Dinosaurs
© Pamela J.W. Gore, 1997, 2010
Georgia Perimeter College
Allosaurus and Stegosaurus
Denver Museum of Nature and Science
© Pamela J.W. Gore, 1997, 2010
Georgia Perimeter College
Dinosaurs were:
- small at first; (many < 3 ft long),
up to 20 feet (6m) by end of Triassic.
Became larger much later .
- extremely agile; adapted for two-legged, running like ostriches. Good runners.
- upper parts of legs were beneath body rather than out to sides.
Dinosaur State Park
Rocky Hill, CT
- skulls differed from Thecodonts.
- highly developed teeth.
Dinosaur eggs
Mongolia, China
Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit
Fernbank Museum of Natural History
Atlanta, GA
 Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
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"Forms without the enormous horns and frills of Triceratops, in the family Protoceratopsidae, include the Mongolian genus Protoceratops and the unusual bipedal, frill-less dinosaur Psittacosaurus ("parrot-lizard"). The horned, frilled dinosaurs in the family Ceratopsidae are found only in the Late Cretaceous of North America; they are among the last of the dinosaurs." U. California, Berkeley
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Triceratops Dinamation temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
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Triceratops Late Cretaceous On display in the U.S. National Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. |
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Monoclonius nasicornis (also called Centrosaurus nasicornis) Late Cretaceous, 65-80 m.y. ago, Canada. On display in the U.S. National Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. |
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Protoceratops from the Cretaceous of Mongolia, China. Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Protoceratops Note skulls of various sizes in foreground Cretaceous Mongolia, China Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Psittacosaurus ("parrot lizard") early Cretaceous Mongolia, China Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Reconstruction of Stegosaurus Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Skeleton of Stegosaurus Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Ankylosaurs Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Pinacosaurus Cretaceous Mongolia, China Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Skull of duckbill dinosaur, Edmontosaurus Denver Museum of Nature and Science |
| Duckbill dinosaur, Edmontosaurus Skeleton length 26.5 feet Late Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation, Montana Denver Museum of Nature and Science |
| Bactrosaurus Late Cretaceous Mongolia, China Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Juvenile hadrosaur, Maiasaura Upper Cretaceous Two Medicine Formation Montana On display in the U.S. National Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. |
| Mother duckbilled dinosaur tending to a nest of hatching eggs Dinamation temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Skull of Pachycephalosaurus "bone-headed dinosaur" Denver Museum of Nature and Science. |
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Tsintaosaurus, found in the Shandong Province of northeastern China.
It is a lambeosaurine hadrosaur with a distinctive high, bony tube extending from the skull.
Late Cretaceous, 80-90 m.y. old. Temporary exhibit, Planet Dinosaur, at Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA. |
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Tsintaosaurus skull. Temporary exhibit, Planet Dinosaur, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA |
 On display in the U.S. National Museum, |
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Tyrannosaurus rex skull Denver Museum of Nature and Science |
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Allosaurus fragilis skull Late Jurassic Morrison Formation, Colorado Denver Museum of Nature and Science |
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Giganotosaurus skull. The skull is 6 ft in length. Person for scale.
This is the skull of the largest carnivorous dinosaur.
Early Cretaceous, Patagonia, Argentina. Planet Dinosaur, Temporary exhibit, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA. |
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Giganotosaurus, whose name means "giant southern lizard," was 45-47 ft long, 12 ft tall, and weighed more than 8 tons. Its skull is 6 ft in length. It is the largest 2-legged animal ever found, and the largest carnivore. It is more closely related to Allosaurus than Tyrannosaurus rex. Giganotosaurus was discovered in Patagonia, Argentina in 1993, and lived in the Cretaceous Period, 95 m.y. ago. On display at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA. A blue ceremonial bow adorned the dinosaurs during the grand opening of the exhibition in August 2001. Photo courtesy of Pamela Gore. |
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Troodon formosus. Its name means wounding tooth. Late Cretaceous. Note the second set of ribs on the underside, which may have supported its internal organs. Temporary exhibit on display at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA. |
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Troodon formosus skull. Temporary exhibit on display at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA. |
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Archaeornithomimus Late Cretaceous Mongolia, China Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit Fernbank Museum of Natural History Atlanta, GA |
| Dilophosaurus Ceratosaur - the earliest and most primitive of the theropod groups Carnivorous Dinosaur State Park Rocky Hill, CT |
| Dilophosaurus Detail of head of specimen above |
| Coelophysis bauri One of the earliest known theropods About 6 feet long, a smaller representative of the Ceratosauria Dinosaur State Park Rocky Hill, CT |
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Composite photo of
Nuoerosaurus chaganensis (also spelled Nurosaurus gaganensis)- "Oagan Nur Lizard" 26 ft to shoulder, 40 ft to head, 86 ft long This dinosaur may have weighed 20 tons. Early Cretaceous (100 m.y.old) Found in Oagan Nur Salt Mine, Mongolia, China, in the 1980's Destination: Dinosaurs, Temporary exhibit, Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA |
| Detail of skull of Nuoerosaurus chaganensis, above. |
| Diplodocus Late Jurassic Morrison Formation, Utah Denver Museum of Nature and Science |
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| Argentinosaurus is the largest dinosaur that has ever been described. This specimen is more than 126 ft long and would have weighed over 100 tons. It was a plant eater that primarily dined on confiers. It was found in Patagonia, Argentina in 1989, and named in 1993. It lived 90 m.y. ago, in the Cretaceous Period. A blue ceremonial bow adorned the dinosaurs during the grand opening of the exhibition in August 2001. On display at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA. |
Dinosaurs were quite diverse by late Jurassic.
The word pterosaur means "winged lizard".
During the Mesozoic, reptiles became adapted to live in the air. The earilest flying reptiles were probably gliders.
Pterosaurs existed from the Late Triassic to the Late Cretaceous. There were two groups:
Jurassic and Cretaceous pterosaurs had large heads and eyes, and long jaws with thin slanted teeth. The bones of the fourth finger were elongated to support the wing membrane.
Pterodaustro, a pterosaur whose name means "wing of the south". Its wingspan is 52 inches. It was a
filter feeder with about 500 bristle-like teeth that filtered small organisms from the water.
Short, blunt teeth in the upper jaw allowed it to chew its prey into smaller pieces.
Discovered in Patagonia, Argentina in 1970. It lived 125 million years ago in the Cretaceous.
On display at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA.
Anhanguera, a pterosaur with a wingspan of about 18 ft. It probably consumed fish, perhaps while in flight.
It was discovered in northeastern Brazil and first described as a new genus in 1985. It lived 120 million
years ago in the Cretaceous. Its name means "old devil".
On display at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History, Atlanta, GA.
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This page copyright Pamela J. W. Gore
Georgia Perimeter College, Clarkston, GA
November 19, 1997
Updated October 19, 1999
Updated February 7, 2006
Links updated August 15, 2009