The TV show of the same name was a huge hit in 1999

A remote-controlled dinosaur robot worth about 100,000 Australian dollars (£55,600) has been stolen from a Walking With Dinosaurs show in Mexico.

Staff noticed the 1.5m tall robot was missing after the show closed on its opening day in Guadalajara on Friday.

The Australian show based on the BBC series has toured worldwide and been seen by more than four million people.

"Only in Mexico! How it happened we don't know," said the show's spokesman, Karla Arroyo.

It is the first time an exhibit has been stolen from the show, she added.

The theft did not stop the show going ahead.

Computer graphics

"Everything went on as usual," said Ms Arroyo.

She said the stolen robot was the least expensive from the show - some measure up to 13m and cost up to 1m Australian dollars.

The show originated in Australia, where it first opened in Sydney's Acer Arena in January 2007.

Ten species are represented from the 200 million-year reign of the dinosaurs. The show includes the Tyrannosaurus rex and the Stegosaurus.

The UK tour sold more than 500,000 tickets earlier this year and has now moved to Europe.

The Walking With Dinosaurs TV series, which used animatronics and computer graphics to portray the prehistoric animals, was broadcast 10 years ago.

The series took two years to make.