Two brothers bunting for Ichthyosaur fossils a species of prehistoric reptilian dolphin like fish, came across something far more interesting then what they were expecting to find. The fossil remains they discovered could possibly be the oldest known Jurassic dinosaur discovered. This would mean it is the oldest dinosaur in history. The newly discovered dinosaur is an early theropod, a group of mostly meat eating bipedal dinosaurs. The fossils reveal this dinosaur lived during the period of Jurassic diversification, or the time when different dinosaur species started to branch out and evolve. The new species scientific name is Dracoraptor Hanigani, or Dragon Raptor.

During its lifetime 201 million ago Dragon Raptor likely scavenged and hunted for meat with its small pointed teeth. D. Raptor dwarfs in comparison to its theropod relatives, with Tyrannosaurus Rex standing at a staggering 14 feet tall and measuring up to 40 feet D. Raptor being fairly small clocks in at around 2.3 feet tall and around 6.5 feet long. D. Raptor also sported a strikingly long tail possibly used for balance.

This is an outstanding find for the fossil evidence books. Earlier dinosaurs dating to the Triassic Period have been found in the U.K but this find is special. D. Raptor marks a point just after the mass extinction event of the Triassic, D. Raptor was just the beginning of a whole new era of theropods and the Grandfather to the king Tyrannosaurus Rex. During the early Jurassic theropod dinosaurs were very rare, so finding a 40% complete theropod fossil is an outstanding discovery.

Recently a student on a paleontology field trip at the same location of the original discovery came across the lost foot of the existing fossil. They have at this time uncovered more vertebrae and a missing claw of the theropod. Paleontologist Cindy Howell says, “she believes the animal would have killed humans”. Dragon Raptor was predominantly a scavenger. similarly to its relatives such as Utah Raptor and Compsognathus, I feel this dinosaur would most likely have traveled in packs giving it the ability to take down slightly larger prey such as Parasaurs. Visually it appears very close in size and body shape to Dilophosaurus, another early Jurassic theropod.

Dragon Raptor belongs to the theropod group Coelophysoidea, a group of relatively small meat eater usualy ranging from one to six meters in length. Coelophysoidea have hollow bones and it is unknown whether they had feathers or scaly skin. Coels have a long low body type with a long neck and light head. It is theorized that Coels likely would not have hunted live prey due to their brittle skulls. This group of early theropods died out during the Toarcian turnover when their primary food sources went extinct.