Halszkaraptor
A waterfowl-like dromaeosaurid from Late Cretaceous Mongolia.
Halszkaraptor is a genus of dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia, resembling a waterfowl in shape. The only known species is *Halszkaraptor escuilliei*. Its holotype skeleton shows features also seen in modern crocodilians and water birds, suggesting it lived partly in water, though some scientists disagree with that interpretation.
The fossil likely came from the Djadochta Formation at Ukhaa Tolgod in southern Mongolia. It was taken illegally by poachers before 2011, then passed through collectors in Japan and Britain. Fossil dealer François Escuillié acquired it through his company Eldonia, recognized it as new, and brought it to paleontologists Pascal Godefroit and Andrea Cau in Brussels in 2015. They verified its authenticity using synchrotron radiation at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, then described the genus in a study published in *Nature*. The specimen was later returned to Mongolia.
The holotype, MPC D-102/109, comes from orange sandstone of the Bayn Dzak Member, dating to about seventy-five million years ago. It is a fairly complete, articulated skeleton with skull, not compressed. Fossil dealers had exposed the left side; the synchrotron showed the bones continued into the rock and were not a chimaera, though the snout tip had been restored with plaster and some parts glued. The individual was a subadult about one year old.
The species was named in 2017 by Cau and colleagues. The genus name combines the late Polish paleontologist Halszka Osmólska (who named the related *Hulsanpes*) with Latin *raptor* (“robber”). The species name honors Escuillié for making the fossil available.
*Halszkaraptor* was about the size of a mallard duck. Its head was 7 cm long, neck 20 cm, back 13 cm, and sacrum 5 cm. Unique traits include a flattened snout made by the premaxilla, which makes up 32% of snout length and holds eleven teeth. The jugal bone is rod-shaped, with its ascending branch only a tenth of the bar behind the eye socket. The neck is extremely long, half the snout-to-sacrum length. Neck vertebrae lack epipophyses and have very reduced neural spines; in the second to fifth vertebrae, the paired postzygapophyses are fused into a single lobe. Tail vertebrae have extremely shortened neural spines, and the chevrons at the tail base are large with a pentagonal profile. The first phalanx of the third finger is 47% as
- field
- Paleontology
- known_for
- Semiquatic dromaeosaurid with elongated neck and spoon-shaped snout
- type_species
- Halszkaraptor escuilliei
- age
- Late Cretaceous (late Campanian, about 75 million years old)
- location
- Djadochta Formation, Ukhaa Tolgod, southern Mongolia
Lore & Background
The holotype specimen of Halszkaraptor likely came from the Djadochta Formation at Ukhaa Tolgod in southern Mongolia, and was illegally removed by fossil poachers in or before 2011. The fossil found its way to Japan and Great Britain, being owned by several collectors until the Eldonia company of fossil dealer François Escuillié obtained it. He identified it as a new species, and in 2015 took it to the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels, showing it to paleontologists Pascal Godefroit and Andrea Cau for further verification. After verifying its authenticity, among other means by scanning it with synchrotron radiation at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Cau and other prominent paleontologists described the genus in a detailed study published in the journal Nature. The fossil was returned to the Mongolian authorities.
The holotype, MPC D-102/109, was found in a layer of orange sandstone of the Bayn Dzak Member of the Djadochta Formation, dating from the late Campanian, about seventy-five million years old. It consists of a relatively complete skeleton with skull. The synchrotron revealed that the bones continued into the rock and that the piece was probably not a chimaera, though the top of the snout had been restored with plaster and some elements had been reattached by glue. The skeleton is largely articulated and not compressed, representing a subadult individual about one year old.
Reader's Guide
Halszkaraptor is significant as a basal member of the Dromaeosauridae, placed in the new clade Halszkaraptorinae along with Mahakala and Hulsanpes. Its anatomy—including a flattened, spoon-shaped snout, extremely elongated neck (half the snout-sacrum length), and traits shared with aquatic birds and crocodilians—suggests a semiaquatic lifestyle, though this interpretation is disputed by some researchers. The holotype's recovery from illegal poaching and its subsequent scientific study using synchrotron radiation highlights both the challenges of fossil trafficking and the value of advanced imaging in verifying authenticity. The genus honors Polish paleontologist Halszka Osmólska, who named the closely related Hulsanpes. Its unique combination of features, such as eleven premaxillary teeth (a record among Dinosauria) and fused postzygapophyses in the neck, expands understanding of dromaeosaurid diversity and ecology.
Did You Know?
- The premaxilla of Halszkaraptor bears eleven teeth, a record among the entire Dinosauria.
- The neck of Halszkaraptor represents half of the snout-sacrum length, the highest value for all known Mesozoic paravians.
- The holotype was illegally removed by fossil poachers in or before 2011 and later returned to Mongolian authorities.
- The generic name combines a reference to Polish paleontologist Halszka Osmólska with Latin raptor, meaning 'robber'.
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