Question #1:What blush were the dinosaurs?
Answer: No one knows. Animal's derma colors are produced by amoebic pigments which are not preserved in the action of fossilization.
The best assumption about anachronistic blush is to try to amount out how a accurate anachronistic lived and extrapolate, application modern-day reptiles (and added animals) as a guide. For example, an beastly that is heavily bolter may charge appearance to advice it adumbrate from predators. Or, it may be blithely colored, artful a poisonous species.
Basically, it is absurd to apperceive what the dinosaurs' blush was (using today's science).
Question #2: How and if did the dinosaurs go extinct?
Answer: The dinosaurs (except the birds) went abolished 65 actor years ago, apparently due to the after-effects of an asteroid appulse off the Yucatan Peninsula.
There are a lot of theories about why this K-T (Cretaceous-Tertiary) afterlife occurred, but a broadly accustomed approach (proposed in 1980 by physicist Luis Alvarez and his son Walter Alvarez, a geologist), is that an asteroid 4-9 afar (6-15 km) in bore hit the Earth about 65 actor years ago. The appulse would accept penetrated the Earth's crust, drop dust and bits into the atmosphere, and acquired huge fires, agitable action , tsunamis , astringent storms with top apprehension and awful acerb rain . The appulse could accept acquired actinic changes in the Earth's atmosphere, accretion concentrations of sulfuric acid, nitric acid, and fluoride compounds. The calefaction from the impact's bang beachcomber would accept incinerated all the activity forms in its path.
The dust and bits advance into the atmosphere would accept blocked a lot of of the sunlight for months, and bargain the temperature globally.
Those bacilli that could not acclimate to the temperature and ablaze changes would die out. Back plants' activity is acquired from the sun, they would acceptable be the aboriginal to be afflicted by changes in climate. Abounding families of phytoplankton and plants would die out, and the Earth's oxygen levels may able-bodied accept badly decreased, both on acreage and in the oceans, airless those bacilli which were clumsy to cope with the lower oxygen levels.
Major changes in the aliment web would aftereffect from all of these these ecology upheavals. The herbivores (plant eaters) who ate those plants would abjure anon afterwards the plants died. Then, at the top of the aliment chain, the carnivores (meat eaters), accepting absent their prey, would accept to eat anniversary other, and eventually die out. Their ample carcasses accept to accept provided abate animals with aliment for absolutely a while.
Although a lot of dinosaurs went abolished about 65 actor years ago, one annex of the dinosaurs (the dromaeosaurids) acquired into the birds.
Question #3: What was the better dinosaur?
Answer: The better dinosaurs were sauropods; they were gigantic, slow-moving, tiny-headed, cow-like plant-eaters from the lateJurassic aeon and the aboriginal Cretaceous aeon . They had absolute continued necks which were advantageous for extensive avant-garde (and tall) swatches of vegetation. The diffuse close was counterbalanced by a massive tail. The afterward sauropods are the better acreage animals anytime discovered:
• Argentinosaurus huinculensis - 115-130 anxiety continued (35+ m); 73+ metric tons
• Paralititan 35-40 m) - 70 tonnes
• Seismosaurus hallorum ("Earth-shaking lizard") - 120+ anxiety continued (37 m); 30-80 tons
• Supersaurus vivianae - 100-130 anxiety continued (30-40 m); 45-55 metric tons
• Ultrasauros - 100+ anxiety continued (30 m), +80 bags (this may be a ample Brachiosaurus)
• Andesaurus delgadoi 130? anxiety (40 m)
• Bruhathkayosaurus matleyi 130? anxiety (40 m?)
• Argyrosaurus superbus 65-130? anxiety (20-40 m)
• Giraffatitan brancai 75-100? anxiety (23-30 m)
• Diplodocus - grew up to 90 anxiety continued (28 m).
• Brachiosaurus - about 85 anxiety continued (26 m), 40 anxiety tall, and advised 70-80 tons.
But dejected whales are bigger than a lot of of these dinosaurs were!
Question #4: Which anachronistic was the smallest?
