Definitions for velociraptor
This page provides all possible meanings and translations of the word velociraptor
small active carnivore that probably fed on protoceratops; possibly related more closely to birds than to other dinosaurs
an agile dinosaur, of the genus Velociraptor, having sickle-shaped claws
Origin: < Modern Latin Velociraptor genus name, from Latin veloci-, velox swift, rapid + raptor(noun)
Velociraptor is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 75 to 71 million years ago during the later 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. Smaller than other dromaeosaurids like Deinonychus and Achillobator, Velociraptor nevertheless shared many of the same anatomical features. 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 kill its prey. Velociraptor can be distinguished from other dromaeosaurids by its long and low skull, with an upturned snout. Velociraptor 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 the films it was shown with anatomical inaccuracies, including being much larger than it was in reality and without feathers. It is also well known to paleontologists, with over a dozen described fossil skeletons—the most of any dromaeosaurid. One particularly famous specimen preserves a Velociraptor locked in combat with a Protoceratops.
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"velociraptor." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2015. Web. 26 Nov. 2015. <http://www.definitions.net/definition/velociraptor>.