Deinonychus

Type Species: Deinonychus antirrhopus
Classification: Dinosauria-Saurischia-Theropoda-Tetanurae-Avetheropoda-Coelurosauria-Maniraptora-Paraves-Dromaeosauridae
Time Period: early Cretaceous
Location: North America
Diet: Carnivore

Deinonychus belongs to the dromaeosaurids, a sub-group of theropods whose name means "running lizards." These "raptors" (a slang term popularized by the movie Jurassic Park) were fast, agile, medium-sized theropods who were (likely) covered in feathers and (probably) hunted in packs. Deinonychus was one of the first dromaeosaurs discovered. They were powerful, bristling with muscles. A large head rested upon their shoulders, and their jaws, though relatively weak, made up for lack of strength with gruesome teeth angled towards the back of the mouth. These backward-facing teeth would've helped Deinonychus to hold struggling prey and to rip flesh off bone. Its long arms dangled down, each with a three-fingered hand; each digit ended in a bloodcurdling claw. These fingers were flexible, hinting that they were probably used as a main weapon of attack. The femur (thigh bone) was smaller than the tibia and fibula (the shin bones), which was a common feature among dromaeosaurs; this set-up enabled Deinonychus to run fast. The hind legs were tridactyl, meaning that they walked on only three toes.

One of Deinonychus' most memorable features is the slashing claw on each foot. These claws were sickly and curved in an arch; the claw would be held up off the ground when the dinosaur was running. This claw could be flicked easily, tearing into flesh and then ripping back. A good swipe of this claw could disembowel prey. Although media portrays the "killer claw" as the main weapon in the dromaeosaur arsenal, it's likelier that the claws helped Deinonychus to latch onto its prey while attacking with its razor-sharp hand claws. Thin rods of bone ran along the vertebrae of the tail, holding it stiff off the ground. Where the tail connected to the body, however, it was flexible, allowing it to sway up, down, left, or right; this would help balance the animal during vicious assaults.

Deinonychus was probably a pack hunter; several individuals coordinated attacks to take down large prey. An important discovery (depicted below) was the remains of several Deinonychus and a single Tenontosaurus tangled together in the grip of a desperate battle. This remarkable find is a powerful piece of evidence stacked in favor of Deinonychus hunting in packs. 

Recent portrayals of Deinonychus show it covered in feathers. While there's no evidence that Deinonychus in particular had feathers, the proven existence of other feathered dromaeosaurs (such as Velociraptor) implies that dromaeosaurs were probably feather-covered. Many paleontologists speculate that most theropods, including Tyrannosaurus, had feathers at some stage in their lives. This lends credence to the idea that modern-day birds are descended from theropod dinosaurs.

#tantricfeathers