Joan Wiffen

By Sabey Smith

Who Is Joan Wiffen?Joan Wiffen is a fossil

hunter. She specializes in fossil hunting in New Zealand.

Wiffen first started as a rock collector, traveling around New Zealand to find different gemstones and minerals.

Once Wiffen started fossil hunting people doubted that she could find any fossils in New Zealand. But Wiffen was going to prove them wrong.

The Great Find

Wiffen worked really hard to achieve her goal of finding a fossil in New Zealand. She read about fossils and dinosaur paleontology studying about the latest discoveries. Finally she achieved her goal in 1975 and found the first fossil ever in New Zealand!

Fun Facts

● Joan Wiffen was born on February 4, 1922 in New Zealand.

● She went to Massey University for college.

● In 2004 Joan received the Morris Skinner Award.

● She died on June 30, 2009 at the age 87.

QuizWhat year did Joan Wiffen find the first

fossil in New Zealand?

1975!Great Job!

The Velociraptor

What is the Velociraptor?

The Velociraptor is a dinosaur that lived about 75 million years ago during the later part of the Cretaceous Period. His name means “swift seizer”. It was a carnivore. Most of this dinosaur’s fossils were found in Mongolia.

Body Features

● The Velociraptor has a long tail● It also has a sickle-shaped claw on

each hindfoot, which was used to tackle prey.

● The Velociraptor can often be identified by it’s long, low skull.

Fun Facts● The Velociraptor has

two known species: V. mongoliensis & V. osmolskae.

● Adults weighed up to 15 kg.

● Some people call the Velociraptor the “Raptor”.

Quiz

What period did the Velociraptor live in?

The Cretaceous Period!

Yay!