Kurikiraptor

Kurikiraptor, also known as Kurikisaurus, was a species of dinosaur and one of the earliest discovered species of both the Dromaeosauridae family and the Deinonychosauria clade. It is named for Lake Kurik, in Faneria. Its remains can be found across northern Levantia in large numbers, as it appears to have been a very successful species. It is one of two members of the Homipullus genus, the other being Caedoraptor; while it is similar in build to the more populous species of the Serraspinus genus, it is believed to share an undiscovered common ancestor with Caedoraptor.

Kurikiraptor Temporal range: Early Cretaceous 140–85 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
K. antirrhopus, Cionhaen Museum of Paleontology
Scientific classification
Type species
†Homipullus antirrhopus
Other Homipullus species
†Homipullus caedus (Caedoraptor)

Description

Kurikiraptor fossils are occasionally found under or in bogs and silty strata, with several examples being known of as far back as 1683, being considered 'dragon bones' and dismissed prior to renewed interest in fossils in the 1800s. Due to the locations of most prevalent Kurikiraptor finds, it is believed that they lived primarily in wetlands or along coastal regions, with a diet high in fish supplemented by scavenging. Kirikiraptor appears to have lived in packs, but did so for the purpose of raising young, as the four-foot dinosaurs were likely prey items for larger animals including Homipullus caedus. They are known to have practiced cannibalism on some occasions, namely of their own young.