• 15Feb 08

  theropods

  THEROPOD
  
  Theropods (meaning "beast-footed") were a suborder of Saurischian dinosaurs. They were fast-moving, bipedal carnivores (meat-eaters) with grasping hands and clawed digits. They ranged in size from tiny (e.g., the chicken-sized Compsognathus) to huge (Giganotosaurus was over 50 feet tall). Theropods lived from the mid-Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous period. Their fossils have been found world-wide.
  
  THEROPODS
  Led to the birds!

  • Fast and agile
  • Carnivorous diet
  • Sharp, slicing teeth or beak, and well-developed jaw muscles
  • Clawed hands (usually with three main digits - exceptions include the Tyrannosaurids, who lost the third digit)
  • Bipedal walk
  • Strong legs with bird-like, clawed feet
  • Large eyes, indicating good eyesight.
  • Posted Feb 15, 2008 10:11 am PT
  • Category: Other
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• 15Feb 08

  velocirapter

  VELOCIRAPTOR
  Meaning "Speedy Thief"
  
  
  ANATOMY
  Velociraptor was a fast-running, two-legged (bipedal) dinosaur. This meat-eater had about 80 very sharp, curved teeth in a long, flat snout; some of the teeth were over an inch (2.5 cm) long. This predator had an s-shaped neck, arms with three-fingered clawed hands, long thin legs, and four-toed clawed feet. Velociraptor's head was about 7 inches (18 cm) long.

  Velociraptor may have been able to run up to roughly 40 mph (60 km/hr) for short bursts.
  
  Velociraptor was about 5 to 6 feet long (1.5-2 m), and 3 feet tall (1 m). It may have weighed about 15 to 33 pounds (7 to 15 kg). It had a stiff tail that worked as a counterbalance and let it make very quick turns.
  A 3.5 inch (9 cm) long, sickle-like, retractible claw was on the middle toe of each foot. This claw was its main weapon, and could probably kill most of its prey (defenseless plant-eaters like hadrosaurs) easily.
  
  Velociraptor's brain was relatively large in comparison to its body size (this is true for all the Dromaeosaurid dinosaurs, who were the most intelligent dinosaurs).
  
  WHEN VELOCIRAPTOR LIVED
  Velociraptor lived during the late Cretaceous period, about 85 - 80 million years ago. Among the contemporaries of Velociraptor were Protoceratops, Gallimimus, Oviraptor, Edmontosaurus, Maiasaura, and Saurolophus.

  • Posted Feb 15, 2008 10:08 am PT
  • Category: Other
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• 15Feb 08

  homalocephale

  ANATOMY
  Homalocephale was a thick-skulled, plant-eating dinosaur. Its flat head housed a very thick skull, a tiny brain, and large eyes. The skull consisted of porous, non-rigid bone interlaced with blood vessels.

  Homalocephale grew to be about 5 feet long (1.5 m) and weighed about 95 pounds (43 kg). Homalocephale probably had a good sense of smell. It had bumpy knobs on its snout and along the rear of its skull. It had leaf-shaped teeth, short forelimbs and a stiff tail.
  
  HOMALOCEPHALE BEHAVIOR
  Homalocephale may have been a herding dinosaur that lived in small groups in coastal and upland regions, but this is not certain since no bonebeds of Homalocephale have been found.
  
  Running and flank-butting (ramming into an enemy's body with the head) were probably the first line of self-defense.
  
  It had long been thought that Pachycephalosaurid' thick skulls may have been used for ramming rivals during mating and dominance combat, for attracting mates, and as a last-ditch self-defense against predators (this idea was first presented by Ed Colbert in 1955). Paleontologist Mark Goodwin of the University of California at Berkeley has analyzed many pachycephalosaur skulls (including those of Pachycephalosaurus), finding no evidence of healed scars. Also, under close analysis, the thick skull bone is not rigid and solid, but porous and fragile when put under extreme pressure. ``It's time to kill the myth ... It certainly wouldn't be in their own best interests to ram heads in a fight,'' said Goodwin ``They would have killed each other, and a couple of bowling balls would hardly make good targets.'' It is more likely that Pachycephalosaurus butted other animals sides (flank-butting), rather than their heads. This would inflict damage on the other animal and not injure the Pachycephalosaurid.
  
  WHEN HOMALOCEPHALE LIVED
  Homalocephale lived during the late Cretaceous period, about 80 to 70 million years ago, toward the end of the Age of Reptiles. Possible predators of Homalocephale include: Borogovia, Conchoraptor, Chingkankousaurus, Deinocheirus, Elmisaurus, Gallimimus, Hulsanpes, Ingenia, Maleevosaurus, Saurornithoides , Shanshanosaurus, Therizinosaurus, and Velociraptor (medium to large theropods from Mongolia during the late Cretaceous period).
  
  DIET
  Homalocephale was an herbivore, eating soft plants, fruit, and seeds. Its teeth were small and leaf-shaped.
  
  LOCOMOTION
  Homalocephale walked on two legs, and was not a very fast dinosaur. When it walked or ran, it probably held its back level to the ground. It may have gone on all fours to forage for low-lying plants.
  
  DISCOVERY OF FOSSILS
  An almost complete skeleton of Homalocephale was found in Mongolia in 1901 and named by paleontologists Maryánska & Osmólska in 1974.

  ****FICATION
  Homalocephale belonged to the:

  • Order Ornithischia dinosaur - bird-hipped, herbivorous dinosaurs
  • Marginocephalia
  • Suborder Pachycephalosauria - thick-skulled herbivores (possibly herding) which includes: Pachycephalosaurus, Stegoceras, Wannanosaurus, and others.
  • Family Homalocephalidae, which includes: Homalocephale and Ornatotholis
  • Genus: Homalocephale
  • Species: the type species is H. calathocercos
  • Posted Feb 15, 2008 10:04 am PT
  • Category: Other
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