1. Pick a dinosaur- your favorite one, or you can do a little research and pick one that interests you. Share why you picked it. Look through previous posts so that you're not picking one someone else has already done. (So I don't have 20 T-rex posts! :)) Give a physical description of your particular dinosaur and really focus on what kinds of adaptations it had. What can we learn about that dinosaur (i.e. behavior, lifestyle, habitat/range, predator/prey relationships) from those adaptations? During what Period did it live? When did it go extinct? Other interesting facts about that dinosaur?
Post your dino report by Sunday, April 11th! Have fun!
The Deinonychus is one of the most deadliest dinosaurs. It had long curved claws on the second toe of each "foot." It could also retract these claws. It walked upright on its third and fourth toes. They usually traveled in gangs. It could attack in multiple ways. It could jump on top of prey digging claws into it. It could also hit it with its tail claw. It also has similar traits to today's birds like the shape and structure of the pelvis. Its Order, Suborder, Family is Saurischia, Theropoda, Dromaeosauridae. The deinonychus gets up to 11 feet long. and lived in the Early Cretaceousperiod which was 121-98 million years ago.It was usually located in the Western United States.
ReplyDeleteThe Fruitadens Haagarorum, is the smallest dinosaur. Weighing less than two pounds, and only 28 inches in length when fully grown, these cute little buggers are roughly the size of a tea cup chihuahua! It has unusual teeth for a reptile, with canines in the front, and molar-like teeth along the cheeks. The size and arrangement of teeth suggest that it ate mostly plants, eggs, and insects. Fossils of Fruitadens Haagarorum were found in North America, in 'Fruita, Colorado,' thus the name. Fruitadens Haagarorum lived roughly 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic Period, and with such a small size, you can't help but wonder how it survived at all, while walking with the giants of the earth?! They were very agile and fast, most likely darting between the legs of much larger dinosaurs like Brachiosaurus.
ReplyDeleteLast weekend I saw a family friend of ours who has very young children. Their 3 year old boy was absolutely in love with dinosaurs. He knew all of their full names and information about each one. When we stumbled upon toy dinosaur he identified it as a Parasaurolophus and told me it was one of his favorites.
ReplyDeleteThe Parasaurolophus dinosaur is a typical hadrosaur dinosaur, also known as a duckbilled dinosaur. It had a toothless bill, rows of cheek teeth, powerful rear legs, and a prominent head crest. The Parasaurolophus's prominent head crest is really its most defining feature. Scientists believe that Parasaurolophus used this crest like a horn, allowing it to make very loud calls to distant companions. It is also suggested to be a form of mating to attract a mate. Many early suggestions proposed that the head crest was an adaptation from an aquatic lifestyle, following the hypothesis that hadrosaurs were amphibious, and the head crest served as a snorkel. Most of these hypotheses were later rejected, since there was no hole at the end of the crest for a snorkeling function.
The Parasaurolophus was discovered in Alberta, Canada in 1922. The fossils found were fairly complete and consisted of an almost complete skeleton. It lived in the late Cretaceous period, towards to end of the dinosaur reign, and it is believed to have gone extinct in the final extinction of the dinosaurs, with a huge asteroid. Parasaurolophus was an herbivore, eating pine needles, leaves, and twigs. Fossilized stomach contents have been found, consisting mostly of land plants. The Parasaurolophus was a fast moving dinosaurs on two legs, it may not get the attention the T-Rex gets, but it is just as amazing a reptile.
My favorite dinosaur is the ankylosaurus. It is my favorite because one day I was watching a dinosaur documentary and they had a hungry t-rex attacking a mother ankylosaurus. Yet the ankylosaurus mother dodged the t-rex's attacks and hit her in the leg. When she hit it in the leg, the leg broke instantly and the t-rex limped off crying. So if any dinosaur can put the hurt on a t-rex in just one swing I think that that dinosaur deserves some praise.
