biology

Graciliraptor

Graciliraptor is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Graciliraptor rather than just read about it. In short: Graciliraptor (meaning "graceful thief") is a genus of microraptorian dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the early Cretaceous Period. Its fossil, holotype IVPP V 13474, was found in Beipiao, Liaoning Province, China.

Key takeaways

Graciliraptor belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Graciliraptor to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Graciliraptor from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Graciliraptor (meaning "graceful thief") is a genus of microraptorian dromaeosaurid dinosaur from the early Cretaceous Period. Its fossil, holotype IVPP V 13474, was found in Beipiao, Liaoning Province, China. The type species is Graciliraptor lujiatunensis, named and described in 2004 by Xu Xing and Wang Xiaoling. The generic name is derived from Latin gracilis (meaning "graceful") and raptor (meaning "thief"). The specific name refers to the village of Lujiatun where the fossil site is located.

Description The type and only known specimen comprised part of the maxilla with some teeth, nearly complete fore and hind legs; and ten partial tail vertebrae. It is estimated to have been about 90 centimetres (3.0 ft) long in life. In 2010, Gregory S. Paul gave higher estimations of one metre and 1.5 kilogrammes. Graciliraptor is extremely lightly built for a non-avian theropod, with very elongated middle caudal vertebrae and lower leg bones. The femur is thirteen centimetres long and total body length was estimated at one metre. The posterior articular processes of the tail vertebrae, or postzygapophyses, are connected by a thin bone sheath or lamina, that extends to the back over an eighth of the centrum of the following vertebra, thus further stiffening the middle tail, already immobilised by the typical dromaeosaurid long prezygapophyses. Graciliraptor has been found in the lowest portions of the Yixian Formation, the Lujiatun Member, below the rocks where similar early dromaeosaurids (such as Sinornithosaurus and Microraptor) were found. It is, in geological age, the oldest named dromaeosaurid, and the oldest known from good fossil remains (dromaeosaurid fossils date back all the way to the Middle Jurassic, but consist mostly of teeth).

Classification As an early dromaeosaurid, Graciliraptor provided information on the early evolution and diversification of the group. It shares several characteristics in common with both early troodontids and avialan birds, supporting a close relationship between avialans, troodontids, and dromaeosaurids. Xu and Wang considered Graciliraptor to have been closely related to Microraptor, a similar dromaeosaurid from the slightly younger Jiufotang Formation. Later it was placed in the Microraptorinae.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Graciliraptor

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Graciliraptor claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Graciliraptor before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Graciliraptor ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Graciliraptor

In research: Graciliraptor appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Graciliraptor in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Graciliraptor is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Barremian dinosaurs, Dinosaur genera, Dinosaurs of China, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Graciliraptor outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Graciliraptor in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Graciliraptor means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Graciliraptor out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Graciliraptor in simple terms?

Why does Graciliraptor matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Graciliraptor?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Graciliraptor.