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Theropoda
Theropoda (; ), whose members are known as theropods, is a dinosaur clade that is characterized by hollow bones and three toes and claws on each limb. Theropods are generally classed as a group of saurischian dinosaurs. They were ancestrally carnivorous, although a number of theropod groups evolved to become herbivores and omnivores. Theropods first appeared during the Carnian age of the late Triassic period 231.4 million years ago ( Ma) and included all the large terrestrial carnivores from the Early Jurassic until at least the close of the Cretaceous, about 66 Ma. In the Jurassic, birds evolved from small specialized coelurosaurian theropods, and are today represented by about 10,500 living species. Biology Diet and teeth Theropods exhibit a wide range of diets, from insectivores to herbivores and carnivores. Strict carnivory has always been considered the ancestral diet for theropods as a group, and a wider variety of diets was historically considered a characteris ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neotheropoda
Neotheropoda (meaning "new theropods") is a clade that includes coelophysoids and more advanced theropod dinosaurs, and is the only group of theropods that survived the Triassic–Jurassic extinction event. All neotheropods became extinct by the end of the Early Jurassic (Pliensbachian) period except for Averostra. Classification Neotheropoda was named by Robert T. Bakker in 1986 as a group including the relatively derived theropod subgroups Ceratosauria and Tetanurae, and excluding coelophysoids. However, most later researchers have used it to denote a broader group. Neotheropoda was first defined as a clade by Paul Sereno in 1998 as ''Coelophysis'' plus modern birds, which includes almost all theropods except the most primitive species.Sereno, 1998. A rationale for phylogenetic definitions, with application to the higher-level taxonomy of Dinosauria. Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie, Abhandlungen. 210, 41-83. Dilophosauridae was formerly considered a smal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daemonosaurus
''Daemonosaurus'' is an extinct genus of possible theropod dinosaur from the Late Triassic of New Mexico. The only known fossil is a skull and neck fragments from deposits of the latest Triassic Chinle Formation at Ghost Ranch. ''Daemonosaurus'' was an unusual dinosaur with a short skull and large, fang-like teeth. It lived alongside early neotheropods such as '' Coelophysis'', which would have been among the most common dinosaurs by the end of the Triassic. However, ''Daemonosaurus'' retains several plesiomorphic ("primitive") traits of the snout, and it likely lies outside the clade Neotheropoda. It may be considered a late-surviving basal theropod or non-theropod basal saurischian, possibly allied to other early predatory dinosaurs such as herrerasaurids or '' Tawa''. Discovery ''Daemonosaurus'' is known from a single fossil, the holotype CM 76821, which consists of a skull, mandibles, an atlas bone, an axis bone, other neck vertebrae, and rib fragments. This specim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tawa Hallae
''Tawa'' (named after the Hopi word for the Puebloan sun god) is a genus of possible basal theropod dinosaurs from the Late Triassic period. The fossil remains of ''Tawa hallae'', the type and only species were found in the Hayden Quarry of Ghost Ranch, New Mexico, US. Its discovery alongside the relatives of '' Coelophysis ''and ''Herrerasaurus'' supports the hypothesis that the earliest dinosaurs arose in Gondwana during the early Late Triassic period in what is now South America, and radiated from there around the globe. The specific name honours Ruth Hall, founder of the Ghost Ranch Museum of Paleontology. Description ''Tawa'' was estimated to have been long as an adult, with a weight of . ''Tawa'' preserves characters that can be associated with different dinosaur taxa. Its skull morphology resembles that of coelophysoids and the ilium approximates that of a herrerasaurid. Like the coelophysoids, ''Tawa'' has a kink in its upper jaws, between the maxilla and the pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allosaurus
''Allosaurus'' () is a genus of large carnosaurian theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 145 million years ago during the Late Jurassic epoch ( Kimmeridgian to late Tithonian). The name "''Allosaurus''" means "different lizard" alluding to its unique (at the time of its discovery) concave vertebrae. It is derived from the Greek (') ("different, other") and (') ("lizard / generic reptile"). The first fossil remains that could definitively be ascribed to this genus were described in 1877 by paleontologist Othniel Charles Marsh. As one of the first well-known theropod dinosaurs, it has long attracted attention outside of paleontological circles. ''Allosaurus'' was a large bipedal predator. Its skull was light, robust and equipped with dozens of sharp, serrated teeth. It averaged in length for ''A. fragilis'', with the largest specimens estimated as being long. Relative to the large and powerful hindlimbs, its three-fingered forelimbs were small, and the body was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eodromaeus
''Eodromaeus'' (meaning "dawn runner") is an extinct genus of probable basal theropod dinosaurs from the Late Triassic of Argentina. Like many other of the earliest-known dinosaurs, it hails from the Carnian-age (~230 Ma) Ischigualasto Formation, within the Ischigualasto-Villa Unión Basin of northwestern Argentina. Upon its discovery, it was argued to be one of the oldest true theropods, supplanting its contemporary '' Eoraptor'', which was reinterpreted as a basal sauropodomorph.Martínez et al., 2011 Discovery Fossils from ''Eodromaeus'' were first discovered in 1996 by Argentinean paleontologist Ricardo N. Martinez and Earthwatch volunteer Jim Murphy, and it was first believed that the fossils were a new species of '' Eoraptor''. However, as the researchers started to take a closer look at the fossils, they found that it had many skeletal features which were absent in ''Eoraptor'', and they understood that it came from a new genus. ''Eodromaeus'' is known from six spe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is the subject of active research. They became the dominant terrestrial vertebrates after the Triassic–Jurassic extinction event 201.3 mya; their dominance continued throughout the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. The fossil record shows that birds are feathered dinosaurs, having evolved from earlier theropods during the Late Jurassic epoch, and are the only dinosaur lineage known to have survived the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event approximately 66 mya. Dinosaurs can therefore be divided into avian dinosaurs—birds—and the extinct non-avian dinosaurs, which are all dinosaurs other than birds. Dinosaurs are varied from taxonomic, morphological and ecological standpoints. Birds, at over 10,700 living species ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spinosaurus Aegyptiacus
