Nqwebasaurus was a basal coelurosaur and was the most basal member of the coelurosaurian clade Ornithomimosauria that lived in the Early Cretaceous of South Africa. In July 1996, it was discovered by William J. de Klerk and Callum Ross on a joint expedition led by the Albany Museum in Grahamstown and Stony Brook in New York, USA, where Callum Ross was affiliated at the time. The name means \"lizard of Nqweba\" in reference to the district in which it was found.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is a small to medium-sized ornithomimosaur estimated to have been 30 centimeters long. It had a long three-fingered hand, including a partially opposable thumb with a recurved claw. Its claws on its hands differ in shape, the first and second digits were recurved, and the third claw is not. It was a carnivorous dinosaur, although it was found to have gastroliths, and the reduced number of teeth suggests that Nqwebasaurus may have been a herbivore. It stood on two legs and had a feathered coat for thermoregulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n