Answer: The aboriginal dinosaurs yet apparent are:
• A new, crow-sized theropod, Microraptor was afresh begin in China. It is about 16 inches (40 cm long) and may be an adult.
• Compsognathus, a theropod (meat-eater) 2 anxiety (60 cm) long, from 145 actor years ago. It was the admeasurement of a craven and advised about 6.5 pounds (3 kg).
• Saltopus - a 2 anxiety (60 cm) continued insectivore (insect-eater) from about 200 actor years ago.
• Lesothosaurus - a 3 anxiety (90 cm) long, fast running, plant-eater from Africa, 200 actor years ago.
• Wannanosaurus - a 39 inches (1 m) pachycephalosaur, a plant-eater from China, 83-73 actor years ago.
Other babyish dinosuars cover Micropachycephalosaurus, Microcephale, Nanosaurus, Gasparinisaura, Sinosauropteryx, Procompsognathus, Yandangornis, and Bambiraptor.
Mussaurus (meaning "mouse lizard") is the aboriginal complete anachronistic skeleton found, but it is from a hatchling (a baby). It was alone 16 inches continued (37 cm).
Question #5: Which anachronistic was the better meat-eater?
Answer: The better theropods cover T. rex, Spinosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, Bahariasaurus, Giganotosaurus, Acrocanthosaurus,Epanterias, Allosaurus, Torvosaurus, etc.
The better cannibal dinosaurs lived during the Cretaceous period:
• Giganotosaurus carolinii - begin in Patagonia, Argentina. 47 anxiety continued (14 m), 8 bags in weight, and 12 anxiety alpine (4 m).
• Tyrannosaurus rex - begin in North America - 40-50 anxiety continued (12-15 m), 6 bags in weight.
• Spinosaurus - begin in Africa - 40-50 anxiety continued (12-15 m).
• Carcharodontosaurus saharicus - (meaning shark-toothed lizard) begin in in Morocco, Africa, by Paul Sereno. It was apparently about 45 anxiety continued and had 5 inch continued teeth. Its skull (5 anxiety 4 inches) is beyond than T. rex's, but it had a tiny academician atrium (half the admeasurement of T. rex's).
Question #6: How abounding teeth did T. rex accept (and how big were they)?
Answer: T. rex's had over 60 thick, conical, bone-crunching teeth that were up to 9 inches (23 cm) long. Its aperture were up to 4 anxiety (1.2 m) long.
Were added dinosaurs plant-eaters or meat-eaters?
There were abounding added plant-eaters!
Some dinosaurs were carnivores (meat-eaters) but a lot of were herbivores (plant-eaters). In any aliment chain, there accept to be added bacilli at the lower levels of the alternation because the alteration of aliment activity is inefficient and abundant of the activity is wasted. During the Mesozoic Era (as in added times),plant assortment was greater than beastly diversity.
A ample amount of plants (producers) can abutment a abate amount of plant-eaters (primary consumers). These plant-eaters are eaten by a abate amount of carnivores (secondary consumers).
For example, it may accept taken hundreds of acreage of plants to augment a babyish accumulation of Triceratops. These Triceratops could accumulation a individual T. rex with abundant aliment to survive over its lifetime.
If you attending at anachronistic genera, almost 65 percent of the dinosaurs were bulb eaters and 35 percent were meat-eaters (or omnivores). If you attending at the amount of absolute fossils found, the allotment of plant-eaters increases, back abounding fossils of some of the plant-eaters accept been found. For example, over a hundred Protoceratops fossils accept been found, but alone about a dozen T. rex fossils accept been found.
Equilibrium
As the amount of carnivores in a association increases, they eat added and added of the herbivores, abbreviating the herbivore population. It again becomes harder and harder for the carnivores to acquisition herbivores to eat, and the citizenry of carnivores decreases. In this way, the carnivores and herbivores break in a almost abiding equilibrium, anniversary attached the others population. A agnate calm exists amid plants and plant-eaters.
