Feather Quill Knobs in the Dinosaur Velociraptor

Some nonavian theropod dinosaurs were at least partially covered in feathers or filamentous protofeathers. However, a complete understanding of feather distribution among theropod dinosaurs is limited because feathers are typically preserved only in lagerstatten like that of Solnhofen, Germany or Li...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2007-09, Vol.317 (5845), p.1721-1721
Main Authors: Turner, Alan H, Makovicky, Peter J, Norell, Mark A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Birds
Bones
Brevia
China
Cladding
Constraining
Deposition
Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs - anatomy & histology
Evolution
Evolutionary biology
Feathers
Fossils
Knobs
Ligaments
Paleontology
Papillae
Quill pens
Sedimentation & deposition
Ulna
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Summary:Some nonavian theropod dinosaurs were at least partially covered in feathers or filamentous protofeathers. However, a complete understanding of feather distribution among theropod dinosaurs is limited because feathers are typically preserved only in lagerstatten like that of Solnhofen, Germany or Liaoning, China. Such deposits possess clear taphonomic biases toward small-bodied animals, limiting our knowledge regarding feather presence in larger members of feathered clades. We present direct evidence of feathers in Velociraptor mongoliensis based on the presence of quill knobs on the posterior forearm. This report of secondaries in a larger-bodied, derived, and clearly flightless member of a nonavian theropod clade represented by feathered relatives is a substantial contribution to our knowledge of the evolution of feathers.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203
DOI:10.1126/science.1145076