New feathered dinosaur species named after famed Alberta paleontologist

Meet theAlbertavenatorcurriei, a feathered, toothy dinosaur that once roamed a lush coastal plain in what is now Alberta'sDrumheller Valley, a speciesthat now carries the name of a famed Canadian paleontologist.

The dinosaur was named after Philip Currie, a professor at the University of Alberta. Currie is a Canada Research chair and has worked for decades on predatory dinosaurs.

"This is a great honour it's in fact an Alberta dinosaur and it's a type ofdinosaurthat I've worked on over the years,"Currietold CBC News. "It's extra meaningful."

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It's well-known that this type of dinosaur a troodontidis one of Currie's favourites, said David Evans, author of the paper naming the speciespublished in the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. Because fossils and fragments of this type of dinosaur are so rare, Evans said he couldn't miss the chance to honour Currie.

"Given what Phil has done for Alberta paleontology and the contributions he's made to the study of these feathered dinosaurs, it seemed only appropriate to name it after him," saidEvans, who is theTemertyChair in Vertebrate Paleontology at the Royal Ontario Museum.

Currieacknowledgeshis obsession.

"There's a lot of mystery surroundingtroodontids; that's why I love them so much,"Currietold CBC News.

Other thanthe name, of course, it also associates my name with Alberta, whichis a great thing.- Philip Currie, paleontologist

Imagine a feathered dinosaur about the size of a small adult, with huge eyes that could likely see in the dark.

Aclose relative of thevelociraptor, it had sharp, serrated teeth, suggesting that it ate meat, though it may have also added a bit of vegetation to its diet.It had sharp claws on its feet and was one of the fastest dinosaurs.

Add the huge relative brain size Evans refers to them as the "brainiest" of all dinosaurs the semi-opposable fingers on their wingsand a long tail, and you have a puzzling andexceptional prehistoric animal.

Reclassifying an old dino

Albertavenatorcurriei meaning "Currie'sAlberta hunter"lived in a swampy environmentsimilar to that of today's southern Louisiana.

The remains of this dinosaur only small fragments of skull were found in the 1990snear the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, when they werebelieved to belong to atroodon, another feathered dinosaur that lived 76 million years ago. But paleontologists never understood why this particular one lived five million years later: it should have evolved with different traitsover time.

So Evans and his team re-examined the remains.Upon closer inspection, they realized that this was an entirely new species, though still part ofthe troodontid family.

This isn't the first dinosaur to be named in his honour, but Currie said this one is of particular significance to him.

"Other thanthe name, of course it also associates my name with Alberta, which is a great thing," Currie said.

One of the fragments used in the discoverywas found by American paleontologist Jack Horner when Currie was taking him around the site of the Tyrrell Museum while it was under construction. They weren't able to collect the entire jaw, as it had begun to rain.

Two weeks later, Currie returned to the site,but was unable to find it. He returned time and time again, he said, for almost two years, always leaving empty-handed. Then Hornerreturned and Currie took him to the site.

"Sure enough, Jack went right to the site and showed me where the jaw was," Currie said.

Evans said that he's thrilled to be able to honour not only a colleague but a researcher who fostered his love of paleontology.

"I've named a few dinosaurs, including a few from Alberta ... for me what made this special was being able to tip my hat to Phil Currie," Evans said. "To be able to name one of his favourite dinosaurs found in Alberta after him, and honour all the work he's done. it was great to be able to recognize him for that."