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Compsognathus
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Compsognathus was a carnivore (meat-eater) that lived in
Europe
(fossils have been found in
Germany and
France)
during the late Jurassic period,
about 155 to 145 million years ago.
Compsognathus is smallest known dinosaur, and was about the size of a chicken. It was 2½ to 4½ feet (0.7 to 1.4 meters) long,
and weighed about 6 to 7 pounds (about 3 kilograms). It is believed to be the closest known of relative
of the early bird, Archaeopteryx.
Compsognathus was a fast-runner and used its speed when hunting lizards, insects and other small animals.
Compsognathus is known from two near complete skeletons that were found in
Germany and
France.
The German specimen was discovered by Joseph
Oberndorfer in Bavarian limestone deposits in the 1850s (where
well-preserved
Archaeopteryx specimens have also been found).
Johann A. Wagner described the specimen in papers in 1859 and 1861,
and called it Compsognathus longipes. In 1868, Thomas Huxley
hypothesized that the creature was closely related to dinosaurs, and in
1896
Othniel C. Marsh
recognized that Compsognathus was in fact a dinosaur.
The French specimen of Compsognathus was discovered in
1972,
and although this was originally thought to be a separate species,
it was later realized that the German specimen was a juvenile member of the
same species.

Compsognathus was a carnivore (meat-eater) that lived from 155 to 145 million years ago

Related Information & Resources
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Compsognathus Facts
Here is a summary of some of the key facts about Compsognathus:
- Compsognathus was a genus of dinosaur.
- "Compsognathus" means "dainty jaw".
- Compsognathus was a member of the Saurischia ("lizard-hipped") order of dinosaurs. What this means, is that although Compsognathus was not closely related to lizards, it did have similarly shaped pelvic bones.
- Compsognathus was a Theropod - a member of a group of related bipedal dinosaurs that included the ancestors of birds (although Compsognathus was not itself an ancestor of birds).
- Compsognathus lived between about 155 million years ago and 145 million years ago, during the Jurassic period.
- Compsognathus lived in Europe.
- Compsognathus was a carnivore (meat-eater). Compsognathus's diet is known to have included small agile lizards, as fossilized remains of stomach contents have been found.
- Compsognathus was about 2½ feet (0.7 meters) to 4½ feet (1.4 meters) long.
- Compsognathus weighed about 6 or 7 pounds (about 3 kilograms).
Compsognathus Pictures and Posters
by AllPosters
Here are some Compsognathus pictures and posters:
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Compsognathus Books Here are some books from Amazon.com:
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By Michael P. Goecke
Buddy Books Library Binding (32 pages; 1)
 | List Price: $25.65* Lowest New Price: $19.80* Lowest Used Price: $16.97* Usually ships in 24 hours* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
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By Susan Heinrichs Gray
Child's World Hardcover (32 pages; 1)
 | List Price: $27.07* Lowest New Price: $9.95* Lowest Used Price: $4.80* Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon as we have more information. Your credit card will not be charged until we ship the item.* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
Click Here | Product Description: We think of dinosaurs as big and ferocious. Yet the name Compsognathus means "pretty jaw!" Learn about this strange little dinosaur, from its life in the Jurassic period millions of years ago to the first discovery of its delicate fossil in Germany. |
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Books LLC Paperback (134 pages)
 | List Price: $19.99* Lowest New Price: $19.99* Usually ships in 24 hours* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
Click Here | Product Description: Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Pterodactylus, Archaeopteryx, Compsognathus, Rhamphorhynchus, Paleobiota of the Solnhofen Formation, Dakosaurus, Geosaurus, Germanodactylus, Cricosaurus, Anurognathus, Steneosaurus, Juravenator, Wellnhoferia, Mesolimulus, Ctenochasma, Aegirosaurus, Gnathosaurus, Pleurosaurus, Proaigialosaurus, Eryon, Homoeosaurus, Bavarisaurus. Excerpt: Aegirosaurus Fossil range: Late Jurassic Aegirosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur , a fish-like marine reptile, from the Tithonian (Upper Jurassic ) of Bavaria , Germany . Its remains were discovered in the Solnhofen limestone formations, the same formations that have yielded numerous well-known fossils, such as Archaeopteryx , Compsognathus and Pterodactylus . Discovery and species Originally described by Wagner (1853) as Ichthyosaurus leptospondylus , it has had an unstable taxonomic history. It has also been named Ichthyosaurus trigonus posthumus , and identified with Macropterygius and Brachypterygius extremus . In 2000 Bardet and Fernández concluded that the fossil material should be assigned to a new genus, Aegirosaurus . The name means 'Aegir (teutonic god of the ocean) lizard with slender vertebrae'. Within Ophthalmosauridae , Aegirosaurus is most closely related to Ophthalmosaurus . Palaeobiology It was a small genus of ichthyosaur, with adults being less than two metres in length. References (URLs online) A hyperlinked version of this chapter is at Anurognathus Fossil range: 155 140 Ma Pre O S D C P T J K Pg N Late Jurassic Anurognathus is a genus of small pterosaur that lived approximately 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic Period (Tithonian stage). Anurognathus was first named and described by Ludwig Döderlein in 1923. The type species is Anurognathus ammoni . The genus name Anurognathus is derived from the Greek /... |
