lecture 10 Flashcards
What are 5 general characters of the sauropodomorpha?
- Had a small head (5% body length)
- Had at least 10 neck vertebrae that form a long neck
- additonal vertebrae in front and behind sacrum (hips)
- enormous thumb with large claw
- long femur
How long did the sauropodomorpha live for? Where were the found? How many species of them were there?
Lived for over 160 million years (the entire Time of the Dinosaurs), found on all continents , spawned over 100 species
Who were the prosauropoda and how did they become the sauropoda?
They were the primitive form of the sauropodamorpha, over time their necks became longer, heads became smaller, and they trended towards quadrapedalism
Who were the first large dinos?
The sauropoda
How long did the basic body plan of the sauropods stay the same?
for 140 Ma
What kind of food did the sauropoda’s eat? What plant arise as they did? What plants did they take advantage of?
They were herbivorous, their history parallels the rise of tall gymnosperms, sauropodomorphs were the first to take advantage of tall plants
Were saurpoda good chewers?
No
Why were sauropoda’s awlays eating?
because they were large animals with small mouths
How did the saurapoda’s claw aid in ripping veg?
made is easier to rip it into small pieces
Describe the saurapoda’s digestive system?
- Digestive system probably a
continuous, low-speed conveyor
belt of food - claw may have aided in ripping
vegetation into smaller pieces
What was the largest dinosaur? What other dinosaur may be competing?
The largest dino used to be argentinosaurus huinculensis, patagotitian may have been bigger but the estimates are made on incomplete skeletons. Both saurapodomorphs
Why were the saurapoda so big?
for defense and because they could grow that big
How did the sauropoda keep their vertebrae light?
They had pneumatic bones to keep the upper skeleton light
How did the sauropoda keep their skull light? Why did they need to?
had a extremely small delicate skull full of large openings, it had to be light because it goes at the end of a long neck
Where are the nares on saurapoda’s skull?
migrates Towards the top of the head
What are the two groups of sauropda?
Diplodocoidea and Macronaria
What are the characteristics of Diplodocoidea
- sub-rectangular snout
- fully retracted external nares
above eyes - peg-like teeth along front of jaw
forming tooth comb.
What are the characteristics of the macronaria?
- Nares as large as or larger than
orbit - Nares move towards top of skull
- Shortening and elevation of skull,
indicating more powerful biting
force
Where did early scientists think the fleshy nostrils were?
They thought it was where the bony nostrils were- at the top of the head
Why did scientists think that sauropoda were aquatic?
because they thought they were too heavy to live on land