Talk:Velociraptor

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	Velociraptor is a featured article; it (or a previous version of it) has been identified as one of the best articles produced by the Wikipedia community. If you can update or improve it, please do.
	This article appeared on Wikipedia's Main Page as Today's featured article on July 12, 2006.
Article Milestones Date Process Result June 29, 2006 Featured article candidate Promoted Current Status: Featured article

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Archives:

Archive 1 (up to October 2006):

Contents 1 The most fossils 2 Hartman skeletal 3 Dogma comment 4 Arm structure 5 Raptor

[edit] The most fossils

This article states that velociraptor has the most fossils of any Dromaeosaurid. But see Deinonychus. Totnesmartin 02:10, 5 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Hartman skeletal

I know some people had objected to replacing the current skeletal diagram (which is ok, but has some innacuracies) with this one. I think the problem was the inclusion of text. Any thoughts now that the article is featured?Dinoguy2 03:33, 12 December 2006 (UTC)

I see no problems whatsoever. :o) Could the same image, for which we should be very grateful, possibly be put on WikiCommons?--MWAK 14:20, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Dogma comment

Added to the article and reverted- While there is, as yet, no fossil evidence to confirm that Velociraptor had feathers, there is little reason to suspect it of being an exception, apart from avoiding scientific dogma, as some claim. I just want to share how surreal it is as somebody who grew up reading Bakker and Paul to find the concept of feathered dinosaurs being called "dogma" ;) Dinoguy2 06:30, 7 January 2007 (UTC)

Heh. I reverted because it was a rather strange comment to stick in Velociraptor, of all places. Firsfron of Ronchester 06:35, 7 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Arm structure

I'm curious as to the arm structure of Velociraptor (and other maniraptorans) with semi-lunate carpal, the lack of pronation of the wrist and limited range of movement. I find it hard to see what advantages this would confer in terms of grabbing or holding prey. Could the limited range of arm movement imply secondary flightlessness in dromaeosaurids such as Velociraptor? (One of the images of Velociraptor, with the stubby wing-like appendages, certainly seems to suggest so). I've seen the mention of secondary flightlessness in this article, but without connection to the arm. 209.244.31.53 03:11, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

Paul of course uses this as an argument. Most paleontologists believe in the predatory function of these adaptations. The "wing"folding mechanism would of course in any case be handy to protect the feathers and the lack of pronation seems to be very old. All this has little to do with Velociraptor per se though.--MWAK 13:31, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Raptor

I thought "Raptor" meant 'Bird of Prey', or is the meaning different in Latin? CJDickinson-Leeds, 18:40, 26/02/07—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 86.138.15.206 (talk) 18:37, 26 February 2007 (UTC).

Yes, in Latin it simply means "robber". No special association with birds was present.--MWAK 07:23, 27 February 2007 (UTC)