| Nemegtonykus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Skeletal reconstruction ofNemegtonykus, showing known material, scale bar=10cm | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | Theropoda |
| Family: | †Alvarezsauridae |
| Subfamily: | †Parvicursorinae |
| Genus: | †Nemegtonykus Leeet al.,2019 |
| Type species | |
| †Nemegtonykus citus Leeet al., 2019 | |
Nemegtonykus (meaning "Nemegt claw") is a genus ofalvarezsauriddinosaur from theLate Cretaceous (earlyMaastrichtian)Nemegt Formation ofMongolia. Thetype and only species isNemegtonykus citus. It is the second alvarezsaurid known from the Nemegt Formation, preceded byMononykus.[1]
In 2008, the Korea-Mongolia International Dinosaur Expedition at the Altan Uul III site in theGobi Desert excavated a dense concentration of theropod skeletons. Some of these were ofGobiraptor as well as a yet undescribedoviraptorid but three were of Alvarezsauridae. One specimen, MPC-D 100/206, was considered cf.Mononykus sp. but the other two represented a species new to science.[1]
In 2019, thetype speciesNemegtonykus citus was named and described by Lee Sungjin, Park Jin-Young, Lee Yuong-Nam, Kim Su-Hwan,Lü Junchang,Rinchen Barsbold and Khishigjav Tsogtbaatar. The generic name combines a reference to the Nemegt with a Greek ὄνυξ,onyx, "claw", analogous toMononykus. Thespecific name means "the fast one" inLatin.[1]
Theholotype,MPC-D 100/203, was found in a layer of the Nemegt Formation (perhaps lateCampanian - earlyMaastrichtian). It consists of a partial skeleton lacking the skull. It contains six back vertebrae, two sacral vertebrae, twenty-one tail vertebrae, five ribs, the left shoulder girdle, the leftpubic bone, parts of other pelvic bones, the left hindlimb and the right shinbone. The left hindlimb and the tail were articulated. The other bones were associated on a small surface.[1]
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