Just in time for Thanksgiving

November 8, 2015 1:16 PM

Dakotaraptor ruled Hell Creek Formation as lethal predator The bumps serve as reinforcement points for long wing feathers, marking the first concrete evidence that large raptors had wings. "It really would have made this like a turkey from hell," he said.
posted by Michele in California (15 comments total)

"Dakotaraptor coexisted with all of our favorites from our childhoods," DePalma said. "We had no idea that such a cool and lethal creature existed right alongside them."

Please please please let this be viral marketing to build enthusiasm for a surpise new character in the Peanuts movie.
posted by compartment at 1:25 PM on November 8, 2015 [3 favorites]

the implacable rage of chickens is due to a deep species memory of when they where big and everything else was small.
posted by The Whelk at 1:26 PM on November 8, 2015 [22 favorites]

"It really would have made this like a turkey from hell," he said.

The turkeys are giving you a hellish side-eye, Mr. Paleontologist.

Although they might let you go since it kind of was a turkey from Hell Creek.
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:27 PM on November 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

Cool. But dagnabbit! I narrowly missed my chance to discover Dakotaraptor, when I went on a dinosaur-hunting trip in Hell Creek led by Jack Horner a number of years ago. But it pretty much rained the whole time, so we couldn't go into the deep canyons where he was excavating a T. Rex at the time; instead, we went to a safe hilltop where I found a small turtle vertebrate, or something like that. Pathetic. Could have been Dakotaraptor. Could have been. Would have liked that.

"Hell Creek is very hard to give up its secrets," said Larson

Damn straight.
posted by brambleboy at 1:32 PM on November 8, 2015 [4 favorites]

This is the sort of news that makes me a giddy 8 year old for the rest of the day. Thank you for the link!
posted by Joey Michaels at 1:39 PM on November 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

I'll never get used to feathered dinosaurs. I'm looking at this thing and saying, nope, nope, nope ...
posted by Modest House at 1:49 PM on November 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

I've wondered for a while whether predatory dinosaurs could have used their arm/wing feathers as air anchors, to let them slow down or change direction rapidly. Any paleontologists want to weigh in?
posted by Joe in Australia at 1:59 PM on November 8, 2015 [1 favorite]

I've wondered for a while whether predatory dinosaurs could have used their arm/wing feathers as air anchors, to let them slow down or change direction rapidly . . . or to look fabulous.
posted by yesster at 2:11 PM on November 8, 2015 [5 favorites]

"It really would have made this like a turkey from hell,"

From now on, I'm going to substitute "dakotaraptor" every time I see another story about someone being chased, surrounded, or attacked by an angry turkey in Brookline.

Remember: Don't let the dakotaraptors intimidate you.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 3:57 PM on November 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

I have a couple of buddies who are from the Dakotas and the day this find was announced they both tracked me down and said, "Did you hear?!" I guess I talk about Dinosaurs a lot.
posted by brundlefly at 3:57 PM on November 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

I dunno, man. Look at an ostrich or cassowary. Scale that up just a little and you have a nightmare, flocking, omnivore.

These things already eat whatever mammals they can toss head first into their gizzard to be ground up by stones.

Just give them teeth and another 20kg and we are basically fucked.
posted by clvrmnky at 4:25 PM on November 8, 2015 [4 favorites]

You know, everyone talks about climate change as if the weather is the thing we have to fear... I'm more afraid of what will happen if the reptiles have a warmer enrollment and can grow larger. Because of dinosaurs like this.

That is one scary overgrown turkey
posted by thebotanyofsouls at 5:20 PM on November 8, 2015

Don't worry, if that happens, humans will be long dead!
posted by agregoli at 6:30 PM on November 8, 2015

I like this picture.
posted by bukvich at 8:19 PM on November 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

bukvich: I like that picture too because I like to imagine the human is completely unaware of the carnivorous horror to his left that is regarding him dispassionately.
posted by Joey Michaels at 1:10 AM on November 9, 2015 [1 favorite]