Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages

Product Information

Sternberg, Charles Mortram (1966) [Original edition published by E. Cloutier, printer to the King, 1946]. Canadian Dinosaurs. Geological Series. Vol.54 (2nded.). Ottawa: National Museum of Canada. LCCN gs46000214. OCLC 1032865683. a b Paul 2000, pp.140–168, chpt. 3: "Classification and Evolution of the Dinosaur Groups" by Thomas R. Holtz Jr. The following is a simplified classification of dinosaur groups based on their evolutionary relationships, and those of the main dinosaur groups Theropoda, Sauropodomorpha and Ornithischia, compiled by Justin Tweet. [135] Further details and other hypotheses of classification may be found on individual articles. The first dinosaur fossils were recognized in the early 19th century, with the name "dinosaur" (meaning "terrible lizard") being coined by Sir Richard Owen in 1842 to refer to these "great fossil lizards". [7] [8] [9] Since then, mounted fossil dinosaur skeletons have been major attractions at museums worldwide, and dinosaurs have become an enduring part of popular culture. The large sizes of some dinosaurs, as well as their seemingly monstrous and fantastic nature, have ensured their regular appearance in best-selling books and films, such as Jurassic Park. Persistent public enthusiasm for the animals has resulted in significant funding for dinosaur science, and new discoveries are regularly covered by the media.

Schweitzer, M.H.; Zheng, W.; Cleland, T.P.; Bern, M. (2013). "Molecular analyses of dinosaur osteocytes support the presence of endogenous molecules". Bone. Amsterdam: Elsevier. 52 (1): 414–423. doi: 10.1016/j.bone.2012.10.010. ISSN 8756-3282. PMID 23085295. Rupke, Nicolaas A. (1994). Richard Owen: Victorian Naturalist. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-05820-8. LCCN 93005739. OCLC 844183804 . Retrieved November 5, 2019. Megaraptora (theropods with large hand claws; either carnosaurs or coelurosaurs, potentially tyrannosauroids) Schweitzer, M.H.; Lindgren, J.; Moyer, A.E. (2015). "Melanosomes and ancient coloration re-examined: a response to Vinther 2015 (DOI 10.1002/bies.201500018)". BioEssays. 37 (11): 1174–1183. doi: 10.1002/bies.201500061. PMID 26434749. S2CID 45178498.Padian, Kevin, ed. (1986). The Origin of Birds and the Evolution of Flight. Memoirs of the California Academy of Sciences. Vol.8. San Francisco, CA: California Academy of Sciences. ISBN 978-0-940228-14-6. OCLC 946083441. OL 9826926M. However, researchers do not agree regarding whether these structures share a common origin between lineages (i.e., they are homologous), [251] [252] or if they were the result of widespread experimentation with skin coverings among ornithodirans. [253] If the former is the case, filaments may have been common in the ornithodiran lineage and evolved before the appearance of dinosaurs themselves. [246] Research into the genetics of American alligators has revealed that crocodylian scutes do possess feather-keratins during embryonic development, but these keratins are not expressed by the animals before hatching. [254] The description of feathered dinosaurs has not been without controversy in general; perhaps the most vocal critics have been Alan Feduccia and Theagarten Lingham-Soliar, who have proposed that some purported feather-like fossils are the result of the decomposition of collagenous fiber that underlaid the dinosaurs' skin, [255] [256] [257] and that maniraptoran dinosaurs with vaned feathers were not actually dinosaurs, but convergent with dinosaurs. [245] [256] However, their views have for the most part not been accepted by other researchers, to the point that the scientific nature of Feduccia's proposals has been questioned. [258] When laying eggs, females grow a special type of bone between the hard outer bone and the marrow of their limbs. This medullary bone, which is rich in calcium, is used to make eggshells. A discovery of features in a Tyrannosaurus skeleton provided evidence of medullary bone in extinct dinosaurs and, for the first time, allowed paleontologists to establish the sex of a fossil dinosaur specimen. Further research has found medullary bone in the carnosaur Allosaurus and the ornithopod Tenontosaurus. Because the line of dinosaurs that includes Allosaurus and Tyrannosaurus diverged from the line that led to Tenontosaurus very early in the evolution of dinosaurs, this suggests that the production of medullary tissue is a general characteristic of all dinosaurs. [190] Fossil interpreted as a nesting oviraptorid Citipati at the American Museum of Natural History. Smaller fossil far right showing inside one of the eggs.

