New Utahraptor Skeletal Drawing by Scott Hartman!

[suspsy]

Take a good look at this beefy bad boy, CollectA and Safari!

http://www.skeletaldrawing.com/home/at-long-last-utahraptor

[Loon]

That's really great; it's so strange seeing such a stocky dromaeosaur , I kinda dig it. I can't wait for a company like Safari to make a figure based on this.

[The Atroxious]

Holy...this is not what I expected to see when I logged on today. I'd been waiting for this for years, ever since Hartman told people that the old skeletal was incorrect. I'm kind of stunned right now.

Utahraptor is a really nice looking animal. I've known about the weird jaw for a while, but the tiny hands and flexible tail are interesting. It looks a lot more basal than the other dromaeosaurines I'm familiar with. I wonder if/how these new discoveries will affect its placement on the dromaeosaur tree.

[suspsy]

It makes wonder whether Dakotaraptor was beefy like Utahraptor or more gracile like Austroraptor.

[Minmiminime]

The eyes would have been enormous! Potentially, a very versatile and dominant predator indeed. Looking at this skeletal sends shudders down my spine

[CrypticPrism]

I'm definitely gonna draw this guy.

[Faelrin]

I like this one even more now. Really does seem like an oddball when compared to its relatives too with how stocky it is. I have to wonder what it would have been like in the flesh (and feathers).

[GasmaskMax]

Very plump, bird like look on that thing. I can just see it strutting around like an overfed rooster 

[Sim]

It's great to finally see the new Utahraptor skeletal!  I'm very surprised by how Utahraptor looks!

Take a good look at this beefy bad boy, CollectA and Safari!

http://www.skeletaldrawing.com/home/at-long-last-utahraptor

I'm still waiting for a great modern Deinonychus figure!

It makes wonder whether Dakotaraptor was beefy like Utahraptor or more gracilel like Austroraptor.

Dakotaraptor wasn't beefy like Utahraptor.  In the paper that names Dakotaraptor, there's a striking comparison between the legs of Dakotaraptor and Utahraptor that shows Dakotaraptor has longer and much thinner leg bones than Utahraptor.

Another interesting difference between Dakotaraptor and Utahraptor is that Dakotaraptor, like many dromaeosaurids, has bony rods in its tail.  Utahraptor doesn't have them though, as Scott Hartman mentioned here: link  I'm very surprised it doesn't have the bony rods!  Even Achillobator which appears to be built similar to Utahraptor (comparison below) has the bony tail rods.  The differences between each of the four giant dromaeosaurids (Utahraptor, Austroraptor, Achillobator and Dakotaraptor) are very interesting!  I imagine they reflect their different ecologies. 

Utahraptor
  (image source)

Achillobator
  (image source)

[suspsy]

Interesting stuff.

The relatively short, flexible tail really is strange given that Achillobator and Dakotaraptor apparently had stiff rod tails. I wonder if any other dromaesaurs possessed such a feature.

[CrypticPrism]

What if it was a burrow raider? Or maybe it was a burrowER? Like a ground sloth?

[stargatedalek]

What if it was a burrow raider? Or maybe it was a burrowER? Like a ground sloth?

This would make a lot of sense. The body isn't just robust, it's also compact, and it explains why the tail would be both more mobile and shorter.

[CrypticPrism]

It also gives me an excuse to draw a raptor in a hole!

[suspsy]

How would it be a burrower? What would be the advantage of that?

[stargatedalek]

How would it be a burrower? What would be the advantage of that?

Lack of competition for nesting space, safer from predators, and protection from the elements. Once you're this large running and tree climbing become far less appealing methods of defense, but I doubt Utahraptor had the bulk needed to deter all would be predators.

It definitely has the legs and proportions of a burrower, compare to puffins or burrowing owls (although the latter is lithe among its relations).

I'm not saying it's likely given how little we know, but it does fit the skeleton for now.

[CrypticPrism]

How would it be a burrower? What would be the advantage of that?

Why do rabbits make holes to live in? Why do foxes? Badgers?

[suspsy]

Rabbits, foxes, and badgers are all much smaller than a Utahraptor. They have also evolved forelimbs and claws that can cope with digging. Utahraptor shows no such adaptation.

[stargatedalek]

Rabbits, foxes, and badgers are all much smaller than a Utahraptor. They have also evolved forelimbs and claws that can cope with digging. Utahraptor shows no such adaptation.

Puffins dig burrows that can stretch tens of meters into the ground using only their feet (not even their claws per-se, the actual toes). Utahraptor has very thick sturdy legs and large feet, it wouldn't need digging forelimbs.

[CrypticPrism]

A robust body, and a flexible tail that none of its family have except for it seems pretty specialized for me. Also, ground sloths made burrows. They're much bigger than a utahraptor.

[suspsy]

Rabbits, foxes, and badgers are all much smaller than a Utahraptor. They have also evolved forelimbs and claws that can cope with digging. Utahraptor shows no such adaptation.

Puffins dig burrows that can stretch tens of meters into the ground using only their feet (not even their claws per-se, the actual toes). Utahraptor has very thick sturdy legs and large feet, it wouldn't need digging forelimbs.

I'm still not seeing any real argument for Utahraptor being a burrower.