Velociraptor is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur. It was a bipedal, feathered carnivore with a long tail and an enlarged sickle-shaped claw on each hindfoot. The type species is V. mongoliensis; fossils of this species have been discovered in Mongolia.
About Velociraptor in brief
Velociraptor is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 75 to 71 million years ago during the latter part of the Cretaceous Period. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in the past. The type species is V. mongoliensis; fossils of this species have been discovered in Mongolia. A second species, V. osmolskae, was named in 2008 for skull material from Inner Mongolia, China. It was a bipedal, feathered carnivore with a long tail and an enlarged sickle-shaped claw on each hindfoot, which is thought to have been used to tackle and disembowel prey. The skull, which grew up to 25 cm long, was uniquely-curved on the upper surface and convex on the lower surface. The jaws were lined with 26 concave, convex, concave-tipped teeth, and there is a higher estimate of 19kg at the hip. It is one of the dinosaur genera most familiar to the general public due to its prominent role in the Jurassic Park motion picture series. In real life, Velocirptor was roughly the size of a turkey, considerably smaller than the approximately 2 m tall and 80 kg reptiles seen in the films. It can be distinguished from other dromAEosaurids by its long and low skull, with an upturned snout. One particularly famous specimen preserves a Velocoraptor locked in combat with a Protoceratops.
This fossil is considered a national treasure of Mongolia, although in 2000 it was loaned to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City for a temporary exhibition. The most famous is part of the famous \”Fighting Dinosaurs\” specimen, discovered by a Polish-Mongolian team in 1971. The fossil preserves a single Velocaraptor in the midst of battle against a lone Protocaratops in the Outer Mongolian Gobi Desert. One such specimen, IGM 100980, was nicknamed \”Ichabodcraniosaurus\” by Norell’s team because the fairly complete specimen was found without its skull. This specimen may belong to Veloceraptor mongliensis, but it awaits a formal description, and it is not found pertainal to the type species V. mongaliensis. The name is derived from the Latin words velox and raptor and refers to the animal’s cursorial nature and carnivorous diet. In 1924, museum president Henry Fairfield Osborn designated the skull and claw as the type specimen of his new genus, VelOCiraptar. In 1999, a joint Mongolian-American expedition to the Gobi turned up several well-preserved skeletons. One of these specimens was nicknamed Maxillae, but Norel’s team concluded that it was not complete enough to say for sure.
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This page is based on the article Velociraptor published in Wikipedia (as of Nov. 07, 2020) and was automatically summarized using artificial intelligence.
