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photo above The Fake Hollywood Velociraptor Blue and its Child from Jurrasic World photo artdeals.ng
THE REAL DEAL
this looked more like the large one from Hollywood movies minus the feathers
Deinonychus (/daɪˈnɒnɪkəs/[1] dy-NON-ih-kəs; from Ancient Greek δεινός (deinós) ‘terrible’, and ὄνυξ (ónux), genitive ὄνυχος (ónukhos) ‘claw’) is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur with one described species, Deinonychus antirrhopus. This species, which could grow up to 3.4 meters (11 ft) long, lived during the early Cretaceous Period, about 115–108 million years ago (from the mid-Aptian to early Albian stages). Fossils have been recovered from the U.S. states of Montana, Utah, Wyoming, and Oklahoma, in rocks of the Cloverly Formation, Cedar Mountain Formation and Antlers Formation, though teeth that may belong to Deinonychus have been found much farther east in Maryland.
Paleontologist John Ostrom’s study of Deinonychus in the late 1960s revolutionized the way scientists thought about dinosaurs, leading to the “dinosaur renaissance” and igniting the debate on whether dinosaurs were warm-blooded or cold-blooded. Before this, the popular conception of dinosaurs had been one of plodding, reptilian giants. Ostrom noted the small body, sleek, horizontal posture, ratite-like spine, and especially the enlarged raptorial claws on the feet, which suggested an active, agile predator.[2]
“Terrible claw” refers to the unusually large, sickle-shaped talon on the second toe of each hind foot. The fossil YPM 5205 preserves a large, strongly curved ungual. In life, archosaurs have a horny sheath over this bone, which extends the length. Ostrom looked at crocodile and bird claws and reconstructed the claw for YPM 5205 as over 120 millimetres (4.7 in) long.[2] The species name antirrhopus means “counter balance”, which refers to Ostrom’s idea about the function of the tail. As in other dromaeosaurids, the tail vertebrae have a series of ossified tendons and super-elongated bone processes. These features seemed to make the tail into a stiff counterbalance, but a fossil of the very closely related Velociraptor mongoliensis (IGM 100/986) has an articulated tail skeleton that is curved laterally in a long S-shape. This suggests that, in life, the tail could bend to the sides with a high degree of flexibility.[3] In both the Cloverly and Antlers formations, Deinonychus remains have been found closely associated with those of the ornithopod Tenontosaurus. Teeth discovered associated with Tenontosaurus specimens imply they were hunted, or at least scavenged upon, by Deinonychus.
10 Facts About the Velociraptor Dinosaur
The velociraptor. Translated from Latin, “velociraptor” means “swift robber.”
The Real Velociraptor
By Bob Strauss
Updated on September 26, 2019
Thanks to the “Jurassic Park” and “Jurassic World” movies, the Velociraptor is one of the world’s most well-known dinosaurs. However, there’s a huge difference between the Hollywood version of the Velociraptor and the less imposing one familiar to paleontologists. How much do you really know about this surprisingly small, vicious predator?
01
Those Aren’t Really Velociraptors in the ‘Jurassic Park’ Movies
It’s a sad fact that the Velociraptor’s claim to pop-culture fame in “Jurassic Park” is based on a lie. The special-effects wizards have long since confessed that they modeled their Velociraptor after the much bigger (and much more dangerous-looking) raptor Deinonychus antirrhopus, whose name isn’t quite as catchy or as easy to pronounce and who lived about 30 million years before its more famous relative. “Jurassic World” had the chance to set the record straight, but it stuck with the big Velociraptor fib. If life were fair, Deinonychus would be a much better-known dinosaur than the Velociraptor, but that’s the way the “Jurassic” amber crumbles.
02
Velociraptor Had Feathers, not Scaly, Reptilian Skin
Extrapolating from the smaller, more primitive, feathered raptors that predated it by millions of years, paleontologists believe Velociraptors sported feathers, too, due to having quill knobs, just like today’s birds, on their bones where feathers would have attached. Artists have depicted this dinosaur as possessing everything from pale, colorless, chicken-like tufts to green plumage worthy of a South American parrot. Whatever the case, Velociraptor almost certainly wasn’t lizard-skinned, as it’s portrayed in the “Jurassic” movies. (Assuming Velociraptors needed to sneak up on their prey, we’re on safer ground assuming that they weren’t too brightly feathered.)
