Information on dinosaurs is obtained from a widely varying fields of study which include Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and the Earth Sciences (which also includes Paleontology). Activities include the discovery, reconstruction and conservation of dinosaur fossils and the interpretation of those fossils which enables us to better understand the evolution, classification and behavior of dinosaurs. Dinosaur - Classification. ...

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Dinosaur, Dinosaur - What is a dinosaur?, Dinosaur - Definition, Dinosaur - Size, Dinosaur - Behavior, Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Classification, Dinosaur - Order Saurischia, Dinosaur - †Order Ornithischia, Dinosaur - Evolution, Dinosaur - Areas of debate, Dinosaur - Warm-blooded?, Dinosaur - Feathered dinosaurs and the bird connection, Dinosaur - Evidence for Cenozoic dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Bringing dinosaurs back to life, Dinosaur - Discovery of probable soft tissue from dinosaur fossils, Dinosaur - Extinction theories, Dinosaur - Asteroid collision, Dinosaur - The Oort cloud, Dinosaur - Environment changes, Dinosaur - History of discovery, Dinosaur - In popular culture, Dinosaur - Religious points of view, Dinosaur - Notes and references, Dinosaur - General references

Read more here: » Dinosaur: Encyclopedia II - Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs

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Dinosaur, Dinosaur - What is a dinosaur?, Dinosaur - Definition, Dinosaur - Size, Dinosaur - Behavior, Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Classification, Dinosaur - Order Saurischia, Dinosaur - †Order Ornithischia, Dinosaur - Evolution, Dinosaur - Areas of debate, Dinosaur - Warm-blooded?, Dinosaur - Feathered dinosaurs and the bird connection, Dinosaur - Evidence for Cenozoic dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Bringing dinosaurs back to life, Dinosaur - Discovery of probable soft tissue from dinosaur fossils, Dinosaur - Extinction theories, Dinosaur - Asteroid collision, Dinosaur - The Oort cloud, Dinosaur - Environment changes, Dinosaur - History of discovery, Dinosaur - In popular culture, Dinosaur - Religious points of view, Dinosaur - Notes and references, Dinosaur - General references

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Dinosaurs were highly successful creatures; they were the dominant land animals on Earth for over 150 million years. However, it is their sudden extinction as much as their success that has made them an enduring part of human popular culture. Hence dinosaur is sometimes used colloquially as a metaphor for people and things that are perceived to be out of date or no longer in touch with the spirit of the times, and therefore ought to be extinct. For example, members of the punk movement derided the "progressive" ...

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Dinosaur, Dinosaur - What is a dinosaur?, Dinosaur - Definition, Dinosaur - Size, Dinosaur - Behavior, Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Classification, Dinosaur - Order Saurischia, Dinosaur - †Order Ornithischia, Dinosaur - Evolution, Dinosaur - Areas of debate, Dinosaur - Warm-blooded?, Dinosaur - Feathered dinosaurs and the bird connection, Dinosaur - Evidence for Cenozoic dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Bringing dinosaurs back to life, Dinosaur - Discovery of probable soft tissue from dinosaur fossils, Dinosaur - Extinction theories, Dinosaur - Asteroid collision, Dinosaur - The Oort cloud, Dinosaur - Environment changes, Dinosaur - History of discovery, Dinosaur - In popular culture, Dinosaur - Religious points of view, Dinosaur - Notes and references, Dinosaur - General references

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Dinosaurs are vertebrate animals that range from reptile-like to bird-like.[1] Dinosaurs dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing around 230 million years ago. 65 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous period, all non-avian dinosaurs became extinct. Dinosaurs still exist today in the line of birds (avian dinosaurs). Knowledge about dinosaurs is derived from both fossil and non-fossil records, includ ...