''Spinosaurus'' (; ) is a genus of spinosaurid dinosaur that lived in what now is North Africa during the Cenomanian to upper Turonian stages of the Late Cretaceous period, about 99 to 93.5 million years ago. The genus was known first from Egyptian remains discovered in 1912 and described by German palaeontologist Ernst Stromer in 1915. The original remains were destroyed in World War II, but additional material came to light in the early 21st century. It is unclear whether one or two species are represented in the fossils reported in the scientific literature. The best known species is ''S. aegyptiacus'' from Egypt, although a potential second species, ''S. maroccanus'', has been recovered from Morocco. The contemporary spinosaurid genus '' Sigilmassasaurus'' has also been synonymized by some authors with ''S. aegyptiacus'', though other researchers propose it to be a distinct taxon. Another possible junior synonym is ''Oxalaia'' from the Alcântara Formation in Bra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Erythrovenator
''Erythrovenator'' () is a genus of basal theropod dinosaurs from the Late Triassic of Rio Grande so Sul, Brazil. The genus contains a single species, ''Erythrovenator jacuiensis''. Discovery The holotype and only known specimen of ''Erythrovenator'', CAPPA/UFSM 0157, is an isolated proximal portion of the left femur. This fossil was found in red mudstone of the Niemeyer Site, near Agudo in Rio Grande Sul. The site is tentatively considered to be early Norian (or possible late Carnian) in age and belongs the Candelária Sequence of the Santa Maria Supersequence. No other dinosauromorphs are known from this site, which is dominated by the traversodontid cynodont ''Siriusgnathus''. The site probably corresponds to the ''Riograndia'' Assemblage Zone based on the presence of ''Siriusgnathus''. The generic name, ''Erythrovenator'', is derived from the Greek word ερυθρός (''erythrós''), meaning "red" (in reference to the color of the holotype), and the Latin word v� ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Velocipes
''Velocipes'' (meaning "quick foot") is a saurischian dinosaur genus from the Late Triassic that may have been a theropod; its fossils were found in the Norian-age Lissauer Breccia of southern Poland.''Velocipes'' on the Dinosaur Mailing List Upon discovery, ''Velocipes'' was thought to have been a coelurosaur, but more recent studies have shown that ''Velocipes'' was probably a basal theropod or . History and taxonomy The , ''V. gueri ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saurischia
Saurischia ( , meaning "reptile-hipped" from the Greek ' () meaning 'lizard' and ' () meaning 'hip joint') is one of the two basic divisions of dinosaurs (the other being Ornithischia), classified by their hip structure. Saurischia and Ornithischia were originally called orders by Harry Seeley in 1888 though today most paleontologists classify Saurischia as an unranked clade rather than an order.Weishampel, D.B., Dodson, P., and Osmólska, H. (eds.). (2004). ''The Dinosauria. 2nd edition''. University of California Press, Berkeley. 833 pp. Description All carnivorous dinosaurs (certain types of theropods) are traditionally classified as saurischians, as are all of the birds and one of the two primary lineages of herbivorous dinosaurs, the sauropodomorphs. At the end of the Cretaceous Period, all saurischians except the birds became extinct in the course of the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event. Birds, as direct descendants of one group of theropod dinosaurs, are a sub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Serikornis Sungei
''Serikornis'' is a genus of small, feathered anchiornithid dinosaur from the Upper Jurassic Tiaojishan Formation of Liaoning, China. It is represented by the type species ''Serikornis sungei''. Discovery ''Serikornis'', first described in August 2017, is noteworthy for the variety of feather types represented in its holotype, a single complete articulated skeleton preserved on a slab along with extensive integumentary structures. The specimen's feather imprints include wispy bundles along the neck, short and symmetrical vaned feathers on the arms, and both fuzz and long pennaceous feathers on its hindlimbs. While its anatomy and integument share features with birds as well as derived dromaeosaurs such as ''Microraptor'', cladistic analysis places the genus within the cluster of feathered dinosaurs near the origin of avians. It was unlikely to be a flier. Its name means "Ge Sun's silk bird", a reference to the plumulaceous-like body covering evident in the fossil. The specimen's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Saltriovenator Zanellai
''Saltriovenator'' (meaning "Saltrio hunter") is a genus of ceratosaurian dinosaur that lived during the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic in what is now Italy. The type and only species is ''Saltriovenator zanellai''; in the past, the species had been known under the informal name "saltriosaur". Although a full skeleton has not yet been discovered, ''Saltriovenator'' is thought to have been a large, bipedal carnivore similar to ''Ceratosaurus''. Discovery and naming On 4 August 1996, the first remains of ''Saltriovenator'' were discovered by amateur paleontologist Angelo Zanella, searching for ammonites in the ''Salnova'' marble quarry in Saltrio, northern Italy. Zanella had already been working for the ''Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano'' and this institution after being informed sent out a team to investigate the find. Cristiano Dal Sasso and the volunteers of the Paleontological Group of Besano, under the direction of Giorgio Teruzzi managed to salvage a numb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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