Identity of famous baby dinosaur fossil reveals new species of feathered dinosaur

The fossilized remains of a 90-million-year-old dinosaur fetus has been identified as a new species of dinosaur.

A team of paleontologists arrived a the conclusion by closely examining a batch of eggs associated with the fetus and conducting a comparative analysis of the anatomy of dinosaurs similar to the newly discovered species.

RELATED: See photos of the largest Dinosaur print ever found

The dinosaur embryo, nicknamed "Baby Louie," was first discovered in the early 1990s, curled within a nest of other supersized dino eggs in Central China.

According to a new study published in Nature Communications, the oversized bird-like dinosaur, Beibeilongsinensis, which means "baby dragon from China," roamed the Earth between 89 and 100 million years ago.

Measuring at about 18 inches long and 6 inches wide, the clutch of eggs were the largest ever discovered. Experts say a nest of these eggs measured up to about the size of a wheel on a monster truck, and were tended to by adult dinos that were the largest roosting animals on the planet and weighed nearly 2,500 pounds at the height of their maturity.

Zhao Chuang

''The geographical distribution and abundant occurrences of Macroelongatoolithus egg remains reveal that giant oviraptosaurs were relatively widespread and perhaps even common in the early part of the Late Cretaceous, even though their skeletal remains are scarce and have yet to be identified in many regions,'' researchers write.

SEE ALSO: New Mexico paleontologist uncovers new dinosaur species

Dr. Steve Brusatte of the University of Edinburgh also says the eggs provide researchers with a look into the reproduction of some of the largest, strangest dinosaurs.

''It stretches the mind to imagine these wee little embryos growing into a one-ton feather-covered dinosaur that would have looked quite a bit like Big Bird,'' he said.

''And they were weird - with feathers and beaks, but no teeth," Brusatte continued, adding that the baby dinosaur was about the size of a guinea pig.