Dromaeosaurus
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Name Meaning | “running lizard” |
| Location | Canada (Alberta), United States (?) |
| Time Period | c. 76 - 70 million years ago (Late Cretaceous) |
| Length | 6 ft (2 m) |
| Weight | 35 lb (16 kg) |
| Locomotion | Biped |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Described | 1922 (Matthew & Brown) |
| Geological Formation(s) | Dinosaur Park, Horseshoe Canyon (?), Prince Creek (?), Hell Creek (?), Lance (?), etc. |
| Valid Species | Dromaeosaurus albertensis (type) |
Phylogeny: Dinosauria > Saurischia > Theropoda > Neotheropoda > Tetanurae > Avetheropoda > Coelurosauria > Maniraptora > Pennaraptora > Paraves > Dromaeosauridae > Eudromaeosauria > Dromaeosaurinae
Overview: Dromaeosaurus is the namesake of the Dromaeosauridae – the famous “raptor” family of dinosaurs. One would expect the namesake of such a family to be a well understood genus, but Dromaeosaurus is known from much fewer fossils than its more famous relatives like Deinonychus, Velociraptor or Utahraptor. The first of these limited fossils were described in 1922, having been unearthed by the American paleontologist Barnum Brown, in what is now Alberta, Canada. These fossils were found within the Dinosaur Park Formation, meaning that particular specimen would’ve lived about seventy-six million years ago. Some isolated fossils and teeth from other formations like the Horseshoe Canyon and Hell Creek have also been referred to Dromaeosaurus, extending its range towards the end of the Cretaceous, but there is some doubt over if they really belong to it. This animal lived in the shadow of larger predators like Daspletosaurus and Gorgosaurus.
Growing to be about two or so meters long, Dromaeosaurus would’ve been about the same length as Velociraptor, but it had a somewhat different appearance. Dromaeosaurus seems to have been somewhat bulkier and its skull was far more robust, with deeper jaws and larger teeth. While both of these dinosaurs possessed enlarged “killing claws” on the second toe of each foot, it appears that Dromaeosaurus relied more heavily on its jaws than the slender-snouted Velociraptor. Both of these dinosaurs are the namesakes of their respective dromaeosaurid subfamilies – Velociraptor for the Velociraptorinae and Dromaeosaurus for the Dromaeosaurinae. Dromaeosaurines tended to be more heavily built and had stronger jaws. The dromaeosaurids as a whole are known to have been feathered based on direct fossil evidence. While unable to fly, Dromaeosaurus could’ve used its plumage to help insulate clutches of eggs, for visual display or to give it a boost when running.