Fun Velocisaurus Facts For Kids

Velocisaurus belonged to the kingdom Animalia, phylum Chordata, clade Theropoda, family Noasauridae, subfamily Noasaurine, and the genus Velocisaurus. The scientist Bonaparte earlier put Velocisaurus in its own family called Velocisauridae. But later after the study by Sebastian Apesteguia and Fernando Novas in the year, 2003 gave the conclusion that Velocisaurus was somewhat closely related to a dinosaur called Masiakasaurus. It is believed that these two different dinosaurs might form the main subfamily called Velocisaurinae. The name of this species was derived from the Latin word ‘Velox' which means ‘swift’. It was taken to show the fact that its foot and hind legs had adaptations that helped it become a good runner and save itself from big theropoda dinosaurs. Because of the exceptional feet of Velocisaurus, it got a specific name which means ‘unique'. It was first described by the paleontologist Jose Bonaparte in the year 1991 and was found in Argentina.

You can get more insight about Pawpawsaurus and Palaeoscincus here.

How do you pronounce 'Velocisaurus'?

This small dinosaur of genus Velocisaurus is easy to pronounce as 'Ve-los-e-sore-us'. It was an omnivorous theropod. This characteristic was very commonly seen in other theropod bird species.

What type of dinosaur was a Velocisaurus?

Velocisaurus was a therapod with a length of about 4.9 ft (1.5 m)and genus Velocisaurus. It was a fast-running dinosaur and was also called a 'swift lizard'. The holotype fossil or specimen remains were found in Argentina, South America, and through its foot and part of the leg is found it seems it is made to run faster. This theropod was likely to eat lizards, small mammals.

In which geological period did the Velocisaurus roam the earth?

The Velocisaurus is a dinosaur from the Cretaceous period of the period Santonian and its remains were found in Patagonia‭ ‬-‭ ‬Bajo de la Carpa formation. They existed about 86.3-83.6 million years ago.

When did the Velocisaurus become extinct?

The theropod Velocisaurus became extinct about 83.6 million years ago.

Where did Velocisaurus live?

The dinosaurs were very fast runners also called 'swift lizards' who lived in the forest areas of Patagonia‭ ‬-‭ ‬Bajo de la Carpa formation as their remains were found there and of genus Velocisaurus.

What was Velocisaurus' habitat?

Velocisaurus unicus lived in terrestrial habitats like a forest near the water. Being in the period of Abelisauroidea, a large-sized dinosaur, this smaller Noasauridae doesn't have a chance to live unless it runs with its fast running legs. It is not clear whether it lived in packs or alone but because of its small size, they might be used to form groups.

Who did Velocisaurus live with?

According to the remains found in Patagonia‭ ‬-‭ ‬Bajo de la Carpa formation they live with other dinosaurs and mammals like Abelisaurids, Velocisaurus raptor, Velocisaurus rex.

How long did a Velocisaurus live?

It is believed from the specimen that Velocisaurus was from the Cretaceous period of the period Santonian as per the holotype provided in research by scientists and the fossil found.

How did they reproduce?

Not much information was available on how Velocisaurus reproduced. It was first described by the paleontologist Jose Bonaparte

What did Velocisaurus look like?

This small theropoda dinosaur was around 4.9 ft (1.5 m) in length and had a tibia of 5.5 in (14 cm) length. This is called the smallest noasaurid. Their foot was unique in the way that the middle metatarsal was the main element that was used to bear weight. The scientist Bonaparte explained this, it was like an adaptation to support the running lifestyle of this dinosaur. Bonaparte concluded that Velocisaurus was an omnivore because of the presence of the sole claw and a straight fourth toe.

How many bones did a Velocisaurus have?

The Velocisaurus had 12 bones in its whole structure with its very stout and bowed thighs bones were strong as they helped to support a good running lifestyle.

How did they communicate?

This dinosaur from the Cretaceous period of the period Santonian from Argentina Velocisaurus unicus as per the data found it did communicate by beeps sounds. It lived with Abelisauroidea and didn't have any good chance to live unless it runs fast.

How big was the Velocisaurus?

Velocisaurus unicus was a very small dinosaur compared to others at its time with a length of only 4.9 ft (1.5 m) compared to Abelisaurus, which is six times larger at 6.6 ft (2 m).

How fast could a Velocisaurus move?

Velocisaurus could move very fast with its feet which bore the weight of legs and were strong. The study by Sebastian Apesteguia and Fernando Novas in the year, 2003 gave the conclusion that Velocisaurus was somewhat closely related to a dinosaur called Masiakasaurus.

How much did a Velocisaurus weigh?

The weight of this dinosaur is not known.

What were the male and female names of the species?

There are no specific data of names for the male and the female of this species of dinosaur of the Cretaceous period from Argentina. It used to live with Abelisauroidea.

What would you call a baby Velocisaurus?

The baby of this dinosaur does not have any particular name to get called by. They were called 'baby Velocisaurus '.

What did they eat?

Velocisaurus unicus was an omnivorous species of theropod dinosaurs and ate lizards, insects, small mammals.

How aggressive were they?

Not much is found in the research about the aggression of this noasaurid dinosaur. The study by Sebastian Apesteguia and Fernando Novas in the year, 2003 gave the conclusion that Velocisaurus was somewhat closely related to a dinosaur called Masiakasaurus.

Did you know...

This dinosaur from the Cretaceous period of the period Santonian from Argentina of the family Noasauridae was the smallest Noasaurid.

How did Velocisaurus get its name?

It was in the year 1991 that this theropod dinosaur was described by José Bonaparte as ''Velocisaurus unicus''. The name of this species was derived from the Latin word ‘Velox which means ‘swift’. It was given to highlight the unique adaptations of its feet and hind legs which gave them the advantage to have a good running lifestyle.

How strong were their teeth?

This dinosaur of the Cretaceous period from Argentina of the family Noasauridae does not have any specific content available just about its teeth. But because they were omnivorous animals, they had strong teeth as they used to tear the flesh of small mammals to eat them later.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly dinosaur facts for everyone to discover! For more relatable content, check out these Niobrarasaurus facts and Crichtonsaurus facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable Velocisaurus dinosaur coloring pages.

*The first image is an illustration by FunkMonk (Michael B. H.).

*The second image is an illustration by Conty.