Velociraptor's feathery dinosaur ancestor discovered
- Published
Dr Steve Brusatte talks about the discovery of the winged dinosaur fossil
Scientists have discovered a new feathery dinosaur in China, which they believe was an ancestor of the Velociraptor.
The 125 million year old fossil, called Zhenyuanlong, is almost perfectly preserved and covered in feathers.
Experts believe it shows that lots more dinosaurs would have looked like "big, fluffy killer birds".
An artist's impression of Zhenyuanlong shows how strange this feathered beast may have looked
Lead researcher Dr Steve Brusatte said the discovery would blow some people's minds.
Mind blowing
He added that although Zhenyuanlong had wings, it's large body might have meant it was too heavy to fly.
Dr Steve said: "It will blow some people's minds to realise that those dinosaurs in the movies would have been even weirder, and I think even scarier - like big fluffy birds from hell."
The dinosaur has been named Zhenyuanlong, meaning "Zhenyuan's dragon", in honour of the man who gave the fossil to the museum.
- Published11 June 2015
- Published9 April 2015
- Published20 March 2014