03
Velociraptor Was About the Size of a Big Chicken
For a dinosaur that’s often mentioned in the same breath as Tyrannosaurus rex, Velociraptor was remarkably puny. This meat-eater weighed only approximately 30 pounds soaking wet (about the same as a good-sized human toddler) and was just 2 feet tall and 6 feet long. In fact, it would take six or seven adult Velociraptors to equal one average-sized Deinonychus, 500 to match a full-grown Tyrannosaurus rex and 5,000 or so to equal the weight of one good-sized titanosaur —but who’s counting? (Certainly not the people who script Hollywood movies.)
04
There’s No Evidence That Velociraptors Hunted in Packs
To date, all of the dozen or so identified Velociraptor specimens have been of solitary individuals. The idea that Velociraptors ganged up on their prey in cooperative packs probably stems from the discovery of associated Deinonychus remains in North America. This larger raptor may have hunted in packs to bring down larger duck-billed dinosaurs such as Tenontosaurus, but there’s no particular reason to extrapolate those findings to Velociraptor. But then again, there’s no particular reason not to.
05
The Velociraptor’s IQ Has Been Wildly Exaggerated
Remember that scene in “Jurassic Park ” where a Velociraptor figures out how to turn a doorknob? Pure fantasy. Even the putatively smartest dinosaur of the Mesozoic Era, Troodon, was probably dumber than a newborn kitten, and it’s a safe bet that no reptiles (extinct or extant) have ever learned how to use tools, with the possible exception of the American alligator. A real-life Velociraptor would likely have butted its head against that closed kitchen door until it knocked itself out and then its hungry pal would have feasted on its remains.
06
Velociraptors Lived in Central Asia, Not North America
Given its red-carpet treatment in Hollywood, you might expect Velociraptors to have been as American as apple pie, but the fact is that this dinosaur lived in what is now modern-day Mongolia about 70 million years ago (the most famous species is named Velociraptor mongoliensis). America Firsters in need of a native raptor will have to settle for Velociraptor’s much bigger and much deadlier cousins Deinonychus and Utahraptor, the latter of which weighed as much as 1,500 pounds fully grown and was the largest raptor that ever lived.
07
Velociraptor’s Main Weapons Were Its Single, Curved Hind Claws
Although its sharp teeth and clutching hands were certainly unpleasant, the go-to weapons in Velociraptor’s arsenal were the single, curved, 3-inch-long claws on each of its hind feet, which it used to slash, jab, and disembowel prey. Paleontologists surmise that a Velociraptor stabbed its prey in the gut in sudden, surprise attacks, then withdrew to a safe distance as its victim bled to death (a strategy emulated millions of years later by the saber-toothed tiger, which leaped on its prey from the low branches of trees).
08
Velociraptor Wasn’t as Speedy as Its Name Implies
The name Velociraptor translates from the Greek as “speedy thief,” and it wasn’t nearly as fast as contemporary ornithomimids or “bird mimic” dinosaurs, some of which could attain speeds of up to 40 or 50 mph. Even the fastest Velociraptors would have been severely hampered by their short, turkey-sized legs and could have easily been outrun by an athletic human child. It’s possible, though, that these predators could have attained more “lift” in mid-stride with the aid of their presumably feathered arms.
09
Velociraptor Enjoyed Lunching on Protoceratops
Velociraptors weren’t particularly big, smart, or speedy, so how did they survive the unforgiving ecosystem of late Cretaceous Central Asia? Well, by attacking comparably small dinosaurs such as the pig-sized Protoceratops. One famous fossil specimen preserves a Velociraptor and Protoceratops locked in life-and-death combat as they were both buried alive by a sudden sandstorm (and judging by the evidence, it’s far from obvious that Velociraptor had the upper hand when they perished. It looks like Protoceratops got in some good licks and may even have been on the brink of breaking free).