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Herbivores
Plant-eaters (herbivores) usually accept edgeless teeth that are acceptable for stripping frondescence (leaves, twigs, etc.). Some aswell accept collapsed teeth for cutting boxy bulb fibers. Abounding herbivores accept audacity pouches in which they can abundance aliment for a while. Plant-eaters aswell usually accept beyond digestive systems that are bare to abstract the boxy fibers. Sometimes these dinosaurs swallowed rocks (called gastroliths) to advice bullwork up the fibers in their guts. Some (like Ankylosaurus) even had beverage chambers, breadth the bulb fibers were dissolved.
The alone way to apperceive absolutely which plants a accurate anachronistic ate is to acquisition its anachronistic abdomen charcoal or coprolites (fossilized dung) absolute digested bulb material. Anachronistic abdomen charcoal are acutely rare, and coprolites are harder to bout up to a accurate dinosaur. Accustomed these limitations, all you can do is assumption a dinosaur's diet based on the blazon of teeth the anachronistic had (could it eat bendable or boxy bulb material), breadth it lived (climate, habitat, etc., which aren't about known), and which plants were about during that accurate time aeon (for plants that lived during the Mesozoic, bang here). For a lot of dinosaurs, you just accept to assumption (given the constraints listed above) a part of acceptable plants, including ferns, cycads, horsetails, club mosses, berry ferns, conifers, and gingkos, abounded during the Mesozoic Era. Flowering plants acquired during the Cretaceous period.
Herbivorous dinosaurs include: Ankylosaurus, Apatosaurus, Camarasaurus, Diplodocus,Dryosaurus, Euoplocephalus, Heterodontosaurus, Hypsilophodon, Iguanodon, Kentrosaurus,Lambeosaurus, Lesothosaurus, Maiasaura, Massospondylus, Montanoceratops,Pachycephalosaurus, Parasaurolophus, Protoceratops, Riojasaurus, Sauropelta, Seismosaurus,Stegoceras, Stegosaurus, Styracosaurus, Supersaurus, Triceratops, Ultrasauros, Xiaosaurus,Zigongosaurus, and many, abounding others.
Carnivores
Meat-eaters (carnivores or theropods) charge to accept some way to get meat. Cannibal dinosaurs usually had long, able legs so thay they could run fast in adjustment to bolt their prey. They aswell bare big, able jaws, aciculate teeth and baleful claws that could annihilate and again breach afar the prey. Acceptable eyesight, a agog faculty of smell, and a ample academician to plan hunting strategies are aswell absolute important for acknowledged hunting. Abounding of the carnivores (like Deinonychus, Coelophysis and Velociraptor) may accept bolter in packs, so amusing cooperation was all-important for a acceptable hunt. Animals that are primarily scavengers (animals that eat meat that they did not annihilate themselves) charge absolute aciculate teeth and able aperture for disturbing into the meat and breaking the basic for alimental cartilage marrow. A lot of carnivores are scavengers if accustomed the opportunity. Some dinosaurs were angle eaters, including Baryonyx and Suchomimus. Some carnivores (like Coelophysis) were cannibals, bistro their own kind.
Carnivorous dinosaurs include: Albertosaurus, Allosaurus, Coelophysis, Compsognathus, Deinonychus, Dilophosaurus, Eoraptor,Giganotosaurus, Megalosaurus, Suchomimus, Tyrannosaurus rex, Unenlagia, Utahraptor. Velociraptor, Yangchuanosaurus, and abounding others.
Omnivores
Only a few of the accepted dinosaurs were omnivores (eating both plants and animals). Some examples of omnivores areOrnithomimus and Oviraptor, which ate plants, eggs, insects, etc. Also, a lot of herbivores are "accidental omnivores" in that if they are bistro plants, they aswell blot a lot of insects and babyish animals.
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STUDYING DINOSAURS' DIETS
There are abounding altered agency to abstraction dinosaurs' diets, including searching at:
• Fossilized carrion - Coprolites advice analyze dinosaurs' agriculture habits. Recently, in Canada, a ample coprolite was begin that apparently came from a T. rex. The coprolite independent ashamed bones, advertence that T. rex ashamed the basic of its casualty and did not artlessly absorb things whole.
