ZAP’S FACTS!
FEATHERED

The real Velociraptor was covered in feathers.

We even found the quill knobs on its arm bone - proof of full wing feathers.

2 min read
The real Velociraptor was covered in feathers.
THE FULL STORY

In the 1990s, every kid pictured Velociraptor as smooth and scaly. By 2007, that picture was outdated. Paleontologists studying a Velociraptor arm bone noticed small, regular bumps along it - and recognized them instantly. Those bumps are “quill knobs,” the same anchors that birds use today to hold their wing feathers firmly in place.

Velociraptor had wing feathers. Real, structured wing feathers. It couldn’t fly - its wings were too short and its body too big - but its arms looked basically like the wings of a turkey or a chicken.

What were they for, if not flying? The leading theories: showing off to attract mates (the way peacocks use their feathers), running fast and balancing while turning, sheltering eggs in the nest like brooding hens, or all of the above. Pretty different from the movies.

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