RE: Evidence For a Feathered Velociraptor...

["Richard W. Travsky" <rtravsky@uwyo.edu>]

On Thu, 20 Sep 2007, Nick Page wrote:
> "...help it maneuver while running..."
> Aha!
>
> The little guys might have had feathers to get them out of trouble but the 
> big guys might have had feathers to turn and swoop after them.
>
> See thread Origin of Flight.
>
> "One thing that puzzles me though is why these little dinosaurs have feathery 
> structures on them (including their forelimbs) when they obviously can't 
> begin to fly.
>
> If you observe bird chicks running they stick their forelimbs out and it 
> seems to confer a sort of balance advantage as they go round corners and jink 
> to change direction.
>
> If you have a large predator after you then a little aerodynamic effect on 
> the forelimbs would help you keep out of trouble.

Aerodynamic effect? As in lift? If you're running while being chased by
something, catching air would not necessarily be a good thing as this means
less contact with the ground for running. Might actually slow you down.

> [...]