Including:

Dinosaur - What is a dinosaur?
Dinosaur - Definition Dinosaur - Size Dinosaur - Behavior
Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs
Dinosaur - Classification Dinosaur - Order Saurischia Dinosaur - †Order Ornithischia Dinosaur - Evolution
Dinosaur - Areas of debate
Dinosaur - Warm-blooded? Dinosaur - Feathered dinosaurs and the bird connection Dinosaur - Evidence for Cenozoic dinosaurs Dinosaur - Bringing dinosaurs back to life Dinosaur - Discovery of probable soft tissue from dinosaur fossils
Dinosaur - Extinction theories
Dinosaur - Asteroid collision Dinosaur - The Oort cloud Dinosaur - Environment changes
Dinosaur - History of discovery Dinosaur - In popular culture Dinosaur - Notes

Read more here: » Dinosaur: Encyclopedia - Dinosaur

Information on dinosaurs is obtained from a variety of fields of study including Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and the Earth Sciences (which includes Paleontology). Activities include the discovery, reconstruction and conservation of dinosaur fossils and the interpretation of those fossils to better understand the evolution, classification and behavior of dinosaurs. Dinosaur - Classification. ...

See also:

Dinosaur, Dinosaur - What is a dinosaur?, Dinosaur - Definition, Dinosaur - Size, Dinosaur - Behavior, Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Classification, Dinosaur - Order Saurischia, Dinosaur - †Order Ornithischia, Dinosaur - Evolution, Dinosaur - Areas of debate, Dinosaur - Warm-blooded?, Dinosaur - Feathered dinosaurs and the bird connection, Dinosaur - Evidence for Cenozoic dinosaurs, Dinosaur - Bringing dinosaurs back to life, Dinosaur - Discovery of probable soft tissue from dinosaur fossils, Dinosaur - Extinction theories, Dinosaur - Asteroid collision, Dinosaur - The Oort cloud, Dinosaur - Environment changes, Dinosaur - History of discovery, Dinosaur - In popular culture, Dinosaur - Notes

Read more here: » Dinosaur: Encyclopedia II - Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs

Dinosaurs are vertebrate animals that range from reptile-like to bird-like.[1] Dinosaurs dominated the terrestrial ecosystem for over 160 million years, first appearing around 230 million years ago. 65 million years ago, at the end of the Cretaceous period, all non-avian dinosaurs became extinct. Dinosaurs still exist today in the line of birds (avian dinosaurs). Knowledge about dinosaurs is derived from both fossil and non-fossil records, includ ...

Including:

Dinosaur - What is a dinosaur?
Dinosaur - Size Dinosaur - Behavior
Dinosaur - Study of dinosaurs
Dinosaur - Classification Dinosaur - Order Saurischia Dinosaur - †Order Ornithischia Dinosaur - Evolution
Dinosaur - Areas of debate
Dinosaur - Warm-blooded? Dinosaur - Feathered dinosaurs and the bird connection Dinosaur - Evidence for Cenozoic dinosaurs Dinosaur - Bringing dinosaurs back to life Dinosaur - Discovery of probable soft tissue from dinosaur fossils
Dinosaur - Extinction theories
Dinosaur - Asteroid collision Dinosaur - The Oort cloud Dinosaur - Environment changes
Dinosaur - History of discovery Dinosaur - In popular culture Dinosaur - Notes

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Coprolites are fossilized feces, or animal dung. They form an important class of objects studied in the field of paleontology. The name is derived from the Greek words kopros meaning "dung" and lithos meaning "stone". Coprolites are also trace fossils and vary in size from the small fecal pellets of a sea-snail to the large droppings of crocodiles, dinosaurs, or mammals. Typical sizes vary from less than 5 mm (0.2") to 5 cm (2"), although they may exceed 30 cm (12") in length. There is a large variety of shapes: cigar-sh ...

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See text Tyrannosaurids, tyrant lizards or members of the Tyrannosauridae are a carnivorous dinosaur family whose name is derived from the Greek words tyrannos, meaning tyrant; and sauros, meaning lizard. Tyrannosaurids were originally classified as "carnosaurs," along most of the rest of the large theropods. Recent phylogenetic studies, though, have determined that tyrannosaurids are coelurosaurs, a group which also includes the ornithomimids and the maniraptorans. Thus, they are more closely related to dromaeosaurids than to oth ...

