Pint-sized Mongolian menace shows dinosaurs loved the nightlife, too

The fossilized skeleton of the small bird-like dinosaur Shuvuuia deserti is seen in this undated handout image. Mick Ellison/AMNH/Handout via REUTERS

(Reuters) - Under the cover of darkness in desert habitats about 70 million years ago, in what is today Mongolia and northern China, a gangly looking dinosaur employed excellent night vision and superb hearing to thrive as a menacing pint-sized nocturnal predator.

Scientists said on Thursday an examination of a ring of bones surrounding the pupil and a bony tube inside the skull that houses the hearing organ showed that this dinosaur, called Shuvuuia deserti, boasted visual and auditory capabilities akin to a barn owl, indicating it could it hunt in total darkness.