Velociraptor Cousin Exhibited at Wyoming Dinosaur Center

THERMOPOLIS, Wyo. (AP) — The skeleton of a nearly 3-foot-tall cousin of the velociraptor will go on display at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center.

The museum in Thermopolis opens a new permanent exhibit Friday featuring the fossils and full-size reproduction of the dinosaur informally known as Lori.

Paleontologists discovered Lori whose scientific name is Hesperornithoides miessleri in a formation dating to the late Jurassic period near Douglas in 2001.

Center paleontologist Bill Wahl says Lori is the earliest troodontid that has been found in North America. It's also the smallest dinosaur that has been found in Wyoming.

Troodontids are bird-like predators that have sickle-like claws.