National Velociraptor Awareness Day – Apr. 18, 2027

Expected National Velociraptor Awareness Day Deals

While direct ‘Velociraptor Day’ deals are rare, fans can anticipate promotions on dinosaur-themed merchandise and media. Look for sales on ‘Jurassic Park’ franchise movies and games from retailers like Amazon and Target. Toy stores such as Toys ‘R’ Us and specialty shops like ThinkGeek often feature discounts on dinosaur action figures and collectibles. Educational institutions and museums, including the American Museum of Natural History, might offer special exhibits or virtual events. Keep an eye out for themed apparel from brands like Hot Topic. We will update this page with confirmed live deals as April 18 approaches.

History of National Velociraptor Awareness Day

Here’s one fact we often overlook: raptors, unlike those in the films, did not stand over seven feet tall. They were roughly 6.5 feet long and measured less than two feet high at the hip (but they did have some frightening hips.) They also had feathers and wings. In reality, they sort of resembled turkey dinosaurs. Still, the filmmakers were onto something.

That’s because production on “Jurassic Park” began before the 1991 discovery of the so-called Utahraptor skeleton, measuring 5.5 feet tall — the largest at that time. Said one film designer: “We designed it, we built it, and then they discovered it. That still boggles my mind.”

Velociraptors roamed the Earth about 85.8 million to 70.6 million years ago during the end of the Cretaceous period. The name ‘velociraptor’ was bestowed upon this dinosaur in 1924 by the then-president of the American Museum of Natural History, Henry Fairfield Osborn. The name has Latin origins: ‘velox,’ meaning ‘swift,’ and ‘raptor’ meaning ‘plunderer.’ Earlier in the same year, the dinosaur was referred to as Ovoraptor Djadochtari in an article but the name was never mentioned in a scientific journal, so Velociraptor became the accepted name.

The velociraptor was prominently featured in the “Jurassic Park” movies just like the Tyrannosaurus rex, but the Hollywood depiction was nothing like the actual creature in terms of appearance and size. The velociraptor was scaly and reptilian in the movies, whereas paleontologists discovered feathers and quill knobs on the fossil forearm of a velociraptor found in Mongolia in 2007. In 2008, researchers unearthed protoceratops fossils marred with marks and grooves matching raptor teeth, as well as two teeth that belonged either to a velociraptor or another dromaeosaurid.

In 2012, a large bone of a pterosaur in the bowels of a velociraptor was also discovered, indicating that velociraptors sometimes ate pterosaurs. There are two velociraptor species: V. mongoliensis and V. osmolskae. The latter was only identified in 2008.

How Businesses Can Celebrate National Velociraptor Awareness Day