Research reviewed 30 July 2026. Scientific interpretations may change as new evidence is published.
Velociraptor mongoliensis was a small feathered meat eating dinosaur from Mongolia that lived about 74 to 70 million years ago. It had a long tail, grasping hands and a raised curved claw on each foot, but it was far smaller than the raptors shown in famous films.
| Fact | Answer |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Velociraptor mongoliensis |
| Name meaning | Swift thief or quick plunderer |
| Period | Late Cretaceous |
| Age | About 74 to 70 million years ago |
| Fossil location | Mongolia, with a second species known from China |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Length | About 1.8 to 2 metres, including the tail |
| Mass | Roughly 7 to 15 kilograms, depending on the estimate |
Velociraptor belonged to the dromaeosaurids, a family of feathered theropod dinosaurs. This family is often called the raptors. It was closely related to Deinonychus, but the two were separate animals from different places and times.
The name Velociraptor means “swift thief” or “quick plunderer”. The first recognised specimen was discovered in Mongolia in 1923 during an American Museum of Natural History expedition. Scientists named Velociraptor mongoliensis in 1924. A second species, Velociraptor osmolskae, was later named from fossils in China.
Velociraptor lived in the Late Cretaceous, about 74 to 70 million years ago. The best fossils of V. mongoliensis come from the Gobi Desert of Mongolia, particularly rocks of the Djadokhta Formation.
This landscape was dry and sandy, with dunes, temporary streams and areas of scrubby vegetation. Sudden sand collapses and storms may have buried animals quickly, helping to preserve detailed skeletons. Velociraptor shared the region with Protoceratops, small mammals, lizards and other dinosaurs.
Velociraptor was about 1.8 to 2 metres long, but much of that length came from its tail. It stood below an adult person’s waist and probably weighed around 7 to 15 kilograms. The range shows that body mass cannot be read directly from fossil bones.
Long hind legs and a light body suggest an agile animal. Its stiffened tail helped with balance while turning. Each foot had an enlarged curved claw on the second toe. The claw was held above the ground during normal walking, keeping its sharp point away from wear.
Its arms carried long feathers. In 2007, researchers reported quill knobs on an arm bone. These small bumps anchored large feathers in a pattern similar to that seen in living birds. Its body and forelimb proportions were not suitable for powered flight.
Velociraptor was a carnivore with sharp, serrated teeth. It probably ate animals it could overpower, including small reptiles, mammals and young dinosaurs. It may also have taken pieces from carcasses.
The famous Fighting Dinosaurs fossil preserves a Velociraptor locked with a Protoceratops. The Velociraptor has one foot near the plant eater’s throat while the Protoceratops holds its opponent’s arm in its beak. The fossil records real behaviour, but it cannot show how the struggle began or which animal would have won.
The curved foot claw may have helped grip and pin prey while the jaws did the feeding. This idea fits comparisons with living birds of prey, although scientists continue to test how much force the claw could withstand.
Several good skeletons reveal the shape of the skull, hands, feet and tail. The Fighting Dinosaurs specimen gives rare evidence of an interaction between two animals. Quill knobs provide direct evidence of feathers even though the feathers themselves were not preserved.
Trackways from related raptors show that the enlarged second toe was held above the ground. Fossils found in groups have sometimes been used to suggest pack hunting, but a group can form around water, food or a sudden burial event. No Velociraptor fossil proves organised packs.
Researchers debate exactly how the sickle claw was used. Gripping or pinning prey is a strong idea, while the older image of slicing open a large animal is less well supported. The functions of its arm feathers are also uncertain. They may have helped with display, balance, sheltering eggs or controlling prey.
There is no way to measure Velociraptor intelligence directly. Braincase studies can compare general brain proportions, but claims that it planned like a human or opened doors belong to fiction.
Velociraptor was not human sized. The animals in the films were closer in size to Deinonychus. Real Velociraptor had feathers rather than a completely scaly covering. There is no firm evidence that it hunted in organised packs or could solve human style problems. Its raised foot claw did not tap along the ground, and scientists do not know that it sliced open large prey. Velociraptor also lived in the Late Cretaceous, not the Jurassic.
The name means “swift thief” or “quick plunderer”.
It lived about 74 to 70 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous.
The best known fossils come from the Gobi Desert of Mongolia.
It was about 1.8 to 2 metres long and probably weighed roughly 7 to 15 kilograms.
Yes. Quill knobs on a fossil arm bone show where long feathers were attached.
No. Its feathered arms were too small to provide powered flight.
It was probably used to grip or pin prey, but its precise function remains debated.
There is no firm fossil evidence for organised pack hunting by Velociraptor.