10
Velociraptor May Have Been Warm-Blooded, Like Modern Mammals
Cold-blooded reptiles don’t excel at actively pursuing and savagely attacking their prey (think of crocodiles patiently hovering underwater until a terrestrial animal ventures too close to the river’s edge). That fact, combined with Velociraptor’s probable coat of feathers, leads paleontologists to conclude that this raptor (and many other meat-eating dinosaurs, including tyrannosaurs and “dino-birds”) possessed a warm-blooded metabolism comparable to those of modern birds and mammals—and was able to generate its own internal energy rather than relying entirely on the sun.
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Vicious Velociraptor: tales of a turkey-sized dinosaur
By Lisa Hendry excerpts from article on thoughtco
Star of Jurassic World, established brawler and owner of a killer claw, Velociraptor has quite a reputation. But how much of it is deserved?
Since the discovery of the first Velociraptor fossil on 11 August 1923 in the Gobi Desert in Mongolia, we’ve learnt a lot about this turkey-sized predator. Museum dinosaur researcher Dr David Button tells us more.
Fearsome claw but not a disembowelling tool
The first Velociraptor fossil found by scientists was an impressive claw, unearthed alongside a complete but crushed skull on an American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) expedition to Mongolia.
We now know it belonged to the second toe of Velociraptor’s foot. It was a predator’s perfect weapon and could grow to more than 6.5 centimetres around its outer edge.
‘People have traditionally thought of the foot claw as a disembowelling tool,’ says David, ‘but it wouldn’t really work like that.
‘Palaeontologists built a mechanical model of the claw for BBC documentary The Truth About Killer Dinosaurs and they couldn’t get it to disembowel things.’
Instead, research suggests that the razor-sharp claw was used for stabbing, not slashing, and it was probably used as a hook to prevent prey from escaping.
David elaborates, ‘If you look at the claw it looks just like the talon of an eagle, which is used to grip prey and pin it down. Velociraptor probably used its sickle-shaped talon in the same way to injure, subdue and grip its prey, before dispatching it with its jaws.’
Terrifying toe tapping
Could the claw have any other purpose? Jurassic Park – which brought Velociraptor into the limelight – included an unsettling scene where the dinosaur tapped its claw on the ground to help it locate prey – in this case, children. But was there any scientific basis for this?
Scientists know that dromaeosaurs like Velociraptor walked with only two toes on the ground. The famous foot claw was held up in the air, which would have helped keep it sharp.
‘Whenever we find tracks from Velociraptor and its dromaeosaur relatives, there are no little marks made by the sickle-shaped claw. This tells us the dinosaur kept it elevated off the ground, presumably to keep it sharp.
‘No evidence of toe-tapping behaviour has been found. I think it was just a cinematic ploy to make them look alert and more scary.’
Like a bird of prey gone wrong
If we were to encounter Velociraptor today, chances are we’d find it disturbing enough, regardless of its size.
David thinks it would seem like an unusual bird of prey – a large one that had been stretched out, but with a very long tail, clawed hands and teeth (not a beak).
Velociraptor was a bit like an odd-looking bird of prey with a toothy mouth, claws on wing-like arms and a long tail. It was about the size of a Thanksgiving turkey.
‘It’s one of the reasons I think it’s a shame they don’t put feathers on Velociraptor in the Jurassic Park movies,’ he says. ‘They’d actually be much creepier because it would be something we recognise but a bit wrong.
‘I think it’s quite useful to think of Velociraptor like a land eagle as they’re very similar to eagles in many ways and it’s reasonable to expect they would have behaved similarly as well.
‘It wouldn’t have been particularly nice to meet – I wouldn’t want to meet a grounded eagle, let alone one that’s used to being on the ground.’
Feathered but flightless
We know Velociraptor’s body was covered in feathers as close relatives, including Microraptor and Zhenyuanlong, have been found with preserved feathers.
In 2007, the discovery of quill knobs on a Velociraptor fossil proved that this dinosaur had long feathers attaching from its second finger and up its arms.
Despite its wing-like arms, Velociraptor wouldn’t have been able to fly.
‘It didn’t have the apparatus needed to get an animal of its size off the ground,’ explains David.