ReplyDeleteThe ankylosaurus has two main adaptations. The first is it protective plates. These plates were almost everywhere. They were on its back, tail, neck, head, and even over its eyes. These plates acted as very strong, to impenetrable, armor agains any predators. Its other adaptation was its club on its tail. This club when swung has a massive amount of force behind it (enough to break the femur of a t-rex). Unfortunately with these adaptations it meant that the ankylosaurus was slow. Also we can tell that from its slow build it wasn't a runner, or very smart, so it ate non-moving plants. It lived during the end of the Cretaceous Period. It went extinct 65 million years ago.
The Brachiosaurus is one of the dinosaurs that was a massive plant eater. The dinosaur was around 156 to 145 million years ago. With all the land animals, these were the largest and heaviest out of all of them. An average one was about 75 feet long, 41 feet tall and weighed about 89 tons. These dinosaurs were unusual, their front legs were longer than its hind legs. Their neck was very long as well, and gave them the ability to eat at the top of the trees, about 40 or 50 feet above the ground!
ReplyDeletethere was a claw on the first toe of each front foot and claws on the first three toes of each rear foot. Each foot had five toes with fleshy pads. It had chisel teeth, its nostrils were on the top of its head, and it had large nasal openings. They spent most time living in the water and that its related to hippos. They didn't have any predators, they were to big and there was smaller pray easier for other ones to attack on. They travelled in herds, they used their long tail to whip away most attackers.
Apatosaurus (Little Foot in Land Before Time!)
ReplyDeleteThis is a large dinosaur that was between 70 and 90 feet in length and 10 to 15 feet in height, excluding the neck; it weighed about 40 tons. It's neck was quite long, in fact, 20 feet long, while it's tail neared about 30. The Apatosaurus was an herbivore who spent more than half of its life in water. It even had nostrils that were located on the top of it's two-foot head.
As you know, the Apatosaurus was an incredibly large animal. This encouraged it to spend its life in the water where its weight would feel lighter. It could go 25 to 30 feet below the water and because of its lack of being able to breathe when under, its location of the nostrils being on top of the head allows the dinosaur to breathe while in the water.
Apart from helping it balance, the dinosaur's 30-foot tail served as its primary source of defense. The apatosaurus would use it to whip its predator, who afterwards, would have serious damage to its body.
The dinosaur's neck was very long, and assisted it in many ways. When it was in the water, its long neck would allow it to retrieve the plants from the bottom of the water sources that it lived in. On the contrary, when the dinosaur was on land the long neck allowed it to reach the tallest trees and retrieve the leaves.
The Apatosaurus was found mainly in the western United States and lived during the late Jurassic Period; they went extinct about 150 million years ago. Since it was obviously cold-blooded, it was unable to produce its own body heat leading it to live in a warm climate.
In kindergarten and first grade, I was such a nerd for dinosaurs. One of my favorites was Baryonyx. It has a long snout with pointed teeth for catching fish. Its nostrils are placed about four inches back from the tip of the skull. It skull adaptations are very similar to those of crocodilians which suggests that it lived mostly on a diet of fish. It stands on two legs. There are two huge claws on its hands which could have been used for ripping open carcasses. The biggest claw is nearly a foot long. (Baryonyx was also a scavenger). It could be up to 39 feet long and weigh 1.5 to 2 tons.
ReplyDeleteBaryonyx lived during the early Cretaceous Period (about 125-119 million years ago). Fossils have been found in Southeast England and Spain. Baryonyx probably lived near water sources with a lot of fish in a sub-tropical environment.
Baryonyx was discovered in a quarry in 1983. It's name means "Heavy Claw". It was an important find because this dinosaur had a different shape than other meat eating dinosaurs. Partly digested chunks of huge fish were found in the stomach region of Baryonyx fossils. The placement of the nostrils on the skull could have allowed Baryonyx to keep its snout underwater and still be able to breathe.
I chose the Protarchaeopteryx because I've never heard of it before now and I thought it was interesting. Protarchaeopteryx was an omnivore from the early Cretaceous period to the Jurassic period, about 121 to 135 million years ago in China. This dinosaur is more primitive than the earliest known bird, Archaeopteryx, and the fossil was found near Yianxin, Liaoning Province, China, in sediment in an ancient lake bed. This dinosaur had short arms and legs, was about the size of a turkey, lacked the typical tail of a theropod by having a short and feathered one, and also had feathers covering most of its body. Even though the Protarchaeopteryx had hollow, bird-like bones, the symmetrical feathers on its arms and its skeletal structure shows that it was flightless, and was probably a swift runner because of the long legs and slight body.
