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sharp-clawed runner
Velociraptor
Say it like this: “vee-LOHS-i-RAP-tor”
Velociraptor mongoliensis
Velociraptor ate meat and walked on two legs. It lived in the Late Cretaceous. Bones have been found in Mongolia and China.
- When
- Late Cretaceous (Campanian) · roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago
- Named in
- 1924 · Osborn, H. F.
- Hip height
- 0.6 m · 2 ft
- Length
- 1.5–2.1 m · 5–7 ft
- Weight
- 14–20 kg · 31–44 lb
- Found in
- Mongolia and China · Djadokhta
- Food and walking
- Carnivore · Two legs
- Kind
- sharp-clawed runner · Theropod
- Family branch
- Velociraptorinae
The story in short
In 1924, H. F. Osborn published the name Velociraptor. The name means “swift thief.”
Fossils referred to Velociraptor date to the Late Cretaceous (Campanian), roughly 83.6 to 72.2 million years ago. Finds come from Mongolia and China, including the Djadokhta Formation. It was a carnivore and walked on two legs.
Published estimates put Velociraptor at a length near 1.5–2.1 m, hips about 0.6 m high, and a body mass around 14–20 kg.
On the family tree it sits in Velociraptorinae, among the theropod dinosaurs.
This entry is the whole genus. The type species is Velociraptor mongoliensis. Other named species include Velociraptor osmolskae.
Other species with this name
- Velociraptor mongoliensis
- Velociraptor osmolskae
Close relatives
Adasaurus
Adasaurus mongoliensis
Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
Dineobellator
Dineobellator notohesperus
Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) · roughly 72.2 to 66 million years ago
Kansaignathus
Kansaignathus sogdianus
Late Cretaceous (Santonian) · roughly 85.7 to 83.6 million years ago