First Fossil Evidence That Velociraptors Hunted in Packs

Ponca City, We Love You writes "The New Scientist reports that palaeontologists have excavated a fossil trackway in Shandong Province in China 100 to 120 million years old that contains footprints left by six Dromeosaurs, the more formal name for raptors, showing evidence of group behavior. Up until now, the popular stereotype from Jurassic Park of raptors hunting in packs has had no fossil evidence to back it up. The paths of the six 90 kilo raptors do not overlap where the animals walked alongside a river or stream. '"The odds of these tracks being made by different individuals that just happen to be moving in the same direction, without their tracks stepping on one another, are small," said Jerry D. Harris, director of paleontology at Dixie State College. "Groups that do that usually have relatively sophisticated behavior, and they're relatively intelligent," Harris added. "By moving together in groups, it's entirely possible that they hunted in groups."'"

Comments

Re:Let's find out

[Mammoth81]

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Obese, check.
Slovenly, check.
IT guy, check.

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Re:Fossil evidence?

[davidsyes]

I say they were HOBBITS. The tracks are their HOBBITRAILS... these were the precursors to the hunter-killer packs. These had highly-modifiable feet.

More at:

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2007-09/21/content_6124873.htm

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/10/1027_041027_homo_floresiensis.html

(wink, wink)