The first complete fossil of Oviraptor was discovered in Mongolia just a few feet from a nest of fossilized Protoceratops eggs. It is very likely that the Oviraptor was about to make a meal of the eggs when an angry adult Protoceratops caught it in the act and killed it. For that reason Oviraptor got its name, which means "egg thief."

Oviraptor was an unusual dinosaur. Measuring five to six feet long, it had a short head and a massive pair of toothless jaws shaped like a beak. With strong muscles in its mouth, Oviraptor must have had a powerful bite that was useful for breaking through hard surfaces, such as the eggs of other dinosaurs. Another interesting feature was a unique crest above Oviraptor's snout that was full of air passages and openings for its nose