Cabreira, S.F.; Kellner, A.W.A.; Dias-da-Silva, S.; da Silva, L.R.; Bronzati, M.; de Almeida Marsola, J.C.; Müller, R.T.; de Souza Bittencourt, J.; Batista, B.J.; Raugust, T.; Carrilho, R.; Brodt, A.; Langer, M.C. (2016). "A Unique Late Triassic Dinosauromorph Assemblage Reveals Dinosaur Ancestral Anatomy and Diet". Current Biology. 26 (22): 3090–3095. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.09.040. PMID 27839975.Nesbitt, Sterling J. (2011). "The Early Evolution of Archosaurs: Relationships and the Origin of Major Clades". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History. New York: American Museum of Natural History. 2011 (352): 1–292. doi: 10.1206/352.1. hdl: 2246/6112. ISSN 0003-0090. S2CID 83493714. Archived from the original on February 29, 2016 . Retrieved October 16, 2019. Owen, Richard (1842). "Report on British Fossil Reptiles. Part II". Report of the Eleventh Meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science; Held at Plymouth in July 1841. London: John Murray. pp. 60–204. ISBN 978-0-8201-1526-9. LCCN 99030427. OCLC 1015526268 . Retrieved October 13, 2019.

World War II caused a pause in palaeontological research; after the war, research attention was also diverted increasingly to fossil mammals rather than dinosaurs, which were seen as sluggish and cold-blooded. [60] [61] At the end of the 1960s, however, the field of dinosaur research experienced a surge in activity that remains ongoing. [62] Several seminal studies led to this activity. First, John Ostrom discovered the bird-like dromaeosaurid theropod Deinonychus and described it in 1969. Its anatomy indicated that it was an active predator that was likely warm-blooded, in marked contrast to the then-prevailing image of dinosaurs. [60] Concurrently, Robert T. Bakker published a series of studies that likewise argued for active lifestyles in dinosaurs based on anatomical and ecological evidence (see §Physiology), [63] [64] which were subsequently summarized in his 1986 book The Dinosaur Heresies. [65] Paleontologist Robert T. Bakker with a mounted skeleton of a tyrannosaurid ( Gorgosaurus libratus)Restoration of six dromaeosaurid theropods: from left to right Microraptor, Velociraptor, Austroraptor, Dromaeosaurus, Utahraptor, and Deinonychus Lessem, Don; Glut, Donald F. (1993). The Dinosaur Society's Dinosaur Encyclopedia. Illustrations by Tracy Lee Ford; scientific advisors, Peter Dodson, et al. New York: Random House. ISBN 978-0-679-41770-5. LCCN 94117716. OCLC 30361459 . Retrieved October 30, 2019. Morell, V. (1993). "Dino DNA: the Hunt and the Hype". Science. 261 (5118): 160–162. Bibcode: 1993Sci...261..160M. doi: 10.1126/science.8327889. PMID 8327889. Lambert, David; The Diagram Group (1990). The Dinosaur Data Book: The Definitive, Fully Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs. New York: Avon Books. ISBN 978-0-380-75896-8. LCCN 89092487. OCLC 21833417 . Retrieved October 14, 2019. Sereno, Paul C.; Forster, Catherine A.; Rogers, Raymond R.; Monetta, Alfredo M. (1993). "Primitive dinosaur skeleton from Argentina and the early evolution of Dinosauria". Nature. London: Nature Research. 361 (6407): 64–66. Bibcode: 1993Natur.361...64S. doi: 10.1038/361064a0. ISSN 0028-0836. S2CID 4270484.

Baron, Matthew G.; Norman, David B.; Barrett, Paul M. (2017). "A new hypothesis of dinosaur relationships and early dinosaur evolution". Nature. London: Nature Research. 543 (7646): 501–506. Bibcode: 2017Natur.543..501B. doi: 10.1038/nature21700. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 28332513. S2CID 205254710. "This file contains Supplementary Text and Data, Supplementary Tables 1-3 and additional references.": Supplementary Information [ permanent dead link] Paul, Gregory S. (1988). Predatory Dinosaurs of the World: A Complete Illustrated Guide. New York: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0-671-61946-6. LCCN 88023052. OCLC 859819093 . Retrieved October 30, 2019.The smallest dinosaur known is the bee hummingbird, [156] with a length of only 5 centimeters (2.0in) and mass of around 1.8g (0.063oz). [157] The smallest known non- avialan dinosaurs were about the size of pigeons and were those theropods most closely related to birds. [158] For example, Anchiornis huxleyi is currently the smallest non-avialan dinosaur described from an adult specimen, with an estimated weight of 110g (3.9oz) [159] and a total skeletal length of 34 centimeters (1.12ft). [158] [159] The smallest herbivorous non-avialan dinosaurs included Microceratus and Wannanosaurus, at about 60 centimeters (2.0ft) long each. [160] [161] Behavior A nesting ground of the hadrosaur Maiasaura peeblesorum was discovered in 1978 By contrast, ornithischians—"bird-hipped", from the Greek ornitheios (ὀρνίθειος) meaning "of a bird" and ischion (ἰσχίον) meaning "hip joint"—had a pelvis that superficially resembled a bird's pelvis: the pubic bone was oriented caudally (rear-pointing). Unlike birds, the ornithischian pubis also usually had an additional forward-pointing process. Ornithischia includes a variety of species that were primarily herbivores.