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The Black Hills Institute exciting new Oviraptorid discovery this year in the Hell Creek Formation is far far from completion but Pete Larsen has been keeping everyone appraised of its status. Its still mostly in matrix and the arduous task of preparation as just begun. A new species or a new Anzu wyliei skeleton, it looks different. Not as sexy as Tuffs Love T rex skull but scientifically import. Here is a good look at what it takes to extract one of thess raptors. The site a Hell Creek lake deposit Airbraide-airpen outside, slowly making progress to keep the dust down Screening clay filled "mud" collected at the Oviraptorid site and soaked in water for a week. Hoping for bone fragments. The mud is then scooped into a screen Sprayed with water to reduce the clay and mud Slowly the clay breaks down and washes away This is all that's left of 5 gallons of surface scrapings. Hopefully when finished screening the 20 gallons of mud, some bone will be found Cleaned up the tibia-fibula-astragalus-calcanium block with 5 gastralia Working on the Oviraptorid pelvic and neck block. Nice preservation, but some of the matrix is siderite concretion. Airscribe work. Hard tedious work to extract each piece. Lots of skull elements I've circled the lower jaw among skull elements

Hi all, This claw has been posted on a certain popular bidding website described as "raptor or T. rex", although several of the image filenames from the seller say "Anzu". It's just over 3 inches long, and was found in Hell Creek, South Dakota. It's the right size for Anzu, but there's no protruding dorsal "lip" of the articulating surface that Anzu hand claws have. The articulating surface also doesn't look like it extends all the way down to the bottom of the claw, as in Anzu foot claws. I can't imagine it's ornithomimus or struthiomimus, as their claws don't have much curvature. Could it be subadult T. rex/nanotyrannus? Dromaeosaurus? Dakotaraptor? Cheers!

Hi everyone! I acquired some dinosaur claw partials and am trying to learn to tell them apart. There are a few different morphologies so not all of them are Anzu (I think). Any insight would be greatly appreciated! The length measurement given is from the tip to the top of the base in a straight line Upper left, first pic set: 24 mm Upper right, second pic set: 21.5 mm Lower left, third pic set: 29 mm lower middle, fourth pic set: 25 mm (probably Anzu) Lower right, fifth pic set: 26 mm (also probably Anzu)

Looking for confirmation on this theropod bone being sold. Seller is identifying it as a theropod (Anzu?) Arctometatarsal from the Hell Creek of Montana, Powder River County.. 10.4" Long. They indicate it cannot definitely provide an ID but the giant raptor Anzu Wylie is a likely candidate be cause other material from this theropod has been found at the quarry. What is a Arctometatarsal?

Hi there, I have recently seen a trex claw online that is around 4 inches in length and the seller says it was found in Baker, Montana however I know that this claw is often misidentified as anzu wyliei. Can anyone tell by the below photos if this is a trex claw? The size makes me think it is and the seller is not sure whether it's hand or foot. I would like to have seen a photo of the side of the claw to measure width but this photo has not been put up by the person. It is a bit out of my budget for the kind of money that I would ever spend but I find pieces like this very interesting and I know I should trust the seller but I would like feedback from members of this forum. Thanks!

A very brief article about the "Chicken from Hell" Anzu wyliei found in the Hell Creek Formation. Added some of my photos to get a better view of this cool Dinosaur. Carnegie Museum Article http://carnegiemuseumnaturalhistory.tumblr.com/post/165688152585/anzu-wyliei-perhaps-better-known-by-its-colorful/amp?__twitter_impression=true 5 feet high at the hips. Hand Claws reached 7 inches long

The Hell Creek/Lance Formations have been very slow giving up their dinosaur secrets. Very few articulated skeletons have been found other than the king T rex. A couple of recent finds may increase the number of Caenagnathids in these fauna's. Caenagnathids are part of a group of bird like dinosaurs that are known by their easily identifiable hand claws. Currently only Anzu wyliei is described and accepted from these formations and is known from two partially articulated specimens and is the largest Caenagnathid in the fossil record. In 2013 a new species was was described from the Aguja Formation of Texas: Leptorhynchos gaddisi. Bones recovered from the Hell Creek of eastern Montana have similarities to this species and have been described as Leptorhynchos elegans but there still some uncertainty over that find. The current North American view of Caenagnathids is shown in this paper http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0195667114001700 In August of 2016 a presentation was made at CSVP by David Evans et al. on a new large bodied Caenagnathid that was similiar to Anzu wyliei. The finds were fragmentary but could not be assigned to A. wyliei with expectations it was a new species . Artist (Paleop) rendition of these dinosaurs. Impact on collectors.... Hand and foot claws are typically what you see sold as Anzu wyliei. The hand claws I have in my collection are not all identical and now could be explained by these different species. In fact I have a jumbo toe bone that just did not fit A. wyliei but may be perfect for this larger foot specimen. Also specimens sold as juvenile A. wyliei may just be something else. No hand or foot claws claws have been discovered in the Hell Creek with these new finds so it's uncertain if they have a different morphology. Bottom line to collectors and a common thread is that identification of isolated bones to a species level is very difficult and problematic. We are still in the discovery phase in the Hell Creek/Lance Formations and have lots to learn. One prominent paleontologist suggested around 5 Caenagnathids in these fauna's. Purchase and collect specimens because they are cool, unique and special but don't get hung up in the name. The hand claws are very cool. From my collection and collected in 2014

Hi folks! I'm a little late to the party here, but this was posted on a popular fossils website. I apologize for the delay in posting, but I couldn't take a photo without having the website's name exposed. This specimen was listed as a very elusive T.rex hand claw, at a reasonable price. Unfortunately, it is an Anzu wyliei foot claw and not a T.rex hand claw. Misidentifying these two claws is a very common mistake. The second photo is the Anzu wyliei toe claw from my collection. If any of you purchased this claw, please contact the seller. Information came to me last night by member @Troodon, who knows I'm always snooping around the Internet like a hound dog for T.rex material.