limestone in a quarry in the north of the country. The dinosaur was unusual in having three rather than four fingers which it would have used to grasp its prey. It also had a wishbone, an adaptation that some believe later gave birds flight. Until now, experts had believed that these features arose much later in dinosaur evolution.