Jurassic Park dinosaur was bit of a turkey
VELOCIRAPTOR, star of the Jurassic Park films, may have resembled a turkey with attitude more than a monster dinosaur.
The real-life creature was much smaller than its film version - and now scientists have established it had feathers.
Velociraptor, which lived 70 to 80 million years ago, was a two-legged predator that stood about 3ft tall and weighed around 30lb. A close relative of birds, it had two large, scythe-like claws that would have inflicted deep wounds.
In Jurassic Park, velociraptors are depicted as being taller than a man and highly intelligent. There is evidence that "raptor" dinosaurs may have been quick-witted and possibly hunted in groups. But they were nothing like as big and formidable as the films suggest, being about the size of a large turkey.
The velociraptor research, in the journal Science, shows that although the dinosaur did not fly, it had feathers.
Email to a friend
Print this page- Alistair Darling leads ‘No to independence’ fight over tea and biscuits
- Scottish independence: SNP flip-flops over Nato
- Today’s youth not fit to be employed, says car firm Arnold Clark
- Scottish Independence: SNP ‘won’t be Yes campaign’s only voice’
- The Rumour Mill: Wednesday’s football news and gossip
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Edinburgh
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 12 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 20 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: North east
