This small (only about 6 foot tall) bipedal dinosaur was discovered in 1964 in Montana by Dr. John Ostrom. It is a theropod dinosaur, of the saurischian group, and is placed in the family Dromaeosauridae.
Deinonychus was a carnivorous (meat eating) dinosaur that appeared during the Cretaceous Period (140 to 65 million years ago). It is believed that they hunted co-operatively in packs, were very quick and agile, and were capable of intense sustained physical activity. They were also very intelligent, probably to a level compared with modern birds. Their large cerebral hemispheres also suggest that they probably had very complex behavioural patterns, as well as excellent sight and sense of smell. The three-fingered manus ("hand") had one digit that was partially opposable, meaning that Deinonychus had some grasping ability.
Most notable about Deinonychus is the large curved claw on the second digit of its hind feet. The claw was drawn upwards to prevent blunting the sharp tip by scraping it on the ground. The claw was used to slash at prey. Deinonychus could disembowel smaller prey animals that it held in its serrated teeth or gripped with its forelimbs. For larger prey animals, Deinonychus could slash at the flanks and limbs, injuring the animal and slowing it down with blood loss.
Deinonychus had rod-like bony processes growing forward from each vertebra in its tail. These bony processes would allow the tail to stretch out stiffly behind Deinonychus to balance the weight of its forward-inclined body. The stiff tail would also help to balance Deinonychus if it was leaping to attack a large prey item.
The bones of Deinonychus are often found with the bones of small Ornithopod dinosaurs, indicating that Deinonychus may have preyed on them.
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