Paleontologists have identified a new dinosaur species, Infernogallus jamesi, which lived approximately 68 to 66 million years ago in what is now Montana and North Dakota.
First unearthed in the Hell Creek Formation in July 2011, the creature represents a rare example of a dinosaur adapted for a fruit-based diet. The environment where it lived was likely a humid forest filled with flowering plants and fruit-bearing flora, sharing the landscape with massive predators such as Tyrannosaurus rex and large herbivores like Triceratops.
The findings, published October 10, 2026, in the journal Nature Communications, characterize the animal as a turkey-sized theropod measuring roughly 1.5 meters in length and weighing roughly 11.3 to 12 kilograms.
While its name translates to “hell chicken,” researchers have yet to find direct evidence of feathers, though they suspect the animal was feathered based on its close evolutionary relatives. The study, conducted by scientists from the United States and Canada, analyzed five fossil specimens to determine these characteristics.
The species exhibits a highly specialized jaw structure that distinguishes it from its carnivorous relatives. The animal possessed a curved beak, similar to a modern parrot or turtle, but lacked the bite force to crush hard nuts, seeds, or shells.
Researchers did not find evidence of gizzard stones in the most complete specimen examined. Funston described the creature as having the body of a cassowary but with the head of a parrot. The dinosaur belongs to the Caenagnathidae group, which typically featured slender bodies and toothless beaks.
The discovery of the fruit-eating Infernogallus jamesi in the Hell Creek ecosystem provides evidence that dinosaur diets were more diverse than previously thought. Instead, CT scans revealed that the creature’s beak and palate were specifically optimized for cutting through soft tissues. The palate contains a complex pattern of ridges and grooves, which researchers believe helped process food.
Additionally, the jaw musculature was oriented front-to-back, allowing for a unique forward-and-backward chewing motion. Greg Funston, a paleontologist from Stony Brook University, noted that the combination of these three features—the specialized jaw muscles, flexible jaw joints, and the ridged beak—is not found in any modern animal. This shows how particularly Infernogallus is adapted to consuming soft foods,
explained Funston.
The name Infernogallus is derived from its discovery location in the Hell Creek Formation and its bird-like appearance.
Because the specimens were fragile and partially larger than the available scanning equipment, researchers used computed tomography (CT) scans to create digital reconstructions. By taking multiple overlapping scans, the team was able to map the complex jaw mechanics without damaging the original fossil material.
There are no modern animals that directly mirror Infernogallus jamesi.