This set of 31 claws and talons allowS you to compare their size and appreciate the functional differences connected to the different behaviors in hunting and eating.
The GHO and Barn Owl are in the top row.
Are there any surprises for you in getting to compare them?
Pound for pound, the raptors have some pretty big pokey bits.
I wish domestic housecat was on here as a scale example most people would have seen in person but I would think the
smallest lynxbobcat or the fox is maaaybe comparable if perhaps a bit larger?Edit: I had meant to say bobcat, not that it made me much closer. Sounds like the raccoon is much more comparable.
Skulls Unlimited, fine purveyor of real and replica bones, lists domestic cat claws as average 0.5 in / 1.2 cm and bobcat as average 1 in / 2.5 cm.
All I could find on bunnies is that they should be trimmed when they get past the edge of the paw fur. They also seem to be more of a wear item due to the digging, so there is probably a wider range of sizes.
Oof I was way off! See this completely changes what I’m looking at for me! Looks like the racoon is much more similar.
From experience, they still hurt well enough, and are much more of a practical concern for most people than many of the other critters in the sample.
Grumpy land-owls! 🐱
Coyote looks close to a dog, they’re basically the same size.
Edit: you’re also more likely to interact with dogs’ claws, as you trim them. I don’t think I’d even try trimming a cat. You also trim rabbit claws, would be nice to see those for comparison too
I trim my cats claws every few weeks, she gets a treat for every paw she sits still for. I can tell she needs it done again when she can’t knead on me without it feeling prickly. It’s been a minute this time because I think I misplaced the trimmers. For a while I had to restrain her in one of those mesh bags, which was an upgrade from an old towel, but at this point she’s learned there’s food in it for her and she’s very food motivated, so as long as I’m firmly holding each paw and go quick it’s pretty straightforward. Haven’t had to use the sack in years.
I accidentally traumatized the dog at a young age because I had difficulty visualizing the quick through her darker claws, so we’ve been having a groomer do them for a while to help her understand that it doesn’t usually hurt before I try again. She thrashes and howls every time I try (she’s part husky), so it’s also important to have someone who knows exactly how to snatch her up and get it done quick.
(she’s part husky)
Does that mean that instead of crying murder, she only cries manslaughter?
Constantly and dramatically, I’d wager
You forgot the most important raptor claw. The
velociraptordeinonychus:
Therizinosaurus claw:
Therizinosaurus means “Scythe Lizard”
That looks like a toucan skull.
It was scary until I read they’re just built in salad tongs!
They are definitely a goofy looking bunch:
The claws were mostly used to pull up grasses and such in marshes.
Harpy eagle is 4.8 in / 12.8 cm
Velociraptor 2.6 in / 6.5 cm
Deinonychus 4.7 in / 12 cm based on reconstruction
The movie and book claws and raptors themselves I believe are actually Deinonychus, which were thought to be a North American velociraptor species at the time, but that seems to have been a minority opinion. That’s why you should always find multiple sources!
This new view of dinosaurs, in part, inspired the 1988 book Predatory Dinosaurs of the World by paleo-artist Gregory S. Paul. Not only was the volume chock-full of illustrations of feathered dinosaurs, but it also attempted to revise some dinosaur taxonomy. Paul noted the similarities between the skeletons of the Velociraptor from Mongolia and the Deinonychus skeletons from North America. They were so similar, in fact, that he decided to group the Deinonychus fossils under the name Velociraptor, as the older name took precedence according to the rules by which organisms are named.
Paleontologists did not agree with this change—Velociraptor was kept distinct from Deinonychus—but Paul’s book was a hit with the general public. And one of the people who read the book was author Michael Crichton. We know this because in the acknowledgements for his novel Jurassic Park, Crichton listed Paul as one of the people who inspired his vision for dinosaurs portrayed in the book, and he used the name Velociraptor to describe the large, sickle-clawed predators that disembowel so many humans in the fictional yarn. The same taxonomy was carried over into the film series, which ultimately made what would otherwise seem to be an abstruse scientific term a household name.
As a dinosaur loving kid this annoyed me so much, I knew it was Deinonychus!
From wikipedia on Deinonychus, and yes I would quote original sources but Im on mobile.
Crichton ultimately chose to use the name Velociraptor for these dinosaurs, rather than Deinonychus. Crichton had met with John Ostrom several times during the writing process to discuss details of the possible range of behaviors and life appearance of Deinonychus. Crichton at one point apologetically told Ostrom that he had decided to use the name Velociraptor in place of Deinonychus for his book, because he felt the former name was “more dramatic”.
I didn’t think I knew about velociraptor before the book. Definitely knew Deinonychus though!
I don’t have kids, but know plenty of people that do, and I’ve been very glad to see they’ve never gone out of style, and even some of the little girls seem to like them now too.
VR is a much more marketable and pronounceable name, so he probably did the right thing.
