Coelurus
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Coelurus Temporal range: Late Jurassic, 153–150 Ma |
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| Skeletal restoration showing known remains | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Order: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | Theropoda |
| Family: | †Coeluridae |
| Genus: |
†Coelurus Marsh, 1879 |
| Species: | †C. fragilis |
| Binomial name | |
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Coelurus fragilis Marsh, 1879 |
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| Synonyms | |
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Coelurus (/sᵻˈljʊərəs/ si-LEWR-əs) is a genus of coelurosaurian dinosaur from the Late Jurassic period (mid-late Kimmeridgian faunal stage, 153–150 million years ago). The name means "hollow tail", referring to its hollow tail vertebrae (Greek κοιλος, koilos = hollow + ουρα, oura = tail). Although its name is linked to one of the main divisions of theropods (Coelurosauria), it has historically been poorly understood, and sometimes confused with its better-known contemporary Ornitholestes. Like many dinosaurs studied in the early years of paleontology, it has had a confusing taxonomic history, with several species being named and later transferred to other genera or abandoned. Only one species is currently recognized as valid: the type species, C. fragilis, described by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1879. It is known from one partial skeleton found in the Morrison Formation of Wyoming, United States. It was a small bipedal carnivore with elongate legs.
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