• Fossilized abdomen capacity - these are absolute attenuate to find. Some abnormal finds cover Baryonyx, whose abdomen independent angle scales, and Sinosauropteryx, a bird-like anachronistic which is the alone anachronistic whose abdomen independent locations of a small, anonymous mammal.
• Teeth - A dinosaur's tooth anatomy aswell tells us what blazon of aliment the anachronistic ate. Meat eaters charge aciculate teeth for disturbing beef or able teeth for crushing animals; bulb eaters accept teeth that could strip, and sometimes chew, foliage.
• Gastroliths - Gizzard stones (which aided digestion), accept been begin with some anachronistic fossils. These aswell crop advice about anachronistic diets.
• Girth - Gut admeasurement is aswell an indicator of diet. Ample bulb eaters charge a lot of calories to sustain their mass. In adjustment to get acceptable activity from bulb matter, a lot of frondescence accept to be digested. This requires a ample assimilation area.
Question #7: What was the aboriginal anachronistic anytime found?
Answer: Humans accept been award anachronistic fossils for hundreds of years, apparently even bags of years. There are references to "dragon" basic begin in Wucheng, Sichuan, China (written by Chang Qu) over 2,000 years ago; these were apparently anachronistic fossils.
Much later, in 1676, a huge thigh cartilage (femur) was begin in England by Reverend Plot. It was anticipation that the cartilage belonged to a "giant," but was apparently from a dinosaur. A address of this acquisition was appear by R. Brookes in 1763.
The aboriginal anachronistic to be declared scientifically was Megalosaurus in 1824, by William Buckland. Buckland (1784-1856) was a British deposit hunter and abbey who apparent some Megalosaurus fossils in 1819 and alleged the bastard in 1824. It was the aboriginal anachronistic anytime declared scientifically and aboriginal theropod anachronistic apparent (this is all in hindsight, because the dinosaurs had not yet been accustomed as a abstracted taxonomic accumulation - the chat anachronistic hadn't even been invented yet).
Question #8: What is the oldest anachronistic anytime found?
Answer: Contempo prosauropods from Madagascar are the oldest, about 230 actor years old.
Until recently, the oldest anachronistic begin was Eoraptor (from Argentina) - it is about 228 actor years old. For moreinformation on Eoraptor, bang here.
Other absolute aboriginal dinosaurs cover breed cover cover Pisanosaurus (from Argentina), Saturnalia (a prosauropod from Brazil), Herrerasaurus (from Argentina), Staurikosaurus (a archaic Saurischian from Brazil) and Lesothosaurus (a archaic Ornithischian from South Africa).
Question #9: Did birds advance from the dinosaurs?
Answer: Yes, they a lot of acceptable did. Abounding contempo finds of feathered dinosaurs in China, like Caudipteryx and Sinosauropteryx accept bolstered this theory, which was aboriginal avant-garde by the biologist Thomas Huxley in the backward 1800's.
Question #10: What does anachronistic beggarly and how are dinosaurs named?
Answer: Sir Richard Owen coined the chat dinosaur, acceptation "fearfully abundant lizard," in 1842. In Greek, deinos agency "fearfully great" and sauros agency "lizard."
Naming Dinosaurs: Newly apparent dinosaurs are alleged by the discoverer or by the archaeologian who determines that it represents a new brand (or species). There are abounding altered agency to accept a anachronistic name. Sometimes the anachronistic is accustomed a name that describes something abnormal about it's body, head, or feet. Some are alleged afterwards the area breadth they are found, their behavior, size, or in account of a person. The name has to be accustomed by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature.
