Extinct species

Velociraptor

Velociraptor mongoliensis Osborn, 1924

Taxonomy

Range: Mongolia, Central Asia
Habitat: Arid dune fields and dry, sandy habitats of the Late Cretaceous Gobi region.
Lived: Late Cretaceous · about 75–71 million years ago

Size: Much smaller in real life than its popular portrayal, roughly the size of a large turkey.
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Trait: Carried a large curved claw on each foot, likely used to grip rather than disembowel prey.
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Trait: Fossil evidence shows quill knobs on the arms, meaning it almost certainly bore feathers.
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Diet: A fast, agile hunter that likely pursued small to mid-sized prey.
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Fossil Evidence: One famous fossil captured it locked in combat with a horned plant-eater, fossilized mid-fight.
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Earth Context: Lived in a dry, dune-filled environment unlike the lush forests dinosaurs are often pictured in.
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Time Context: Late Cretaceous rocks in Mongolia's Gobi Desert preserve this small hunter.
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