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Description
Galiciaraptor mirabilus was a large Boreoraptorid Dromaeosaur endemic to Spain during the Oligocene. At up to 7m long and weighing approximately 500kg, this predator was the apex hunter in its environment. It was heavy in built, with large curved sickle claws on the feet and a boxy skull equipped with powerful jaws. Not adapted for fast running, it was an ambush hunter of small to mid-sized Ornithischians, which it wrestles to the ground and devours while the prey is still alive. Overall, the animal is reminiscent of the ancient Dromaeosaur Utahraptor. Interestingly, an earlier species (G. agustii) has been recovered from the Quercy Phosphorites of France. This was a significantly smaller carnivore at an estimated 3m long and possessed significantly more gracile features. Galiciaraptor mirabilus was well adapted to the dry open forests of Oligocene Spain, launching out of the undergrowth to target prey items such as the Novoceratopsian Bonaliceratops, the Tondeodontid Cervesosaurus and the Orthomerid Fransicosaurus. Unlike its relatives in Asia and North America, Boreoraptorids such as Galiciaraptor would continue on into the later Miocene in Europe due to the presence of humid, sub-tropical forests there. However, by the end of the period, these non-cursorial hunters became extinct as their habitats shrank and new competitors arrived from Africa that were better able to exploit the open plains.

Description
Galiciaraptor mirabilus was a large Boreoraptorid Dromaeosaur endemic to Spain during the Oligocene. At up to 7m long and weighing approximately 500kg, this predator was the apex hunter in its environment. It was heavy in built, with large curved sickle claws on the feet and a boxy skull equipped with powerful jaws. Not adapted for fast running, it was an ambush hunter of small to mid-sized Ornithischians, which it wrestles to the ground and devours while the prey is still alive. Overall, the animal is reminiscent of the ancient Dromaeosaur Utahraptor. Interestingly, an earlier species (G. agustii) has been recovered from the Quercy Phosphorites of France. This was a significantly smaller carnivore at an estimated 3m long and possessed significantly more gracile features. Galiciaraptor mirabilus was well adapted to the dry open forests of Oligocene Spain, launching out of the undergrowth to target prey items such as the Novoceratopsian Bonaliceratops, the Tondeodontid Cervesosaurus and the Orthomerid Fransicosaurus. Unlike its relatives in Asia and North America, Boreoraptorids such as Galiciaraptor would continue on into the later Miocene in Europe due to the presence of humid, sub-tropical forests there. However, by the end of the period, these non-cursorial hunters became extinct as their habitats shrank and new competitors arrived from Africa that were better able to exploit the open plains.