Velociraptor mongoliensis

Velociraptor Temporal range: Late Cretaceous, 75–71 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
Mounted V. mongoliensis cast at Wyoming Dinosaur Center
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Clade:	Dinosauria
Order:	Saurischia
Suborder:	Theropoda
Family:	†Dromaeosauridae
Subfamily:	†Velociraptorinae
Genus:	†Velociraptor Osborn, 1924
Type species
†Velociraptor mongoliensis Osborn, 1924
Species
†V. mongoliensis Osborn, 1924 †V. osmolskae Godefroit et al., 2008

Velociraptor (/vᵻˈlɒsᵻræptər/; meaning "swift seizer" in Latin) is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived approximately 75 to 71 million years ago during the later part of the Cretaceous Period. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in the past. The type species is V. mongoliensis; fossils of this species have been discovered in Mongolia. A second species, V. osmolskae, was named in 2008 for skull material from Inner Mongolia, China.

Smaller than other dromaeosaurids like Deinonychus and Achillobator, Velociraptor nevertheless shared many of the same anatomical features. It was a bipedal, feathered carnivore with a long tail and an enlarged sickle-shaped claw on each hindfoot, which is thought to have been used to tackle prey. Velociraptor can be distinguished from other dromaeosaurids by its long and low skull, with an upturned snout.