Immediately prior to their demise, dinosaurs had already known an almost 150 million year long and very successful history. This explains why their fossil remains are now found on all continents, including Antarctica. Remarkable is that dinosaurs from the Maastrichtian show a high diversity, which disappears abruptly from the face of the Earth 65 million years ago. This extinction marks the upper boundary of the Maastrichtian. A good example of the diversity of dinosaur faunas is the newest find of Variraptor, from Southern France: a ferocious meat-eater of slender build and supplied with sharp claws.

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