Prehistoric animals have left behind their fossils which gave us evidence of such creatures, what are today known as dinosaurs. These lizard like creatures once roamed our world, but extinct 66 million years ago by the cause of a huge asteroid that impacted Earth very violently ("Cretaceous Period"). The remains of dinosaurs have been observed by scientist throughout the years and have observed their body structures in which they have noticed a great similarity to birds, lizards, crocodiles, and other reptile like creatures.
Dinosaurs lived in the Mesozoic era, a time of the "terrible lizards" a name in which the Greek described them as. Since they were large reptilian creatures they laid eggs like any other of their kind. Dinosaurs had a unique posture in which they would hang their arms with a firm look that made their movement further accessible similar to mammals or birds. Some dinosaurs evolved from a bipedal, meaning that they walked on two legs and others evolved from quadrupedal also meaning which walked on four legs . An example of this would be a tyrannosaurus rex which is a bipedal and a triceratops which is a quadrupedal
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Birds evolved in the Mesozoic era while they were in the theropod group. The rare find of a dinosaur with feathers showed evidence of a bird like dinosaur the size of a crow called the Archaeopteryx. The feathers were in the formation of the modern birds. Of course these types of winged dinosaurs could not fly since their feathers did not develop properly. Their only use to their feathers were a benefit to them as they could had possibly used them to glide or to maneuver quickly in different ways. The fossils of these birds were surprisingly strong to withstand the process of fossilization as the feathers of the birds were thin and believed to be delicate like the feathers of modern birds (Brett-Surman
Paul, Gregory S. (2002). "Looking for the True Bird Ancestor". Dinosaurs of the Air: The Evolution and Loss of Flight in Dinosaurs and Birds. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 171–224. ISBN 0-8018-6763-0.
...ories of why dinosaurs went extinct abound, and as there is no theory yet to be truly confirmed as the “right one”, my theory of dinosaur cannibalism is also purely anecdotal. The discovery of the cannibalistic Majungatholus atopus in Madagascar is an important scientific find because it confirms a long-standing theory of cannibalism among certain carnivorous dinosaurs. Behavioral patterns of extinct animals are difficult to establish; however, these bones give authentication to previous unfounded beliefs about the ancient feeding practices of some dinosaurs.
The Thescelosaurus was a “bird-hipped” dinosaur or an ornithischian ( Russell 2). This herbivore lived near the end of the Cretaceous period, about one million years before the conclusion of the dinosaur era. Thescelosaurus was about the size of a short-legged pony, according to paleontologist Dr. Dale Russell and was native to North America from Wyoming up to Alberta, Canada.
Dinosaurs were first believed to be cold-blooded because they were thought to be related closely to reptiles which are cold-blooded creatures. Cold-blooded animals don’t actually have “cold” blood, instead they rely on the temperature from their environment to regulate their own body temperature. They do this by taking advantage of external heat by basking in the sun, and by lying in the shade to cool down. A more correct term is “ectothermic” which means “heat from outside.” On the other hand, a warm-blooded animal creates heat internally by chemical reactions inside their body. They are able to regulate their body temperature internally instead of relying on their environment. Author of the article, “Dinosaurs: Warm or Cold Blooded?” Beverly Eschberger explains, “endothermic animals have a continually high requirement for food to fuel the heat generation. Providing they can find food their constantly-optimum body temperature means that they can stay active even when it is very cold” (par 3). Even though it was believed that dinosaurs were closely related to cold-blooded reptiles, most dinosaurs had similar behaviors of a bird which is a warm blooded animal. Believing dinosaurs were warm blooded would help explain the reason why dinosaurs were so dominant and plentiful for such a long period of time. There are many other factors that play a vital role in ...
This recent discovery has left scientists with many questions to be answered. The discovery is quite important because any research up until now has failed to uncover any evidence that would reveal that dinosaurs fed among their own kind. Ray Rogers whom has been leading the ten-year excavation states in the article that there are at least 14 current day animals that still practice cannibalism such as lions, komodo dragons, crocodiles, hyenas, black bears and grasshopper mice, but in contrast, any evidence of cannibalism among dinosaurs is sparse.
We use dinosaurs to represent the changes in nature that have occurred throughout time. Studies found that although the “oldest rock did not show evidence of life, the progression of plant and animal life that changed in recognizable intervals, from ancient life, age of reptiles to the age of mammals” (Dino Nature Metaphor, slide 6), measured the age of the earth. When we think of dinosaurs in relation to nature, we think of that very powerful force that controls the cycle of life. Nature was able to yield such magnificent ferocious creatures that walked the earth and then take them back when they served nature’s purpose. Dinosaurs fit perfectly in nature’s constant
Several models have been proposed to explain why might Archaeopteryx or its decedents develop the ability to fly. The “pouncing proavis” or “trees-down” model was proposed by J.P. Garner and colleagues in 1999. They theorize that birds evolved to the ability to fly by first living in trees and then gliding down to ambush prey. Natural selection favoured individuals that could glide the furthest to catch prey and eventually led to the origin of flight. Garner and colleagues (1999) believed that this theory explained three aspects of early flight: the model matches observed secession in flight evolution based on fossil records, it predicts a primitive bird-like animal had few adaptions to flapping but very complex aerodynamic feathers, and it explains the origin of rachis in feathers.
For instance, the whale, the biggest mammal that lives in the water, was found to have had legs and used to dwell on land millions of years ago. While in Pakistan, Phil Gingrich, a geologist and paleontologist, came across a fossil that resembled that of a wolf but had a “bump” on the back of the skull which was found to part of an inner ear,
Ichnology and the study of trace fossils is a valuable tool for unlocking the past biology of the planet, and giving information on behaviour, movement, and feeding patterns. The Mesozoic era, or the “Age of Dinosaurs”, ranged from 252-66 Ma and saw the world dominated by huge reptiles, some of which have been preserved in the fossil record. Over the years Australia has produced very informative dinosaur fossils, some of which are body fossils, but others being trace fossils, usually footprints. Body fossils have proved useful in determining the morphology of prehistoric creatures, but the trace fossils are the true key to unlocking how they might have lived millions of years ago.
Regardless of the details, most of these theories shared the common thought that dinosaurs were a group of animals that had reached the end of their evolutionary life. Their extinction was seen as inevitable, the product of having evolved for too long. In most extinction scenarios, the dinosaurs were simply unable to cope with competition from mammals and the changing climate, and so they all went
Dinosaurs are creatures that seem to fascinate humans, since all we have left are their fossils. Although, through art, their bodies can be put back together and we have a better sense of what they looked like. The problem with art is that pictures can sometimes be disproportionate, unrealistic, or even made up. Young children who learn about dinosaurs may think that they are actually different colors and can talk for example. This is why it is important to make dinosaur art as realistic as possible and more informative.
According to DK Publishing in Prehistoric Life, pterosaurs are flying reptiles related to dinosaurs and flew with wings formed by skin stretched over their forearms.
65 million years ago, the dinosaurs went extinct. Scientists believe that this was caused by an asteroid colliding with Earth. One major piece of evidence for this is a giant crater (150 km wide) that lies just off the Yucatan Peninsula, which could have been caused by the collision. There were high amounts of Iridium (a metal that is very rare on Earth’s surface but more common in asteroids) and fractured crystals found near the crater. Therefore, an asteroid impact caused the dinosaur extinction.
As we know it, or have been told, no living man has seen a living dinosaur but I have found strong evidence to prove otherwise. I will start with the earliest account known to man
Although alligators have been around for many years, there fossils have not been found as long ago as dragons. Dragons were found as long ago after the 65 million