Pyroraptor
Encyclopedia
Pyroraptor is a genus
of dromaeosaurid
dinosaur
from the late Cretaceous
Period of France
. It is known from a single specimen. It was found in 1992 in the south of France
, in Provence
, and is known only from a few bones. It was named Pyroraptor olympius by Allain and Taquet in 2000. The name means "Olympic
fire thief", because its remains were discovered after a forest fire. The type specimen consists of the distinctive foot claws, as well as fossilized teeth, arm and vertebrae. It lived during the late Campanian
and early Maastrichtian
faunal stage
s of the Late Cretaceous
, approximately 70.6 million years ago.
Pyroraptor was a dromaeosaurid, a small, bird-like predatory theropod that possessed enlarged curved claws on the second toe of each foot. In Pyroraptor, these claws were 6.5 centimeters (2.5 in) long. As in other dromaeosaurids, these claws might have been used as weapons or as climbing aids. As a dromaeosaurid, Pyroraptor likely had well-developed forelimbs with curved claws, and probably balanced the body with a long, thin tail. Scientists speculate that Pyroraptor was covered in feathers, as many of its relatives, like Microraptor
and Sinornithosaurus
, were feathered.
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of dromaeosaurid
Dromaeosauridae
Dromaeosauridae is a family of bird-like theropod dinosaurs. They were small- to medium-sized feathered carnivores that flourished in the Cretaceous Period. The name Dromaeosauridae means 'running lizards', from Greek dromeus meaning 'runner' and sauros meaning 'lizard'...
dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
from the late Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
Period of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. It is known from a single specimen. It was found in 1992 in the south of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, in Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
, and is known only from a few bones. It was named Pyroraptor olympius by Allain and Taquet in 2000. The name means "Olympic
Mount Olympus
Mount Olympus is the highest mountain in Greece, located on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia, about 100 kilometres away from Thessaloniki, Greece's second largest city. Mount Olympus has 52 peaks. The highest peak Mytikas, meaning "nose", rises to 2,917 metres...
fire thief", because its remains were discovered after a forest fire. The type specimen consists of the distinctive foot claws, as well as fossilized teeth, arm and vertebrae. It lived during the late Campanian
Campanian
The Campanian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, the fifth of six ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch . The Campanian spans the time from 83.5 ± 0.7 Ma to 70.6 ± 0.6 Ma ...
and early Maastrichtian
Maastrichtian
The Maastrichtian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, the latest age or upper stage of the Late Cretaceous epoch or Upper Cretaceous series, the Cretaceous period or system, and of the Mesozoic era or erathem. It spanned from 70.6 ± 0.6 Ma to 65.5 ± 0.3 Ma...
faunal stage
Faunal stage
In chronostratigraphy, a stage is a succession of rock strata laid down in a single age on the geologic timescale, which usually represents millions of years of deposition. A given stage of rock and the corresponding age of time will by convention have the same name, and the same boundaries.Rock...
s of the Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous
The Late Cretaceous is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous period is divided in the geologic timescale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous series...
, approximately 70.6 million years ago.
Description
Microraptor
Microraptor is a genus of small, four-winged dromaeosaurid dinosaurs. Numerous well-preserved fossil specimens have been recovered from Liaoning, China...
and Sinornithosaurus
Sinornithosaurus
Sinornithosaurus is a genus of feathered dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the early Cretaceous Period of the Yixian Formation in what is now China. It was the fifth non–avian feathered dinosaur genus discovered by 1999...
, were feathered.
In Popular Culture
A Pyroraptor named "Pod" was featured in episode two or the Discovery Channel series Dinosaur PlanetDinosaur Planet
Dinosaur Planet may refer to:* Dinosaur Planet , a science fiction novel by Anne McCaffrey* Dinosaur Planet, a science fiction novel by Stephen Leigh, book 1 of 6 in his Dinosaur World series...
.
External links
- Pyroraptor official site, in FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
- Pyroraptor computer animation, by Meteor Studios for Discovery ChannelDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
- Pyroraptor computer animation stills by Meteor Studios for Discovery Channel