THEROPODS Flashcards
what does “Theropod” mean
beast foot
KEN of all theropods
(3) SKULL: large eyes, highly mobile joint, laterally compressed, curved serrated teeth
(5) POST CRANIAL: hollow bones, grasping hands, compact hind legs, 5+ sacral vertebrae, furcula
Coelophysis
sexual dimorphism, travelled in packs (gregarious)
evolved into larger dilophosaurus
Ceratosaurs (give example)
6+ sacral vertebrae , tiny useless hands, deep coracoids
eg. Carnotaurus (an abelisaur)
Tetanuran characteristics
large heads
interlocking vertebrae (stiff tail)
Megalosaur
large tetanurans
long skull long snout
eg Spinosaur
Avetheropod characteristics
more maxilla fenestra
complicated air sac chambers in vertebrae
reduced 4th digit
Carnosaur
primitive avetheropod
NORTH: allosaurus (Cleveland Lloyd’s “predator trap”, thousands of allosauruses caught in a flash flood)
SOUTH: gigantosaurus
Coelurosaur characteristics (5)
most bird like tetanuran
enlarged brain (2X)
long 2nd/3rd digit, bowed ulna (arm)
tibia longer than femur
longer sacrum
Compsognathus
delicate jaw
small, under 1 M
primitive avertheropod
Tyrannosaur (3)
fused nasal bones, incisor like premaxillary teeth, slender third metacarpal
eg. Albertasaur, Tyrannosaurus, Tarbosaurus
Maniraptoriform characteristics
larger brains
small skulls vs body
more # of smaller teeth
two clades of Maniraptoriform
Ornithomimosaur
Maniraptorans
Maniraptoran
most diverse group, middle Jurassic to late Cretaceous
larger brains, large bony sternum, longer forelimbs
Ornithomimosaur (4)
toothless beak
long arms
clawed hands
long bony tail
