Velociraptor

The Surprising Truth, Different from the Movies

Due to the influence of the movie, the image of a large, robust dinosaur that hunts in packs has become widespread, but these are all fictional creations for the film.

The real Velociraptor was an agile dinosaur with a slender build. It was only about 2 meters long and weighed just 15 kg, with a height that only reached a person’s waist.

An agile dinosaur with a slender build.

This is about the same size as a modern coyote or turkey, which is a stark contrast to how it was depicted in the movie.

Furthermore, no evidence of them hunting in packs has been found to date.
Most of the fossils that have been discovered are of solitary individuals, so it is believed that the team-based hunting shown in the movie did not happen in reality.

A Small but Vicious Hunter

While the movie’s depiction is fictional, Velociraptor was by no means a harmless creature.
Its physical features suggest that it was a small but vicious hunter.

Its long, crocodile-like snout was filled with a dense row of finely serrated, sharp teeth for tearing prey.
It also had sharp, sickle-shaped claws on both feet—a trait unique to the dromaeosaurids—which it used to inflict fatal wounds on its prey.

It had sharp, sickle-shaped claws on both feet.

It was known for its swift movements and is said to have easily reached speeds comparable to a car on a local road.
It is believed to have used this speed to prey mainly on eggs, juveniles, and smaller dinosaurs like Protoceratops.
In fact, a fossil has been found of a Velociraptor that appears to have died in the middle of a hunt.

An Intelligent Brain and Traces of Wings

Velociraptor’s brain was large for its body size, and it is believed to have been one of the most intelligent dinosaurs, alongside the Troodon family.
Its excellent eyesight also made it a creature that many other animals could not afford to underestimate.

Recent research has discovered quill knobs—the bumps that anchor flight feathers—on the bones of its forelimbs, confirming that it had wings.

It had wings on its forelimbs.

Although Velociraptor could not fly, it is believed to have been completely covered in feathers.

A Discovery of a Lifetime: The “Fighting Dinosaurs” Fossil

In 1971, in the Gobi Desert of Mongolia, a fossil was discovered of a Velociraptor skeleton locked in a fierce struggle with a ceratopsian, Protoceratops, with its claws still embedded in the other dinosaur’s body.
This “Fighting Dinosaurs” fossil continues to tell the story of a dramatic battle that took place some 73 million years ago.

Velociraptor is a fascinating dinosaur filled with mystery and romance not only in the world of fiction but in the real world as well.