Some Dinosaurs Alleged for Abnormal Arch Features
Dinosaur Head Feature
Brachyceratops
Short-horned faced
Corythosaurus
Helmet lizard
Dilophosaurus
Two-ridged lizard
Homalocephale
Level (flat) head
Microceratops
Small-horned faced
Ornatotholus Ornate dome
Pachyrhinosaurus
Thick-nosed Lizard
Pentaceratops
Five-horned head
Saurolophus
Crested lizard
Triceratops
Three-horned head
Some Dinosaurs Alleged for Abnormal Physique Features
Dinosaur Feature
Baryonyx
Heavy claw
Brachiosaurus
Arm Cadger (because its accoutrements are best than its legs)
Ceratosaurus
Horned Lizard
Dacentrus
Sharp-point tail
Deinocheirus
Terrible hand
Elaphrosaurus
Lightweight lizard
Panoplosaurus
Fully-armed lizard
Spinosaurus
Spiny lizard
Centrosaurus, Kentrosaurus, and Styracosaurus
Spiked Lizard
Barosaurus, Epachthosaurus, and Lurdusaurus Heavy Lizard
Some Dinosaurs Alleged for Their Teeth
Dinosaur Feature
Astrodon
Star tooth
Deinodon
Terrible tooth
Heterodontosaurus
Different-tooth lizard
Hypsilophodon
High-ridged tooth
Iguanodon
Iguana tooth
Microdontosaurus Tiny-tooth lizard
Troödon
Wounding tooth
Some Dinosaurs Alleged for Their Feet
Dinosaur Feature
Brachypodosaurus
Short-footed lizard
Deinonychus
Terrible claw
Saltopus
Leaping foot
Velocipes
Swift foot
Some Dinosaurs Alleged in Account of a Person
Dinosaur Paleontologist it was alleged after
Chassternbergia Charles Sternberg
Drinker
Edward Drinker Cope
Lambeosaurus
Lawrence Lambe
Marshosaurus and Othnielia
Othniel C. Marsh
Some Dinosaurs Alleged Afterwards a Place
Dinosaur Place it was alleged for
Albertosaurus
Alberta, Canada
Andesaurus
The Andes mountains, South America
Coloradisaurus
Colorado Formation in Argentina
Denversaurus
Denver, Colorado, USA
Edmontosaurus and Edmontonia
Edmonton Formation in Alberta, Canada
Indosaurus and Indosuchus
India
Lesothosaurus
Lesotho, South Africa
Utahraptor
Utah, USA
Shunosaurus and Szechuanosaurus
Szechuan, China
Some Dinosaurs Alleged for Their Guessed Behavior
Dinosaur Behavior it was alleged for
Maiasaura
Good mother lizard
Oviraptor
Egg bandit (even admitting it wasn't)
Velociraptor
Speedy robber
My admired anachronistic name is Irritator, which was accustomed its name because of annoyance! The humans who begin the deposit added adhesive to it in adjustment to accomplish it attending it added impressive. This nonsense didn't fool the paleontologists, but affronted them, appropriately the name.
Another admirable anachronistic name is the Australian Kakuru which agency "rainbow serpent " It was accustomed this name because it is accepted from a individual tibia (leg bone) that angry into an opal (a beautiful, bright semi-precious stone) during the fossilization process. This tibia accept to be a admirable sight!
Question #12: What affectionate of abode did the anachronistic [you name it] reside in?
Habitats are absolute difficult to infer from the dispersed deposit abstracts that is about available. A few of the dinosaur's ancillary bulb or beastly fossils are sometimes found, but even then, free what the ambiance was like is appealing difficult. Paleontologists usually burden from adage abundant about accurate dinosaurs' habits because of this.
Question #13: How do you apperceive what the enemies of a anachronistic were?
Answer: The absolute predators of a lot of dinosaurs are not known. To actuate what dinosaurs a meat-eater ate is absolute difficult back the deposit almanac is all there is, and it is absolute incomplete.
Fossil evidence
There are alone a few agency of award out about anachronistic predator/prey relationship, and they are all absolute rare.
• Fossilized abdomen capacity can acquaint you absolutely what that anachronistic ate for its endure meal (but alone its endure meal, not necessarily its absolute diet). For example, Baryonyx abdomen capacity were begin to accommodate angle scales.
• Fossilized dung aswell lets you apperceive the capacity of a dinosaur's meal. Unfortunately, addition out what anachronistic the anachronistic dung came from is not easy. Recently, T. rex dung was begin absolute ashamed Triceratops bone. Anachronistic dung is alleged coprolites.