ReplyDeleteI chose to study the pterodactyl. Although once I began my research, I learned that the pterodactyl isn’t technically a dinosaur. Dinosaurs are strictly animals living on land. However, the pterodactyl was a flying reptile during the dinosaur period, so it is often associated with dinosaurs.
ReplyDeleteThe pterodactyl was unique during the dinosaur period because it had wings that stretched up to 40 ft long. The wings were attached to the very long forth finger on each of its arms. They lived during the cretaceous and Jurassic time periods. The asteroid that caused extinction for many dinosaur species also eliminated pterodactyls.
These winged-reptiles were thought to live in caves and trees near the sea. Pterodactyls are thought to have lived all over the road—in Europe, North America, Australia and Africa. They usually ate insects. Sometimes, pterodactyls had a coat of fur. Their wings are unique because they are covered in a leathery substance that enables them to fly well.
The Futalognkosaurus was a very large long-necked plant eater that lived about 87 million years ago during the late cretaceous period. It is an estimated 105-111 feet long and 80-85 tons. It's neck alone contains 14 vertebrae and is over a meter deep in places. It's fossils were found in the Nequén province of Argentina in 2000. The fossils found around the remains of this dinosaur suggest a warm tropical climate, and that this dinosaur was an herbivore.. So far it is known as the most complete giant dinosaur known so far since about 70% of it's skeleton has been recovered.
ReplyDeleteVelociraptor- Was a genius of all the dinosaurs. It has been my favorite dinosaur along with the t-rex since i was little (i was a dinosaur fanatic when i was younger). There are two types of species of velociraptors. One is the mongoliensis, found in mongolia. The other is the osmolskae which is found in inner mongolia and china. The velociraptor was the size of a large turkey, had a long and stiff tail, had feathers, and had a sickle like claw on each foot (good for grip and catching prey). It also has a long narrow skull with an upturned snout differing it from other dromaeosaurids. It lived during the later cretaceous period about 75-71 million years ago.
ReplyDeleteI chose the Triceratops because of its amazing facial features. I love the huge thing they have on the top of their necks that looks like a crown, which i learned is called a frill. They are also closely related to the modern Rhinoceros and look a lot like them with the horn on the nose, but the Triceratops had a total of three including the two on the top of its head (around 3 feet long.) The Triceratops existed about 65 million years ago during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Cretaceous period. They were herbivores probably because their head was close to the ground but could still reach or knock things down to eat off trees. They were sometimes prey to the T-Rex, but tried to stand their ground to them. In size this animal was around 28 feet long and 9.5 feet tall. It walked on four legs which were very short and stubby, attached to a heavy built body.
ReplyDeleteHonestly I have a dinosaur, its a Spinosaurus. Ok yeah I’m kidding, but this is the dinosaur I chose to talk about and I really don’t know why. So this creature had really big head and it was the largest of the meat eating dinosaurs. They lived in the middle cretaceous period, which was about 95 million years ago. They also had rows of non-serrated teeth which allowed them to tear through their prey. I guess that could count as an adaption and they also had a “sail” on their back which was used for dispersion of heat, sexual and mating habits, and was also probably used to intimidate others. It was a very smart dinosaur and could probably run on two feet. They ranged from about 50 feet long and 20 feet high, which means they were are large animal. I actually don’t know anything about dinosaurs and they really don’t interest me at all and they sort of scare me. Not one dinosaur looks cute or cuddly or anything.
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ReplyDeleteI browsed Wikipedia because I had no idea what dinosaur I enjoy the most. I came up with Pachycephalosaurus. I just found it interesting from the looks. The Pachycephalosaurus was a bipedal omnivore with an large head. The skull of the dinosaur was extremely thick (Up to 10 inches!). It had long legs with short arms. It is thought that the thick skull my have been used for combat between other dinosaurs. It was around 4.5 metres (15 ft) long and weighed 450 kilograms (990 lb). The Pachycephalosaurus lived in the late Cretaceous Period, and was one of the last non- avian dinosaurs before the K-T Extinction event. It is assumed that pachycephalosaurs lived on a mixed diet of leaves, seeds, fruit and insects.
