Over the years, earth has gone through several changes. Before humans roamed the earth, there were dinosaurs. They lived here over 66 million years ago. Dinosaurs lived and moved through land, air, and water. Many Dinosaurs lived during different eras of earth’s time. They once lived and hunted where we now stand. We are constantly finding fossils of known species and entirely new ones. Misconception about them are still being disproven. We are constantly learning new things about them. This paper will talk about three chosen dinosaurs. Then look into their physical feature, habitat, hunting skills, and life expectancies. Along with examining their eras of time.
One of the most feared dinosaur was the Tyrannosaurus rex which is also known as the T-rex. They were the apex predator of their time. Tyrannosaurus rexes were feared because of their size and food preference. According to the National Geographic (2017), a Tyrannosaurus rex was about 40 feet long and about 15 to 20 feet tall. They had thick massive skulls and long jaws for massive bites. Due to their shear size, T-rex where not very fast. They could only walk about 3 to 6 miles per hour. Their elongated, serrated teeth were made to pierce and rip flesh from their prey. While eating a T-rex would swallow chunks whole unlike other animals. The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) says that a T-rex could eat about 500 pounds of meat in one bite which crushed and broke bones while eating. Their diet mostly consisted of herbivorous which included Triceratops and Edmontosaurus. They were estimated to weight 11,000 to 15,000 pounds.
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Arms were very short and stubbly which contained only two fingers (Switek, 2013). Scientist do not know the full functionality of their small are due to them not being able to reach their mouths. Legs had strong thighs with a powerful tail thus counterbalancing its large head (Castro,2017). The T-rex life expectancy was only 28 years old. They reached their adult height while they’re in their teenage year. Tyrannosaurus rex lived during the late Cretaceous period. Which was about 90 to 66 million years ago. They went extinct about 65 million years ago during the Cretaceous Tertiary mass extension (National Geographic). Tyrannosaurus rex was first discovered in 1902. Most T-rex fossils were found in the Northwest of the United States such as Montana and South Dakota. Some fossils were also found in Alberta, Canada (AMNH). The meaning of the Tyrannosaurus rex name was the tyrant lizard king.
Another predator from the late Cretaceous period was an Oviraptor. Oviraptors were small, light built with slender limbs, grasping hands with distinctive skulls (Smith, 2005). The grew to the length of 6 feet long. Similar to T-rexes, they walked on two feet. Their arms were long and slender with only three clawed fingers (Britannica, 2018). The arms were well suited for grasping, ripping and tearing their food. Their skulls were very short and deep. They had noticeable cranial crest containing a large nasal cavity which the function is unknown (Smith, 2005). Mouths were peak shaped. Their jaws were well muscled and adept for crushing. Oviraptors were omnivorous which means they ate plants and meat. Their diets mostly consisted of hard fruits, clams and shellfish. Their name originated by the terms egg thief because fossils were found near a nest of eggs believed to be of another dinosaur. For many year, people believed that Oviraptor consumed eggs. Upon further examination it was noticed that it was the Oviraptor’s nest. Just like birds, Oviraptors brood over their nest. Fossils of Oviraptors were discovered in Eastern Asia and North America. This was due to the supercontinent Laurasia being connected. Their habitats may have consisted of hot, windblown sands of their region.
Archaeopteryx have become essential in understanding evolution. Archaeopteryx had well developed wings with feathers which allowed them to fly. Their wings had three talons to help them glide through the air. Three of their fingers bore claws and each moved independently which help them grasp prey or trees (“Archaeopteryx: An Early Bird”, 1993). They feet also bore a hyperextensible second toe which also known as a killing claw. They weight about 1.8 to 2.2 pound about the same size of a raven.
According to Joseph Castro, Archaeopteryx feather on their legs, wings and body but lacked feathering on their neck and head. Their shoulder girdle limited it’s flapping abilities due to this they could not fly very far or long. The feathers of the wings and tail added an additional aerodynamic function. Wings were rounded at the ends and their tails we up to 20 inches long. They had a flat sternum, with a long bony tail and belly ribs. Their feathers, wing, wishbones and reduced fingers are similar characteristics of a bird but not of modern birds. Along with the thin hollow bones and air sacs within their backbones. It was believed that they were the first birds which was later disproven. Archaeopteryx where small carnivorous with their cone-like teeth within their upper jaws helps them rip and shred their meal. Their diet consisted of small reptiles, amphibians, mammals and insects. Castro says, “It likely seized small prey with just its jaws and may have used its claws to help pin larger prey.” Archaeopteryx were first discovered in 1860 near Solnhofen, Germany. They lived around 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period. Around this time, Europe was closer to the equator with its climate being fairly warm and dry.
