paleoillustration:

Brunch, by ChrisMasna

Protoceratops andrewsi and Velociraptor mongoliensis

According to the artist, the filaments on Protoceratops’ back are based on the ones Tianyulong had. The reason behind that decission is beyond me.

EDITED to include everydaypalaeontologist’s interesting comment:

“pretty cool, but all the evidence (well i say evidence, it’s more like educated inference) for gregariousness in velociraptor comes from ichnofossils presumed to be deinonychus. so actually, there’s no real evidence that velociraptor hunted in packs, unless you take jurassic park as gospel. and yes, you can use the argument that the inference is valid due to the close phylogenetic relationship between the two genera, but still, inference isn’t fact.

to be honest, i find myself torn between the two views. li’s 2007 paper is compelling, but i’m yet to be convinced, of obligate gregariousness anyhow”.

Also, I’d like to remind all of you that, even tough I try to take scientific accuracy in account, I often sacrifice it for the sake of beautifully done drawings. Illustrations can be interesting or thought provoking even if they’re based on wrong ideas.