Including:

Tyrannosauridae - List of Species

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Diorama Mammals Diorama Mammals Diorama Birds Diorama Mammals Sperm Whale Study of the ocean Dinosaurs Planetarium ...

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American Museum of Natural History, American Museum of Natural History - Images

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The Archaeoraptor specimen was returned by the Czerkases to China, where Xu Xing, a member of Beijing's Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology noticed that the tail of Archaeoraptor strongly resembled an unnamed Maniraptoran dinosaur — later to be named Microraptor zhaoianus — that he was studying, but the front half did not match. He returned to China and traveled to Liaoning Province where he inspected the fossil site. His suspicions that the dinosaur-like tail of the fossil did not belong to th ...

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Archaeoraptor, Archaeoraptor - History, Archaeoraptor - Uncovering the fake, Archaeoraptor - Taxonomic history, Archaeoraptor - Archaeoraptor's better half

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The Ischigualasto Formation contains Late Triassic (Carnian) deposits (230 million years before the present), with some of the oldest known dinosaur remains, which are the world's first with regards to quality, number and importance. It is the only place in the world where nearly all of the Triassic is represented in an undisturbed sequence of rock deposits. This allows for the study of the transition between dinosau ...

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Ischigualasto, Ischigualasto - Importance, Ischigualasto - History, Ischigualasto - Sources

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Microraptor was about 77cm long from its nose to the tip of its tail. Like its close relative Cryptovolans (possibly a junior synonym of Microraptor), Microraptor had long feathers on both its fore- and hind legs, which has led to it being called a "four-winged dinosaur". It has been proposed by Chinese scientists that the animal glided, rather than flew properly. However, close studies of the Berlin specimen of the primitive bird Archaeopteryx show that it too, had flight feathers on its hind legs, ...

See also:

Microraptor, Microraptor - Description, Microraptor - Naming

Read more here: » Microraptor: Encyclopedia II - Microraptor - Description

The purported fossil of Archaeoraptor was found 1998 in a gem show in Tucson, Arizona. It had been found in the Liaoning Province of China, sold on the black market and smuggled out of China and into the United States. Stephen Czerkas, owner of the Dinosaur Museum in Monticello, Utah, purchased it for $80,000 and contacted National Geographic Society. The society made a deal to study it and eventually return it to China. The fossil was unveiled in a press conference on October 15, 1999, and the November 1999 National Geographic ...

See also:

Archaeoraptor, Archaeoraptor - History, Archaeoraptor - Uncovering the fake, Archaeoraptor - Taxonomic history, Archaeoraptor - Archaeoraptor's better half

Read more here: » Archaeoraptor: Encyclopedia II - Archaeoraptor - History

The Prosauropoda were originally defined as the early, bipedal, Triassic ancestors of the great sauropod dinosaurs. More recently, cladistic analysis suggests that rather than being ancestral to sauropods, prosauropods were a sister clade. Recent studies of the genus Massospondylus reveal that the Prosauropoda is indeed monophyletic. This group is a sister group to the Sauropoda, not an ancestral group. The problem however lies in what genera are considered prosauropods. Upchurch (1997) proposes a Node-Based Definition: Blikana ...

See also:

Prosauropoda, Prosauropoda - Changing definitions, Prosauropoda - Technical diagnosis, Prosauropoda - History and general description

Read more here: » Prosauropoda: Encyclopedia II - Prosauropoda - Changing definitions

Brachiosaurus was a sauropod, one of a group of four-legged, plant-eating dinosaurs with long necks and tails, and tiny brains. Unlike other families of sauropods, it had a giraffe-like build, with long forelimbs and a very long neck, which, as a recent study has proven, it did not raise above its head. It had teeth like chisels (spatulate), and nostrils on the top of its head, which may indicate it had a good sense of smell. It had a number of holes in its skull to reduce weight. The first toe on its front foot, and the first three ...

