--Raptor Phisiology-- Our ideas (and thus standards) of what utahraptors looked like and had the capability of doing. ....................................................................... UTAHRAPTOR SIZE:           Utahraptors, as adults in their prime, are usually around 7 to 8 feet tall, to the shoulder; they also run from 15 to 20 feet in length, and are generally 800 pounds. The more evolved of the Raptor species had their females, as a rule, larger than the males. Chicks are hatched about the size of a cat, with very large eyes, compared to the rest of their head. ....................................................................... HEAD:           Utahraptor has a slightly wedge-shaped snout, angling down from the top of the head, and up from the lower jaw, from the eyes forward.           Their nostrils rested near the front of their muzzles, allowing for easy access to scents in more difficult places (such as high in the air), and can flare to get more scent particles from the air. They have elongated jaws, powerfully muscled, like a wolf's, only a bit broader, giving Utahraptors a large nasal cavity, and better ability to decipher which scent means what. Under the nasal cavity is a resonation chamber, used to generate sounds, that range from a loud, threatening screech, to a soft, comforting coo.           Their eyes are large, shaped and modeled much like a hawk's, and have the uses of a cat's. That is to say, in the light, they can be slit, or contracted pupils, and in the dark, can be round and dilated, to take in as much light as possible. The eyes are also set somewhat forward on the sides of their heads, allowing for binocular vision and depth perception. Just above the eye is the human equivalent to an eyebrow, the eye ridge. This can be used both as protection from the sun, or like the snout band or patch, used to attract mates, the color becoming brighter around the eye ridge, and the snout color.           The back of the head extends a little bit, looking as though part of the neck, encasing the Utahraptor's large brain. The size of the head ranges from, as an adult, 1 foot to 1 foot 6 inches in length, and from the lower jaw to the eye ridge is roughly 8 to 10 inches high. Sometimes, they show off a crest of brilliant feathers, or quills. More to attract a raptor of the opposite sex. A well-groomed crest means a potentially worth-it mate, the fact being that, again, in illness, the feathered crest being shabby or tangled is the first sign of sickness. ....................................................................... NECK:           Another Utahraptorian use for attraction. Held in a tight s-curve in healthy adults, the Utahraptor's neck, when straightened to look threatening, reaches a good two feet in length. In the curve, however, it reaches maybe 9 inches, from shoulders to head. A healthy raptor would have a strong, supple neckline, muscular and covered by a thin layer of flesh. When a raptor is unhealthy, the neck is one of the first things to begin to fade.           Near the front of the neck, from about mid-lower jaw to down the neck, and folded tightly to hide, is a pouch, used maybe for storing items, or air, for when they swim. ....................................................................... TORSO:           The Utahraptor torso, from the base of the neck all the way to the base of the tail, reaches about 6 feet in length, built streamlined, and usually indented slightly on both sides behind the ribcage and in front of the hips.           Set up behind the base of the neck are the shoulder blades, held more vertically than horizontally, denying most movement of the arms out to the sides, but better for lashing forward with their foreclaws.           Near the tail-base is a pelvic bone, held at a 90 degrees from the hips, jutting out from under the tail base, with a soft, cushioning pad for sitting on. When a raptor sits at ease, their torsos are held upright, rather than hunched down into a laying down position, say, like Acrocanthosaurs.           Usually, in strong, healthy Utahraptors, their chest is broad, full of muscle for striking out with their claws. The hips are usually about the same size, proportionate to the chest, while everything in between, the rib cage, narrows as you move further down the Utahraptor body, until you come to the thighs, where the torso and hips connect. ....................................................................... TAIL:           Held straight out behind the Utahraptor is a stiff, light-weight tail, used as a counter-balance to the rest of its body. Normally, the tail is about 9 feet in length. This tail is made stiff by bony rods that fuse the bones together, attached at the hips by strong tendons. Though rigid, the tail may be a bit flexible, for when the raptor twists, in a hunt, possibly.           This is another key point of decision when choosing a mate. When the Utahraptor is not eating well, the flesh at the base of the tail begins to disappear, the tendons and bones that hold the tail together will show through like a starved supermodel's ribs. ....................................................................... LEGS:           One of the most recognizable of the Utahraptor characteristics, is that it is a biped. That is, it walks on two legs instead of four. The legs can be up to six feet in length, but bent at the knees, so they appear shorter. The thighs are heavily muscular, and lined with a layer of fat, when the raptor is eating well. Unlike birds, the Utahraptor knee bends forward, like a human's.           The shin bones of Utahraptor are longer than their thighs are, with calf muscles bulging out behind them, giving them the advantage of quick acceleration and long, powerful strides.           The inside ankles have a small, useless claw called a du-claw, like a dog has. Utahraptors walked mostly on their toes, so their ankles are held higher than, say, humans' ankles are when they walk flat-footed. On their feet, Utahraptors have three talons, the most distinguished being the inner toe, which works as a switchblade, retracting when not being used, but when on a hunt, or in a fight, the claw extends, a good 7 to 12 inches of deadly, blade-like efficiency. ....................................................................... ARMS:           Less muscular than the legs or neck, the arms are used more for weakening their prey with quick, well-placed blows, while the chest muscles are the ones doing most of the pulling. (Pulling, meaning when the Utahraptor successfully slashes its prey, it's the pectoral muscles that pull the arm violently to the side, dragging the talons through the victim's flesh.)           The upper arm of a Utahraptor is probably the most muscular out of the rest of the arm. Attached at the shoulder blades, down to the elbow, can reach nearly 2 feet, the biceps usually nothing to be impressed with, though well-toned. The muscles in the forearm lash out, creating a whiplike effect for the forearm and foretalons. When the Utahraptor's hand slaps against the hide of its prey, the muscles in the fingers contract, forcing the claws through the tough flesh of the victim.           A Utahraptor's forearm is slender, long, and more bone and tendon than muscle mass. At the end, the wrist has a half-moon shaped bone, found in birds' wings, where the wrist normally would be. When tucked in, the fingers of the Utahraptor fold against the forearm, and are tipped with sharp claws, the tips of those claws reaching nearly to the elbow. Again, the fingers are more bone and tendon/ligament than muscle.