The earth has gone through different phases. Each phases was a time period for different dinosaur. The Archaeopteryxes time was before the Tyrannosaurs rexes and the Oviraptors. Its time period was the Late Jurassic. The Jurassic time period is considered the second period of the Mesozoic era. It extended from 200 million to 145 million years ago. The Jurassic was considered to be “ The Age of the Dinosaurs”. During this time, Pangaea the supercontinent split apart but still very close together. With Pangea splitting it cases the earth to warm which allowed a perfect environment for dinosaurs to dominate. The Marine life was highly diverse. The plant life had evolved from low-growing mosses known as Bryophytes (“Jurassic Period Facts”, 2013). This means that some plants moved from living in the ocean to living on land. Plants then developed a new method for reproduction. The wind was used to transport all exposed seeds to get a greater genetic combination during reproduction (Tang, 2019). The combinations helps the plants have a better survival with their new environment.
Another Mesozoic period was the Cretaceous. The Tyrannosaurs rex and the Oviraptors where a part of the Late Cretaceous. The Cretaceous period lasted 145 million to 66 million years ago. Most rocks from this time period were mostly made of chalk which they provided clear details of the time period. During this time Pangea had already split but the continents were still moving. The continents then created Gondwana within the south and Laurasia in the north. As the continents moved apart ocean levels began to rise higher. Land structure we know today were underwater. Toward the end of the Cretaceous Gondwana and Laurasia also split apart.
The plants during this time gained the ability to produce flowers. According to Mary Bagley (2016), it was thought that pollinating insects evolved during the same time that plants did. When in reality these insects we well established before the first flower. In the beginning of this period temperature was lower. During the middle of the period, temperatures reached its maximum which meant that it was much warmer than it is today. Hansen and Koch (2018) says that with floral evidence suggested that the climate was that of tropical to subtropical conditions that extended to the poles. The cretaceous period was biologically significate because early life form made the transition to be more advanced and diverse. Many modern animals began making their debut during this time.
Toward the end of the Cretaceous period, there was a mass extension. The dinosaurs perished but plant life was less affected (Hansen and Koch, 2018). This was the largest mass extension in earth’s history about 80% of animals disappeared. There are several theories that explain what might has caused the mass extension. Many believe the theory of an asteroid impacting earth caused the extension. When the asteroid impacted it sent pieces of debris into the atmosphere which plunged the earth into darkness which ceased plant growth (Hansen and Koch, 2018). The impact also triggered shockwaves, massive tsunamis and when debris fell back to earth from the atmosphere it caused forest fire (Bagley, 2016).
Before humans roamed the earth, there were dinosaurs. Dinosaurs lived and moved through land, air, and water. Many Dinosaurs lived during different eras of earth’s time. We are constantly finding fossils of known species and entirely new ones. Along with learning new things about them. One of the most feared dinosaur was the Tyrannosaurus rex which is also known as the T-rex. They were the apex predator of their time. Tyrannosaurus rexes were feared because of their size and food preference. Their diet mostly consisted of herbivorous which included Triceratops and Edmontosaurus. Tyrannosaurus rex lived during the late Cretaceous period. Which was about 90 to 66 million years ago. Tyrannosaurus rex was first discovered in 1902. Another predator from the late Cretaceous period was an Oviraptor. Oviraptors were omnivorous which means they ate plants and meat. Their diets mostly consisted of hard fruits, clams and shellfish. Their name originated by the terms egg thief because fossils were found near a nest of eggs believed to be of another dinosaur when in reality it was their own nest. Fossils of Oviraptors were discovered in Eastern Asia and North America. This was due to the supercontinent Laurasia being connected. Their habitats may have consisted of hot, windblown sands of their region. Archaeopteryx have become essential in understanding evolution. It was believed that they were the first birds which was later disproven. Their diet consisted of small reptiles, amphibians, mammals and insects.
Archaeopteryx were first discovered in 1860 near Solnhofen, Germany. They lived around 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period. Around this time, Europe was closer to the equator with its climate being fairly warm and dry. The earth has gone through different phases. Each phases was a time period for different dinosaur. The Jurassic time period is considered the second period of the Mesozoic era. It extended from 200 million to 145 million years ago. The Jurassic was considered to be “ The Age of the Dinosaurs”. The Marine life was highly diverse. Another Mesozoic period was the Cretaceous.
The Cretaceous period lasted 145 million to 66 million years ago. The plants during this time gained the ability to produce flowers. During the middle of the period, temperatures reached its maximum which meant that it was much warmer than it is today. The cretaceous period was biologically significate because early life form made the transition to be more advanced and diverse. Many modern animals began making their debut during this time. Toward the end of the Cretaceous period, there was a mass extension. Many believe the theory of an asteroid impacting earth caused the extension. These are just some facts that we have learned about dinosaurs and their time period. Everyday scientists are making new discoveries. We are continuedly finding fossils which shows us new information. So, we are constantly learning new things.
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