Young Dinosaurs Flashcards
- Q: What are some common physical features of newborn dinosaurs compared to adults?
A: Newborn dinosaurs typically had larger eyes relative to their skulls, smaller overall size, shorter limbs relative to body size, and less prominent facial features, such as smaller horns and frills.
- Q: What are Ontogenetic Changes in dinosaurs?
A: Ontogenetic Changes refer to physical changes that occur as a dinosaur grows from a baby to an adult, including changes in size, proportions of limbs, eye size, and the development of features like horns and frills.
- Q: Why do paleontologists need both young and adult dinosaur skeletons to understand growth?
A: Having skeletons of both young and adult dinosaurs of the same species allows paleontologists to study how different features, such as skull shape and limb proportions, change during growth.
- Q: What discovery was made in the summer of 2010, and why was it significant?
A: A rare baby ceratopsian skull was discovered in Alberta. It was significant because baby dinosaur fossils, especially of ceratopsians, are very rare, and this specimen was unusually well-preserved.
- Q: What role did herd behavior play in the survival of young ceratopsians?
A: Young ceratopsians, which lacked fully developed horns for defense, likely survived by staying within groups of adults, who offered protection from predators.
- Q: What is the difference between non-isometric and isometric growth in dinosaurs?
A: Non-isometric growth occurs when certain body parts grow at different rates, such as the longer tibia compared to the femur in juvenile tyrannosaurs. In contrast, isometric growth means that body proportions, like the tibia and femur in ceratopsians, remain the same as they grow.
- Q: Did dinosaurs exhibit parental care, and if so, how?
A: Some dinosaurs, like theropods and hadrosaurs, likely showed a high degree of parental care, protecting and nurturing their young. Others, like sauropods, may have laid eggs and left their young to fend for themselves, similar to modern-day sea turtles.
- Q: What evidence suggests that some dinosaurs cared for their eggs and young?
A: Fossils of oviraptors sitting on their nests, as well as comparisons to modern birds and crocodiles, suggest that some dinosaurs incubated their eggs and may have cared for their young after hatching.
- Q: How did baby sauropods survive without parental care?
A: Baby sauropods likely relied on their large numbers at nesting sites to overwhelm predators. This strategy is similar to sea turtles, where many eggs hatch at once, ensuring some babies survive despite predation.
- Q: How fast did large theropods like Tyrannosaurus rex grow, and when did they reach adulthood?
A: Large theropods like Tyrannosaurus rex grew very quickly, reaching adult size in about 20 years.
- Q: How do paleontologists determine the age of a dinosaur using its bones?
A: Paleontologists study the micro-structure of dinosaur bones, specifically looking for Lines of Arrested Growth (LAGs), which are similar to tree rings. By counting these LAGs, they can determine the age and growth rate of the dinosaur.
- Q: What is a Line of Arrested Growth (LAG), and why is it important?
A: A Line of Arrested Growth (LAG) is a ring found in dinosaur bones that indicates a period when growth slowed or stopped, likely due to harsh environmental conditions. LAGs help paleontologists estimate a dinosaur’s age and understand its growth patterns.
