Velociraptor
What do you already know about this theropod dinosaur?
Can you say...
vell - os - ee - rap - tor
The name Velociraptor means ‘swift thief’.
Velociraptor was a theropod that lived during the late Cretaceous period. It was a small but terrifying dinosaur!
Velociraptor was just under two metres long, including its long tail. They were about half a metre tall. This was very small compared to some of the other theropod dinosaurs, especially the other ones living at the same time, such as Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Like all theropods Velociraptor ran on its strong back legs. It had three claws on each foot, with the middle one being a sickle shaped curved claw that was about 9 cm long. It used this long claw to attack its prey. They had quite long arms for a theropod dinosaur and would have been able to use the three claws it also had on its hands to help catch and hold down their prey.
Velociraptors had a long thin head. They were very clever dinosaurs and had a big brain compared to its small body. Scientists believe it was a very clever dinosaur because of this. It had rows of razor sharp scary teeth, perfect for eating its prey.
People used to think Velociraptor looked like this but now believe it had feathers based on fossils recently found.
Velociraptor loved to attack and eat reptiles and other dinosaurs. Unlike most theropod dinosaurs that weren’t very quick Velociraptor could run really fast when it wanted to and it could run over 20 miles per hour in short bursts. This really helped it to catch it prey. It is also thought that they hunted in packs, working together to attack and defeat larger prey.
Not only did they hunt live prey, it also thought they were scavengers too. This means they ate the left overs of dinosaurs killed by another dinosaur!
Velociraptor fossils have mainly been found in what is now Asia. Some have also been found in Canada. An amazing fossil was found of Velociraptor attacking a large herbivore dinosaur called Protoceratops. It was thought they were killed quickly, maybe in an avalanche, in the middle of an attack by the Velociraptor.
What we've learnt...
The name Velociraptor means ‘swift thief’.
People pronounce its name vell – os – ee – rap – tor
Velociraptor lived in the late Cretaceous Period at the same time as Proceratops.
Velociraptor was a small but scary theropod that was thought to be very clever.
Velociraptor attacked larger prey in packs. They could run really fast and surprise their prey.
Velociraptor is now thought to have had feathers.
Test your knowledge...
Velociraptor Quiz
If you click the correct answer the box will turn green. If its the wrong answer it will turn red and then show you what the correct answer was. Make sure you read/listen to the questions carefully!
#1. Where were Velociraptor fossils found?
#2. What type of dinosaur was Velociraptor?
#3. Did Velociraptor have feathers?
#4. When did Velociraptor live?
#5. Did Velociraptor hunt in packs?
Results
I really hope you have enjoyed learning all about Velociraptor, with me Flash!
Question Time...
Any questions?
Is there anything else you’d like to know? Ask your grown up / teacher to ask me! Your question and my answer could then appear here.
The photos on this page are of dinosaur models and computer generated images. They are used to give you an idea of what the dinosaurs would have looked like, but I can’t guarantee they are 100% accurate!
Creative Commons Images, used with thanks…
Velociraptor by Fred Wierum – CC BY-SA 4.0 (edited to add a background)
Other photos and illustrations on this page are Whizzbots or Public Domain Images.