‘Although it had a wishbone (fused collarbone) like in modern birds, it wasn’t the shape needed to support flapping wings.
‘The size and shape of Velociraptor’s arms meant its wings weren’t big enough for it to glide, either. And it had symmetrical feathers, not the asymmetrical ones seen in modern flying birds.’
Given that Velociraptor was flightless, what were the feathers for? Potentially for display – to help attract mates – and to keep it warm.
Velociraptor’s feathered body would have kept it warm. The longer arm feathers may have been used in mating displays or to cover eggs while brooding. Although this model shows the hands sticking out from feathery arms, comparison with birds suggests the plumes would attach from the second finger.
David says, ‘There’s quite good evidence for dromaeosaurs having elevated metabolisms. If you’re generating a lot of warmth, if you lose it you’re wasting loads of energy. Feathers would stop dromaeosaurs losing energy and keep them warm.’
Another suggestion is that Velociraptor used its feathered arms to cover their nests while brooding.
‘We have specimens of some oviraptorosaurs, which are relatively closely related to Velociraptor, which are preserved brooding over their eggs like a chicken,’ elaborates David.
‘Velociraptor and its ilk are actually more closely related to birds than Oviraptor and its kind are. So unless this brooding posture arose independently in oviraptorosaurs – which is possible – presumably it evolved in the common ancestor of all these animals, making it likely that Velociraptor would have brooded its eggs in a similar way.’
Unfortunately no fossils proving this have been found. We do have fossils showing other Velociraptor behaviour, however.
Fast but not superfast
Did Velociraptor live up to its speedy reputation?
‘You can get a rough idea of how suited an animal is to running by the relative length of its thigh and shin, says David. ‘A longer shin will increase your stride length, and you’ll be faster.’
Velociraptor had quite big legs for its size and they were quite muscular. Its agility was also helped by a long, stiff tail that helped steer at high speeds.
‘Based on a study that modelled the speed of various dinosaurs, I’d expect Velociraptor to be able to run at over 40 kilometres per hour, at least in short bursts – faster than the fastest human.
‘It would have been quite fast by dinosaur standards – rather fortunate given its name means quick or swift – but not the fastest. That accolade goes to the ornithomimosaurs, which had very long shins and are thought to have been able to run as fast as the ostriches they resemble.’
But importantly for Velociraptor it would have been a lot faster than its common prey. Small animals have got quite short stride lengths and if it was snatching young Protoceratops they’d have been nowhere near that speed.
Leader of the pack?
Despite the common depiction of raptors as cooperative pack hunters, there’s very little evidence for such behaviour.
The idea was based on the discovery of the remains of multiple Deinonychus individuals around a single Tenontosaurus, a much larger herbivore. But the predators could just as easily have been scavenging, or all the dinosaurs could have simply been swept up by water and buried together. More recently, multiple Utahraptor have been found with the herbivore Hippodraco, likely after becoming stuck in quicksand.
David says, ‘For Velociraptor-sized dinosaurs there are some trackways of multiple individuals moving in the same direction, but this could signify the dinosaurs flocking (moving in a crowd) or following. There’s no particular evidence of pack hunting.
‘Some modern hawks hunt cooperatively and several modern reptiles, including komodo dragons, hunt in a manner called mobbing – whereby one will attack an animal and then others will opportunistically join in. That’s also seen in many birds of prey.
‘There isn’t currently any evidence for communal hunting of any kind for Velociraptor, although that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.’
Exaggerated IQ
While Velociraptor was quite smart for a dinosaur, it doesn’t quite live up to its Jurassic Park portrayal as a cunning reptile that could outwit humans.
David explains, ‘We can get a rough idea of the intelligence of an animal by the size of its brain relative to its body. We call this measure the encephalisation quotient.
‘There’s a weird urban myth that Velociraptor has a higher encephalisation quotient than humans. It clearly doesn’t.
‘However, the size of Velociraptor’s brain in proportion to its body is relatively high compared to most reptiles, including most other dinosaurs, so it seems likely it was comparatively clever.
‘Velociraptor was not smart like a chimp, or even a parrot or crow. But it was smart like an average bird – a hawk or something like that.’