# Rinconraptor pipoae: new megaraptorid theropod about 7 m long described from Patagonia, Argentina

- Published: 2026-11-13 10:56 UTC
- Section: Life & Health › Biology & biochemistry
- Tags: Rinconraptor pipoae, new dinosaur species, Megaraptoridae, Neuquén Basin, Bajo de la Carpa Formation, Late Cretaceous theropod, Patagonia fossils, Cerro Overo, tail vertebrae morphology
- URL: https://realtech.media/news/rt-5647e5e3756caae380739e7b_rinconraptor_pipoae_new/

**Researchers described a new genus and species of megaraptorid dinosaur from an incomplete skeleton, about 83 million years old, found in the Neuquén Basin. Megaraptorid fossils are scarce and fragmentary.**

![Rinconraptor pipoae: new megaraptorid theropod about 7 m long described from Patagonia, Argentina](https://realtech.media/media/2026/11/362a56e0dc90dc7e.jpg)
*dailygalaxy.com*

A team led by Ariel H. Méndez of CONICET described Rinconraptor pipoae, a new genus and species of megaraptorid theropod from northern Patagonia, Argentina. The animal lived about 83 million years ago, in the Late Cretaceous, according to the paper in palaeo-electronica.org [1]. The remains come from Cerro Overo, about 50 km (30 miles) southwest of the city of Rincón de los Sauces. The authors estimate its length at about 7 m (23 feet), based on comparison of its vertebrae with those of better-known relatives [1].

## What was found

The main specimen is incomplete. It includes 10 tail vertebrae, part of a bone from beneath the tail, the lower end of a left humerus and the upper end of a right tibia [1]. The tibia was still embedded in rock, while the other bones lay scattered over a patch of ground of about 4 square meters (43 square feet). The authors calculate that the animal had more than 40 to 45 tail segments, a pattern similar to that of Tyrannosaurus.

The new species is diagnosed by several traits [1]. The humeral ectepicondyle sits far from the distal end of the bone, and the humerus has an anterodistal ridge. The crest on the front of the tibia and its medial condyle are close to quadrangular in shape, and the tibial notch forms a right angle. The authors also describe other megaraptorid bones from the same area that they could not assign to a species. They estimate these animals at 6 to 8.5 meters (20 to 28 feet) in length.

## Place in the group and the ecosystem

The specimens come from the Bajo de la Carpa Formation, part of the Río Colorado Subgroup of the Neuquén Group in the Neuquén Basin [1]. Megaraptorids are medium- to large-sized theropods whose morphology and relationships remain poorly known. Their fossil record is scarce and fragmentary.

Phylogenetic analyses by the authors support a monophyletic subclade of South American megaraptorids [1]. Their study of tail vertebrae reinforces the hypothesis of a relationship and shared morphological patterns between megaraptorans and tyrannosauroids. The new material is consistent with a trend of increasing body size during the Late Cretaceous.

The Cerro Overo-La Invernada area held a varied land ecosystem. It included peirosaurid crocodyliforms, chelid turtles, elasmarian ornithopods, titanosaur sauropods, and theropods such as abelisaurids and megaraptorids, which served as top predators [1]. Medium and large megaraptorids lived there at the same time as abelisaurids of similar size, in the Santonian.

## Sources

1. [palaeo-electronica.org](https://palaeo-electronica.org/content/2026/5975-new-megaraptorid-from-patagonia)
2. [dailygalaxy.com](https://dailygalaxy.com/2026/11/new-dinosaur-found-patagonia-argentina)

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Source: RealTech, realtech.media — https://realtech.media/news/rt-5647e5e3756caae380739e7b_rinconraptor_pipoae_new/