RIO DE JANIERO, July 28

Paleontologists in Brazil said Thursday they have unearthed the well-preserved skeleton fossil of a two- legged carnivore dinosaur believed to be the ancestor of the Tyrannosaurus rex.

The team said remains of hair, muscle, veins and nerves had been preserved on the small raptor, making it possibly the best-preserved dinosaur skeleton ever found.

The 110-million-year-old reptile was named the "Santana raptor" after the location where it lay buried, Formacao Santana in the Chapada do Araripe region of the northeastern state of Ceara.

The young animal was 1.6 metres tall, although it was believed adult animals reached a height of 2.5 metres, said a spokesman for the National Museum at the University of Rio de Janeiro.

The find indicated the Tyrannosaurus Rex also lived in South America, scientists said. Previously the species had only been found in North America and Africa.

(c) 2000 DPA