Overview
- The peer-reviewed description appears in the journal Diversity and formally names the species Xenovenator espinosai.
- Fossils come from the Cerro del Pueblo Formation in Coahuila and date to roughly 74 million years ago in the Late Cretaceous (Campanian).
- Diagnosis relies on an exceptionally preserved endocranium plus additional cranial material from at least three individuals examined with CT scans to reveal diagnostic sutures and frontal skull structure.
- Researchers classify the animal within Troodontidae and estimate it at just over 3 meters long and about 160 kilograms, noting large eyes and acute hearing consistent with precise, low-light hunting.
- Comparisons show affinities with Asian troodontids, supporting Late Cretaceous faunal exchange between Asia and North America, and the name honors Mexican paleontologist Luis Espinosa while underscoring the richness of Mexico’s fossil record.