Open Paleo

Rapator

Huene, 1932 RAP-uh-tor Nomen dubium

Problematic etymology — von Huene provided no explanation; 'Rapator' appears rarely in Medieval Latin meaning 'violator', possibly intended as 'plunderer' or 'predator'.

100.5–93.9 million years ago Cenomanian, Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous stages

Rapator is a genus of theropod dinosaur from the Griman Creek Formation of New South Wales, Australia, dating to the Cenomanian age of the Cretaceous period. It contains only the type species, Rapator ornitholestoides, which was originally named by Friedrich von Huene in 1932.

Under dispute

Rapator ornitholestoides is a megaraptoran based on a single manual element and is widely regarded as a nomen dubium (Agnolín and colleagues, 2010). It was formerly placed in Neovenatoridae; recent analyses recover megaraptorans near Tyrannosauroidea rather than among carcharodontosaurians. It is placed conservatively at Megaraptora incertae sedis.

Species

Rapator ornitholestoides Huene, 1932 Nomen dubium

Type species

From Greek '-oides' meaning 'resembling', combined with Ornitholestes, a small coelurosaur; the single known hand bone displays a prominent dorsomedial process similar to that of Ornitholestes.

Holotype
BMNH R3718 , Natural History Museum
Material
Single left metacarpal (hand bone), opalized
Horizon
Wallangulla Sandstone Member, Griman Creek Formation, Cenomanian, Late Cretaceous , 100.5–93.9 million years ago
Locality
Lightning Ridge, New South Wales, Australia Agnolín and colleagues (2010) give the horizon as "Sandstone Member of the Griman Creek Formation", the same line they give Walgettosuchus; they name the Wallangulla Sandstone Member elsewhere in the paper.

References

  1. Huene, F. V. (1932). Die fossile Reptil-Ordnung Saurischia, ihre Entwicklung und Geschichte [The fossil reptile order Saurischia, their development and history]. Monographien zur Geologie und Palaeontologie, serie 1 4(1-2): 1-361. huene1932a
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Theropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the mass and hip height estimates.

    jones2026c
  3. Agnolín, F. L.; Ezcurra, M. D.; Pais, D. F.; Salisbury, S. W. (2010). A reappraisal of the Cretaceous non-avian dinosaur faunas from Australia and New Zealand: evidence for their Gondwanan affinities. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 8(2): 257-300. Informa UK Limited. doi:10.1080/14772011003594870

    Reassessed Rapator in a review of Australian dinosaur faunas.

    agnolín2010a