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Brachiosaurus, Brachiosaurus - Description and environment, Brachiosaurus - Berlin's brancai and Chicago's high flyer, Brachiosaurus - Classification, Brachiosaurus - Discovery

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He tried in vain to convince his peers that the fossils were from Mesozoic strata by carefully studying rock layers. Sir Richard Owen famously disputed Mantell's assertion by claiming that the teeth were of mammalian origins. Years later, Mantell had acquired enough fossil evidence to show that the dinosaur's forelimbs were much shorter than its hind legs, therefore ruling out any mammal. Mantell went on to demonstrate that fossil vertebrae Owen had attributed to a variety of diffe ...

See also:

Gideon Mantell, Gideon Mantell - Giant iguana-like teeth, Gideon Mantell - Recognition, Gideon Mantell - Later years, Gideon Mantell - Death and remembrance

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Brachiosaurus was a sauropod, one of a group of four-legged, plant-eating dinosaurs with long necks and tails, and tiny brains. Unlike other families of sauropods, it had a giraffe-like build, with long forelimbs and a very long neck, which, as a recent study has argued, it did not raise above its shoulders. It had teeth like chisels (spatulate), and nostrils on the top of its head, which may indicate it had a good sense of smell. It had a number of holes in its skull to reduce weight. The first toe on its front foot, and the first three ...

See also:

Brachiosaurus, Brachiosaurus - Description and environment, Brachiosaurus - Berlin's brancai and Chicago's high flyer, Brachiosaurus - Classification, Brachiosaurus - Discovery

Read more here: » Brachiosaurus: Encyclopedia II - Brachiosaurus - Description and environment

Triceratops was discovered by John Bell Hatcher in 1888. Its declaration as a legitimate dinosaur came when an intact skull was found. It was named by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1889. Two years earlier, however, he misidentified the Triceratops as a type of bison. The sturdy nature of the animal's skull has ensured that many examples have been preserved as fossils, allowing variations between species and individuals to be studied. Known species of Triceratops include T. prorsus and T. horridus. Diceratops was formerly believed to be a species of Triceratops as well, but i ...

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Triceratops, Triceratops - Discoveries and species, Triceratops - Horns and frill, Triceratops - Biology, Triceratops - Depiction in popular media

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When fully mature, the SuperCroc was as long as a city bus (11–12 m, or 37–40 ft), and weighed up to 8,000 kg (8.8 short tons), as much as the largest known terrestrial carnivore, the dinosaur Giganotosaurus. The saltwater crocodile is the largest modern species, and only reaches half that length (6.3 m, or 20.7 ft, is the longest confirmed individual), and a small fraction of the weight (1,000 kg, or 1.1 tons). The largest SuperCroc was the oldest, because it kept growing through its entire 50–60 year average life span. ...

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SuperCroc, SuperCroc - Description, SuperCroc - Behavior and diet, SuperCroc - Environment, SuperCroc - Scientific study, SuperCroc - The giant croc phenomenon, SuperCroc - Classification, SuperCroc - Desert discoveries

Read more here: » SuperCroc: Encyclopedia II - SuperCroc - Description

The SuperCroc remains are from several individuals, and include a spine (vertebrae), limb bones, hip bones (a pelvic girdle), the bony armored plates that ran down its back (scutes), and more than a half-dozen skulls. Crocodile skulls are thick and heavy, and are found more frequently than the rest of the body. This is quite a contrast with dinosaurs, whose relatively fragile skulls rarely become part of the fossil record. The scutes can also be used to determine age, since they have growth rings like those found in trees. One 80 percent-grown specimen was discovered with 40 rings, indicating that it had lived for 40 ye ...

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SuperCroc, SuperCroc - Description, SuperCroc - Behavior and diet, SuperCroc - Environment, SuperCroc - Scientific study, SuperCroc - The giant croc phenomenon, SuperCroc - Classification, SuperCroc - Desert discoveries

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