Researchers at the University of Alberta have found what may be the first evidence of a small raptor feeding on a tyrannosaur. The study, by master’s student Joshua Doyon, examined tooth marks on the jaw of an Albertosaurus, a large predator related to T. rex that lived 73 to 67 million years ago.
By comparing the spacing between the marks with the spacing between the teeth of other carnivorous dinosaurs of the time, the team concluded that a dromaeosaurid, or raptor, most likely fed on the animal shortly after it died. The other, less likely option is a young Albertosaurus.
The fossil was found north of Drumheller and reported by a member of the public in 2022, then prepared by the Royal Tyrrell Museum. “This is one of those rare occasions where we actually have information on carnivore eating a carnivore,” said palaeontologist Philip Currie.