• Finding two anachronistic dinosaurs that died in action lets you apperceive about the predator/prey relationship. In Mongolia, a Velociraptorand Protoceratops were begin together, anniversary address action wounds (like teeth marks in the bones).
Guessing:
Without solid deposit evidence, your alone recourse is guessing. To acquisition out the basin of accessible predators of a accurate dinosaur:
1. Determine if and breadth the anachronistic lived, and how big it was (for this information, go the advice area about your anachronistic or to the Anachronistic Dictionary).
2. Go to the page that lists what dinosaurs lived during anniversary aeon (to see which dinosaurs lived at the aforementioned time and place):
o Late Triassic
o Early Jurassic
o Middle Jurassic
o Late Jurassic
o Early Cretaceous
o Middle Cretaceous
o Late Cretaceous
3. To actuate accessible predators, annal down to the appropriate abstemious and attending for added animals that during the aforementioned amount of years. To acquisition accessible predators of a accurate dinosaur, annihilate meat-eaters that were a lot abate than your dinosaur.
Question #14: Were there any pond dinosaurs?
Baryonyx
Answer: No dinosaurs were acclimatized to an absolutely amphibian life, although some may accept gone into the baptize to get prey. Baryonyx, for example, was begin with anachronistic angle scales in its stomach.
There were abounding amphibian reptiles that lived during the time of the dinosaurs, including plesiosaurs, nothosaurs, and mosasaurs.
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PLESIOSAURS
(pronounced plee-zee-oh-SAWRS) Plesiosaurs (meaning "near lizard") were flippered abyssal reptiles from the Mesozoic Era - they were not dinosaurs. Plesiosaurs are disconnected into two groups: thePlesiosauroids with long, snake-like necks, tiny heads, and avant-garde bodies, and the Pliosauroids, which had ample active with absolute able aperture and abbreviate necks. Some plesiosaurs included Plesiosaurus, Kronosaurus, Elasmosaurus, etc.
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NOTHOSAURS
Nothosaurs were fish-eating reptiles with four flipper-like limbs. They lived both on acreage and in the baptize during theTriassic period. These automated swimmers were not dinosaurs. Nothosaurs had webbed feet, and continued bodies and necks. Nothosaurs (Order Nothosauria) includes the ancestors Nothosauridae (Nothosaurus, Lariosaurus, and Ceresiosaurus) and the ancestors Pistosauridae (Pistosaurus - added like a pleasiosaur).
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MOSASAURS
(pronounced MOES-ah-SAWR) Mosasaurs (meaning "Meuse lizard" alleged for the Meuse river in Holland breadth they were aboriginal found) were giant, cannibal abyssal reptiles (but not dinosaurs) that lived during the backward Cretaceous period. They were able swimmers that had four paddle-like limbs on a long, automated body. The ample arch had ample aperture with abounding teeth. They bolter fish, turtles, mollusks, and shellfish. Some Mosasaurs cover the Mosasaurus (33 feet=10 m continued with aciculate teeth from the North Atlantic), Platecarpus, Tylosaurus (26 feet=8 m continued with aciculate teeth from the North and South Atlantic), Plotosaurus, Clidastes, Plioplatecarpus, and Globidens (with collapsed teeth for crushing shellfish). The aboriginal Mosasaur, Mosasaurus hoffmani, was begin in the Netherlands in 1780.
Question #15: Were there any aerial dinosaurs?
Quetzalcoatlus was the better pterosaur. It had a wingspan of about 39 anxiety or 12 m.
Answer: Although the birds acceptable acquired from the dinosaurs, pre-avian dinosaurs apparently could not fly. But there were abounding flying, non-avian reptiles that lived during the time of the dinosaurs. They were the pterosaurs which included Plesiosaurus, Pteranodon, Pterodactylus,Dimorphodon, Rhamphorhynchus, Quetzalcoatlus, and abounding others.
PTEROSAURS
(pronounced TER-o-SAWRS) Pterosaurs (meaning "winged lizard") were flying, aged reptiles. They were not dinosaurs, but were carefully accompanying to them. Pterosaurs were alleged by Kaup in 1834.