Exam 2 Flashcards
Some of the first thyreophoran armored dinosaurs were bipedal (walked on two legs). [t/f]
true
Of these dinosaurs, the dome-headed Pachycephalosaurus is most closely related to:
Triceratops
an anatomical feature thought to be used for intraspecific combat
the horns and frill
What are the most common fossils found at Edelman Fossil Park?
oysters
Edelman Fossil Park scientific importance
one of only 2 places in the world that preserves fossils of animals which died in the mass extinction event
When dinosaurs first evolved, all land on Earth was united into this supercontinent:
Pangaea
The most successful, diverse, and abundant marine vertebrates during the time of dinosaurs were:
Teleost fish
Birds lived at the same time as Tyrannosaurus rex. [t/f]
true
Paleontologists name new dinosaur species based on what kinds of characters?
autapomorphies
In phylogenetic cladistics, what is a clade?
a clade is all descendants of a common ancestor
The state dinosaur of New Jersey, discovered in 1858 in nearby Haddonfield, is:
Hadrosaurus foulkii
What is a synapomorphy?
a shared derived character
What does it mean to be a facultative biped?
It means that they usually walk on four legs, but they could also walk/jog on two legs
pangea splits up into what?
top Laurasia and bottom Gondwana
what era encapsulates the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period
mesozoic era
what is parsimony?
choosing the simplest explanation is probably the correct one
what is its ancestral state?
plesiomorphic
what are derived states? meaning they differ from their ancestor?
apomorphic
what are derived characterrs unique to a single species (or clade)?
autapomorphies
what are shared derived characters owing to common descent
synamorphies
what are shared derived characters owing to common descent
synapomorphies
what are shared derived characters resulting from independent evolution
homoplasies
what does it mean when they evolve independently at different times from different ancestors
convergent evolution
what are shared derived characters owing to common descent?
synapomorphies
what did dinosaurs eat?
Gymnosperms, Angiosperms, Ferns
what kind of posture do crocodilians have?
sprawling
what animal can extend jaws forward?
Teleosts
when did the first mammals evolve from reptiles
the late triassic ~230 Mya
what was a large well known mammal in the Mesozoic?
repenomamus
How do we figure out how dinosaurs are related?
Systematics
what is study of classification and naming of organisms
Taxonomy
what is the study of relationships among species
Phylogenetics
what are the two kinds of dinosaurs - initial split of evolution
Saurischia, Ornithischian
what is a Saurischia dinosaur? (diagnosis)
- pubis with only one anterior prong
- t-rex
- smaller gut cavity, possible diet adaptation
- carnivores
what is an Ornithischian dinosaur? (diagnosis)
- pubis prong goes forward, and back. two projections of bone
- think the expanded stomach for space for fermenting gut
what is the advanced way of chewing that Hypsilophodontidae did?
Pleurokinesis
what are scutes called?
Osteoderms