ReplyDeletePlesiosaurs spent most of their lives in the water. They had long necks, strong jaws, four massive paddle-like fins, and very sharp teeth. They ate many types of ocean dwelling animals. Even though they lived mostly in the water it is believed that they came on land to lay eggs.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to pick the Tylosaurus because it a massive dinosaur and it lives in water, among one of the top aquatic predators. It resembles a aquatic lizard, has strong jaws, and is roughly 49+ ft. Fossils of the Tylosaurus have been found in North America. It lived during the late Cretaceous period. Its diet included anything that was smaller than it. It was a amazing water predator.
ReplyDeleteSince no one has posted about the "T-Rex" I will take the responsibility and make sure there is at least one post.
ReplyDeleteTyrannosaurus Rex or "T-Rex" as we know it was one of the first Dinosaurs I found to love. From the moment I saw it animated in the movie Jurassic Park (I know it's Science Fiction not Science) the sheer awe and power of the creature inspired me to learn more. As time progressed and research I soon learned that the Tyrannosaurus was not at all like Hollywood like to portray it.
The Tyrannosaurus was a scavenger more than a predator. It's size may have been it's power but it was also its weakness. Due to virtually no arms when the Tyrannosaurus fell it would also be doomed to death, comical but tragic how such a majestic and awe inspiring dinosaur turns out to be a clumsy fool.
However little is known of this creature. The debate over whether it was an Apex (Top) Predator or a scavenger is the longest running debate in paleontology and is still continuing today.
The dinosaur that I like because it is just a huge birdy is the pterodactyl. I chose this dinosaur because I like how it is so huge. It looks so cool too. I also chose it because I wish I could fly. I wish I was superman sometime, but that will never happen so I chose that if I could, I would be this dino. Pterodactyl in Greek means the winged-finger which is kind of cool because at the end of the wings, there were little claws at the end so that it could grab onto cliffs and things. Pterodactyl is actually not real, it is a synonym for Pterosaurs. But this dinosaur was a carnivore, it only fed on anything that was small enough to eat and to catch.
ReplyDeleteThat is why I chose this dinosaur
The dinosaur I chose is the Abrictosaurus
ReplyDeleteits size and weight: 4 feet long and 100 pounds
Diet: It ate plants
Charictoristics
it is small and has a combination of a beak and teeth
About Abrictosaurus:
The Abrictosaurus is known from limited remains, the incomplete fossils of two individuals. This dinosaur's distinctive teeth mark it as a close relative of Heterodontosaurus, and like many reptiles of the early Jurassic period, it was fairly small, adults reaching sizes of only 100 pounds or so. Based on the presence of primitive tusks in one specimen of Abrictosaurus, it's believed this species may have been sexually dimorphic, with males differing from females.
Ceratosaurus was a fairly typical theropod, with a large head, short forelimbs, robust hind legs, and a long tail. The prominent nose horn is formed from protuberances of the nasal bones. Uniquely among theropods, Ceratosaurus possessed dermal armor, in the form of small osteoderms running down the middle of its back. Marsh (1884) considered the nasal horn of Ceratosaurus to be a "most powerful weapon" for both offensive and defensive purposes. Ceratosaurus reached lengths of 6 to 8 meters, about 8 feet tall, and weighed about 500kg and 1 ton. It was said to be found in the west of the U.S. Also another similar species was found in Portugal.
ReplyDeleteI chose for a dinosour the Iguanodon because it had a very intresting name and no one else had picked it. Iguanodon grew up to 30 feet long and weighed over 3 tons. They had long spikes on there thumbs and there hands had three fingers that were webbed together kind of resembling a hoove. They are a genus containing multiple species.
ReplyDeleteFor there diet they ate just plants. They were alive during the Jurassic period and died out in the Cretaceous period. The intresting facts about these dinosours is that they had the ability to walk on all four legs and they were also discovered before people even knew about dinosours.