Page 50 - Everything You Know About Dinosaurs is Wrong
P. 50
So animals like XIXIASAURUS and the long-legged HESPERORNITHOIDES, as well as dromaeosaurs like BUITRERAPTOR and the enormous UTAHRAPTOR, also had large, sickle-shaped claws.
But did they really use these weapons to slash and cut open their prey?
DIno fact!
All dinosaurs walked on their toes. In fact, it’s actually quite weird that humans don’t, and it’s quite unusual for our ankles to touch the floor.
Raptors slashed their prey
Let’s start off on the right foot – or claw! ‘Raptors’ are modern-day birds.
Birds of prey, from snowy owls to harpy eagles and gyrfalcons, have been called 'raptors' by people since the early nineteenth century. It’s only been since the late twentieth century that people have been calling dromaeosaurid dinosaurs ‘raptors’, using the end part of their long scientific names (like VELOCIRAPTOR).
One of the most famous parts of these dinosaurs is their terrifying toe.
Most people think it was only dromaeosaurids like VELOCIRAPTOR that stalked prey with their toe held upright, protecting a long, sickle-shaped blade-like claw. But a host of early paravians (the group of animals that includes birds and their dinosaur relatives) also featured this famous toe.
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