Week 10 Vocab: Paleogeography and Plate Tectonics

Diplodocids

A group of sauropod dinosaurs with long necks and long "whip-like" tails; lived during the Middle to Late Jurassic; examples: Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Supersaurus

Macronarians

Group of Jurassic sauropods with robust bodies, front legs not noticeably shorter than their back legs, and that lack whip-lack tails. E.g. Brachiosaurus and Giraffatitan

Thyreophorans

Group of ornithischians with body armour. Includes e.g. Stegosaurs

Allosauroids

Large predators that originated in the Jurassic, with vertebrae that interlock more

rigidly, so their spines were held stiffer. Their

legs are also proportionately longer, suggesting

that they were faster than either megalosaurids

or ceratosaurids. E.g. Allosaurus

Coelurosaurs

Group of theropods that originated in the Jurassic, characterised by a long series

of sacral vertebrae, narrow hands, and tails with

back halves that are skinny, stiff, and

lightweight. the group from which birds arise.

Titanosaurs

Group of advanced sauropod dinosaurs; lived during the Late Jurassic to Late Cretaceous; globally distributed but most abundant in Gondwana; examples: Argentinosaurus,

Saltosaurus, Alamosaurus.

Carcharodontosaurids

A group of theropod dinosaurs with teeth that somewhat resemble those of modern sharks; lived during the Late Jurassic to Late Cretaceous; examples: Giganotosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus, Concavenator

Abelisaurids

A group of ceratosaurid theropods that thrived throughout Gondwana during the Middle Jurassic to Late Cretaceous; characterized by short forelimbs, small teeth, and ornamented skulls; examples: Carnotaurus, Majungasaurus, and Rugops.

Ankylosaurs

Heavily-armored quadrupedal ornithischian dinosaurs; examples: Ankylosaurus, Edmontonia, Polacanthus.

Nodosaurids

The second major group of

ankylosaurs. They lacked tail clubs, but some

have offensive weapons at the other end, in the

form of large osteoderm spikes that project

outwards from over their shoulders. E.g. Borealopelta

Ankylosaurids

The first major group of ankylosaurs.

The ankylosaurs with the famous tail clubs; also typically have large backwards-pointing horns at the rear of their skulls and a short rounded snout at the front.

Lambeosaurines

Advanced group of hadrosaurs with a big crest on their heads. Inside this crest is a complex and

hollow nasal passageway. E.g. Parasaurolophus

Hadrosaurines

Advanced group of hadrosaurs that lacked

complex sound amplifying crests. Some still did have small bony, or soft tissue crests. E.g. Edmontosaurus.

Marginocephalians

Diverse group of Laurasian dinosaurs that includes the ceratopsians and pachycephalosaurs. The name literally means "fringe heads" and refers to an overhanging lip of bone at the back margin of the skull.

Ornithomimids

Group of coelurosaurs that evolved a body plan similar to that of a modern ostrich or emu, but with long clawed forelimbs and a large tail.

Maniraptorans

Group of coelurosaurs that developed a highly specialized wrist bone called a semilunate carpal; includes birds, dromaeosaurs and oviraptorosaurs.

Dromaeosaurs

Group of maniraptoran theoropds with a large, sickle-shaped claw on each foot. E.g. Deinonychus

Oviraptorosaurs

Group of maniraptoran theropods that

adapted to a mostly vegetarian life and lost

their teeth in favour of large beaks. Many had cranial crests and fans of feathers on the ends of their tails.

Therizinosaurs

Bizarre group of maniraptoran theropods, with large hand claws, small skulls on the end of long necks and hind feet with four forward pointing toes. They also have a backwards-directed pubis and jaws with small herbivorous teeth in the back and a beak in the front.