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Books LLC Paperback (592 pages)
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Click Here | Product Description: Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher's book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Allosaurus, Archaeopteryx, Iguanodon, Plateosaurus, Stegosaurus, Compsognathus, List of European Dinosaurs, Ceratosaurus, Scelidosaurus, Megalosaurus, Baryonyx, Elopteryx, Camptosaurus, Pelecanimimus, Piveteausaurus, Priodontognathus, Hypsilophodon, Pelorosaurus, Betasuchus, Xenoposeidon, Callovosaurus, Scipionyx, Phyllodon, Europasaurus, Proceratosaurus, Cetiosaurus, Hylaeosaurus, Magnosaurus, Polacanthus, Pararhabdodon, Lophostropheus, Ampelosaurus, Heptasteornis, Miragaia, Neosodon, Bradycneme, Thecodontosaurus, Aepisaurus, Torvosaurus, Procompsognathus, Dinosaurs of the Isle of Wight, Eucamerotus, Oplosaurus, Agrosaurus, Anoplosaurus, Struthiosaurus, Efraasia, Cruxicheiros, Ischyrosaurus, Orthomerus, Eustreptospondylus, Tethyshadros, Cardiodon, Stokesosaurus, Erectopus, Juravenator, Calamosaurus, Mantellisaurus, Dacentrurus, Csehbánya Formation, Turiasauria, Lourinhanosaurus, Hungarosaurus, Echinodon, Galveosaurus, Owenodon, Morinosaurus, Dinheirosaurus, Lourinhasaurus, Eotyrannus, Iliosuchus, Magyarosaurus, Cetiosauriscus, Neovenator, Pantydraco, Ornithopsis, Nuthetes, Pyroraptor, Valdosaurus, Rhabdodon, Koutalisaurus, Acanthopholis, Aristosuchus, Losillasaurus, Pneumatoraptor, Tarascosaurus, Dromaeosauroides, Genusaurus, Poekilopleuron, Euronychodon, Draconyx, Dracopelta, Asylosaurus, Taveirosaurus, Liliensternus, Hypselosaurus, Metriacanthosaurus, Variraptor, Chondrosteosaurus, Turiasaurus, Lexovisaurus, Zalmoxes, Regnosaurus, Suchosaurus, Dinosaurs of Romania, Stenopelix, Dollodon, Craspedodon, Pterospondylus, Lusotitan, Becklespinax, Halticosaurus, Aviatyrannis, Sarcosaurus, Thecocoelurus, Loricatosaurus, Arenysaurus, Aragosaurus, Thecospondylus, Ruehleia, Histriasaurus, Bothriospondylus, Agnosphitys, Yaverlandia, Dubreuillosaurus, Dolichosuchus, Ornithodesmus, Streptos... |
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By Janet Riehecky
Childs World Library Binding (32 pages; 1)
| List Price: $21.36* Lowest New Price: $4.95* Lowest Used Price: $0.01* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
Click Here | Product Description: Describes both known and hypothesized information about the dinosaur Compsognathus, including physical appearance and lifestyle. |
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By Janet Riehecky
Childs World Library Binding (32 pages)
| List Price: $21.36* Lowest New Price: $11.66* Lowest Used Price: $11.66* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
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By Elizabeth J. Sandell
Bancroft-Sage Publishing Paperback (32 pages; 1)
| List Price: $7.95* Lowest New Price: $5.00* Lowest Used Price: $2.99* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
Click Here | Product Description: Describes Compsognathus, the dinosaur that was only the size of a modern chicken, and the prehistoric world of dinosaurs in general. |
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By Robert Kanner
Dingles/Treehouse Court School & Library Binding (40 pages; 1)
| List Price: $23.95* Lowest New Price: $18.68* Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we'll deliver when available. We'll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon as we have more information. Your credit card will not be charged until we ship the item.* *(As of 05:27 Pacific 2 Sep 2010 More Info)
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Alphascript Publishing Paperback (100 pages)
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Click Here | Product Description: High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Compsognathus was a small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. The animal was the size of a turkey and lived around 150 million years ago, the early Tithonian stage of the late Jurassic Period, in what is now Europe. Paleontologists have found two well-preserved fossils, one in Germany in the 1850s and the second in France more than a century later. Today, C. longipes is the only recognized species, although the larger specimen discovered in France in the 1970s was once thought to belong to a separate species, C. corallestris. |
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By rlzabrth JSandrlll
Paperback
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