Open Paleo

Dromaeosaurus

Matthew & Brown, 1922 DROH-mee-o-SAWR-us /ˌdroʊmiəˈsɔːrəs, -mi.oʊ-/

From Greek dromaios, 'running/swift', + Greek sauros, 'lizard'; means 'running lizard', referring to its presumed speed and agility

83.6–72.2 million years ago Campanian, Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous stages

Dromaeosaurus is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur that lived during the Late Cretaceous period (middle to late Campanian and Maastrichtian), sometime between 80 and 69 million years ago, in the Canadian province of Alberta and the western United States. The type species is Dromaeosaurus albertensis, which was described by William Diller Matthew and Barnum Brown in 1922. Its fossils were unearthed in the Hell Creek Formation, Horseshoe Canyon Formation and Dinosaur Park Formation. Teeth attributed to this genus have been found in the Prince Creek Formation. Dromaeosaurus is the type genus of both Dromaeosauridae and Dromaeosaurinae, which include many genera with similar characteristics to Dromaeosaurus such as possibly its closest relative Dakotaraptor. Dromaeosaurus was heavily built, more so than other dromaeosaurids that are similar in size, like Velociraptor.

Diagnosis

  1. Teeth asymmetrically oval or compressed, sharp-pointed, recurved, serrate on anterior and posterior borders; premaxillary teeth large, not reduced, strongly convex antero-externally but not of fully U-shaped section
  2. Orbital fenestra larger proportionately than in Deinodon; lateral temporal fenestra of good size; preorbital fenestrae evidently large
  3. Frontals comparatively long and wide with nasals overlapping considerably at the median line; prefrontal and postfrontal sutures continuous, not separated by an orbital notch
  4. Maxillo-premaxillary suture nearly vertical, premaxilla large
  5. Skull proportions most like Deinodon but one-third to one-fourth the linear size; light skull construction with large fenestrae
  6. Metapodial distal end with deeply grooved ginglymoid distal facet and a very distinct lateral appression surface

Species

Dromaeosaurus albertensis Matthew & Brown, 1922

Type species

Named for Alberta, the Canadian province where the holotype was unearthed.

Holotype
AMNH 5356 , American Museum of Natural History
Material
Skull, fragmentary top, only partly prepared at time of publication.
Horizon
Campanian, Late Cretaceous , 83.6–72.2 million years ago
Locality
right bank, Little Sandhill Creek, Alberta, Canada

References

  1. Matthew, W. D.; Brown, B. (1922). The family Deinodontidae, with notice of a new genus from the Cretaceous of Alberta. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 46(6): 367-385. doi:10.5281/zenodo.1048848 matthew1922a
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Theropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the hip height estimate.

    jones2026c
  3. Colbert, E. H.; Russell, D. A. (1969). The small Cretaceous dinosaur Dromaeosaurus. American Museum Novitates 2380: 1-49.

    First redescription of the holotype, giving Brown's field record for the Little Sandhill Creek badlands, which Brown called Sand Creek.

    colbert1969a
  4. Currie, P. J. (1995). New information on the anatomy and relationships of Dromaeosaurus albertensis (Dinosauria: Theropoda). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 15(3): 576-591. doi:10.1080/02724634.1995.10011250

    Second redescription, after re-preparation and CT analysis; notes the type locality was never marked.

    currie1995a