The Dinosaur Blamed by Mistake

About this drawing

The oviraptor and nest story is one of the most famous mix-ups in dinosaur science. In 1923, explorers from New York's American Museum of Natural History were digging in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia. They found this dinosaur right next to a nest of eggs and assumed it had been caught stealing a meal.

So it got a pretty rude name. Oviraptor means egg thief. For years everyone believed those eggs belonged to a horned plant eater called Protoceratops, and the poor animal carried that bad reputation for decades.

Then, in the 1990s, scientists found a matching egg with a tiny embryo inside. It was a relative of oviraptor! Other fossils turned up too, showing similar animals sitting right on top of their nests, just like a hen. Suddenly the truth was clear. It wasn't stealing those eggs. It was taking care of them.

This dinosaur had a strong toothless beak, a crest on its head and a body covered in feathers. It lived about 75 million years ago, and it probably ate a bit of everything, maybe plants, fruit and small animals. We now know it was a good parent, but the name can't be changed. Under the rules of science, the first name sticks, even if it's unfair.

• dinosaurs
• oviraptor
• nests
• feathers