Fossil Wiki:Featured articles/Dromaeosauridae



Dromaeosaurids are a family of extinct bird-like theropod dinosaurs. They were small to medium-sized, feathered carnivores that flourished during the Cretaceous Period. In informal usage they are often called "raptors" (after Velociraptor), a term popularized by the film Jurassic Park and have become iconic for their enlarged "sickle claw" on the second toe. The name Dromaeosauridae means 'running lizards', from Greek dromeus (δρομευς) meaning 'runner' and sauros (σαυρος) meaning 'lizard'. Dromaeosaurid fossils have been found in North America, Europe, North Africa, Japan, China, Mongolia, Madagascar, Argentina, and Antarctica. They first appeared in the mid-Jurassic Period (Bathonian stage, 167 million years ago) and survived until the end of the Cretaceous (Maastrichtian stage, 65.5 ma), existing for over 100 million years, up until the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. The presence of dromaeosaurs as early as the Middle Jurassic has been confirmed by the discovery of isolated fossil teeth, though no dromaeosaurid body fossils have been found from this epoch. There is also a large body of evidence showing that dromaeosaurids were covered in feathers. Some dromaeosaurid fossils preserve long, pennaceous feathers on the hands and arms (remiges) and tail (rectrices), as well as shorter, down-like feathers covering the body. (Read more...)