page_title: Gobivenator
section_title: Description
hierarchical_section_title: Gobivenator / Description
caption_attribution_description: English: Life reconstruction of Gobivenator mongoliensis
context_page_description: Gobivenator is an extinct genus of troodontid theropod dinosaur known from the late Campanian Djadokhta Formation of central Gobi Desert, Mongolia. It contains a single species, Gobivenator mongoliensis. G. mongoliensis is known from a single individual, which represents the most complete specimen of a Late Cretaceous troodontid currently known.
context_section_description: Gobivenator is a troodontid, a group of small, bird-like, gracile maniraptorans. All troodontids have many unique features of the skull, such as closely spaced teeth in the lower jaw, and large numbers of teeth. Troodontids have sickle-claws and raptorial hands, and some of the highest non-avian encephalization quotients, meaning they were behaviourally advanced and had keen senses. Gobivenator possesses two autapomorphies, unique traits, that differentiate it from all other currently known troodontids. The parietal bones are fused with a pointed anterior end, and a fossa is present on the surangular of the lower jaw, in front of the rear surangular foramen. Two other traits are possible autapomorphies: the gracile build of the three postorbital branches and the elongation of the upper chevrons. Gobivenator has a total body length of approximately 160 cm, which is comparable to Saurornithoides in size. The skull of Gobivenator is very well preserved, and shows an enlarged maxillary fenestra and an anterior process of the lacrimal which is much longer than the supraorbital process, features that are typical among troodontids. Gobivenator provides detailed information on many aspects of the poorly-understood anatomy of Troodontidae, including the morphology of the palate, supporting close relations with the dromaeosaurids and basal birds, like Archaeopteryx. It appears that toward the basal Avialae the pterygoid bone of the palatine becomes more elongated, while the pterygopalatine suture becomes reduced. Even though the skull of Gobivenator is akinetic, it already possesses preconditions for later evolution of cranial kinesis in birds, like the loss of the epipterygoid bone and a reduced contact areas between palate bones.
caption: Restoration and size comparison
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