Intro. to the Study of Dinosaurs
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Created by:
Tyrannosaurid on March 13, 2011
Subjects:
paleontology, paleobiology, paleoecology, dinosaurs, dinosaur, dinosaurology
Description:
Vocabulary from the book "Introduction to the Study of Dinosaurs" by Anthony J. Martin. This book is a great introduction to "Dinosaurology" and the vocab is featured below.
Classes:
Paleontologists of the World, Advanced Paleontology/Paleobiology Vocabulary
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309 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Acetabulum | Opening (hole) on each side of a pelvis that allows for the insertion of a ball-like proximal end of each femur. A distinguishing character of a dinosaur. |
| Adaptation | Physical attribute of an organism that can help it to survive at least long enough to successfully reproduce. |
| Aerodynamics | Physics of air flow. Important for interpreting sedimentary environments and taphonomy. |
| Allantois | Sac that develops between the eggshell and amnion for respiration of the embryo in a cleidoic egg. |
| Allochthonous | In taphonomy, refers to a body that has been moved (perhaps very far) from where it originally died. |
| Allometry | Study of size and how it changes with growth of an organism in various dimensions. |
| Allosauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, and Carnosauria. |
| Altricial | Behavioral reference to state of juveniles not capable of moving and fending for themselves soon after birth, requiring much parental care. (Contrast with precocial.) |
| Amino acid | Organic compound that forms the basis for much soft tissue in an animal and helps to facilitate biochemical reactions. Must have a carboxyl group (COOH) and amino group (NH2), in which the carboxyl performs as an acid and the amino as a base. |
| Amnion | Fluid-filled sac surrounding a developing embryo, characteristic of amniotes. |
| Amniota | Clade of tetrapods that reproduce through by enclosed eggs with an amnion. Members are amniotes. |
| Amphibia | Paraphyletic group of chordates and tetrapods (formerly Class Amphibia under gradistic classification) that normally are dependent on water bodies for reproduction. Contrast with amniotes. |
| Anachronism | Juxtaposition of items or situations that belong to different and separate time periods, such as Stegosaurus (of the Jurassic Period) with Tyrannosaurus (of the Cretaceous Period). |
| Ankylosauria | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Thyreophora, that includes clades Ankylosauridae and Nodosauridae. |
| Ankylosauridae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with the clades Thyreophora and Ankylosauria, that shares common ancestor with clade Nodosauridae. |
| Anterior | Reference to the front part of an animal or front surface of a part. |
| Appendicular | Anatomical reference to the appendages (limbs) of an animal. |
| Arboreal hypothesis | Explanation of origin of flight in theropods from treedwelling species. Also known as the "trees down" hypothesis. |
| Archaeology | Study of human artifacts and other traces of human behavior. Someone who studies artifacts is an archaeologist. |
| Archosauria | Clade of diapsids, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: openings anterior to the orbits (antorbital fenestrae), teeth with serrations compressed laterally and none on the palate, dentary fenestrae, differently shaped calcaneum, and elongated ilium and pubis. Part of lineage of dinosaurs. |
| Arctometatarsalia | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Coelurosauria, and Maniraptoriformes. Named for how the middle metatarsal is "pinched" between metatarsals on either side of it. Includes clades Troodontidae, Ornithomimosauria, and Tyrannosauridae. |
| Asthenosphere | Hot, plastically flowing, and partially molten portion of the upper part of the mantle that theoretically interacts with the lithosphere to cause plate tectonic movement. |
| Autochthonous | In taphonomy, refers to a body that is in the same place where it originally died. |
| Aves | Clade of saurischian dinosaur, placed with the clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, and Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, and Avialae. Colloquially known as birds. |
| Avetheropoda | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda and Tetanurae. Includes clades Carnosauria, Sinraptoridae, Allosauridae, and Coelurosauria. |
| Axial | Anatomical reference to the axis of an animal, such as its vertebrae. |
| Binomial Nomenclature | In Linnaean classification, method that names a species through combined use of a genus and trivial name, e.g., Stegosaurus stenops. |
| Biocoenosis | Assemblage of organisms in the fossil record that is autochthonous and thus represents the living community. |
| Biogeochemistry | Study of chemical processes caused by organisms in geologic media and how elements are cycled. |
| Biologic Succession, (Principle of) | Observation that fossil assemblages may change in a vertical sequence of rocks (succeed one another). Explained through extinctions and evolution that happened through over time. |
| Biological Evolution, (Theory of) | Generally accepted explanation for observations of organisms that are (or were) modified through descent. |
| Biomechanics | Study of how living systems, such as animal bodies, perform work. |
| Biometry | Study of life through measurements and statistical methods. |
| Biomineralization | Process for formation of hard parts (shells, bones, teeth) in organisms. |
| Biomolecule | Combinations of elements that only could have been formed only by organisms. Examples include nucleic acids, lipids (fatty molecules), carbohydrates (also known as sugars), and proteins. |
| Biostratinomy | Processes that affect an organism between its death and final burial; an important part of taphonomy. |
| Bioturbation | Process in which an organism causes mixing of a sediment. Product of bioturbation is a bioturbate texture. |
| Bipedal | Using of two legs for locomotion. |
| Bird | General term applied to members of clade Aves, which includes Archaeopteryx and all of its descendants. |
| Body Fossil | Any direct evidence of ancient life as represented by bodily remains. Includes actual or altered body parts (such as bone), impressions of any body part (skin, muscles, feathers), and eggs (which are body parts of embryos). Bone Biomineralized skeletal tissue in vertebrates composed of dahllite but often in combination with softer organic tissue in varying proportions. Can be either cancellous ("spongy" or low-density) or compact (high-density). |
| Brachiosauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Sauropodomorpha and Sauropoda, which had more rounded skulls more rounded than diplodocids and nares were positioned more anteriorly (and below) the orbitals. |
| Brooding | Behavior where eggs or juveniles are provided with care by the parents, such as through protection or insulation. |
| Camarasauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Sauropodomorpha and Sauropoda. They have more rounded skulls than diplodocids, spoonlike teeth, and smaller numbers of their cervical, dorsal, and caudal vertebrae. |
| Carbonization | Fossilization process where volatile elements, such as carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen, depart from an organism's body and leave a carbon impression. Common mode of preservation for soft tissues in both plants and animals. Carina, (of Tooth) Narrow, blade-like or ridge-like part of a tooth that may have serrations or other denticles. |
| Carina, (of Sternum) | Bladed middle part of the sternum to which large flight muscles are attached in avians. Also known as the keel. |
| Carnivory; (Carnivorous) | Meat eating, but more generally the eating of any animal, whether through predation or scavenging. |
| Carnosauria | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanuare, and Avetheropoda. Previously was a general category for all large meateating dinosaurs. |
| Cartilage | Mass of protein collagen arranged as parallel, linear fibers, forming a part of a flexible, non-ossified connective tissue in a chordate. |
| Cast | Positive (convex) feature made from what was originally a negative (concave) feature, such as for preservation of dinosaur skin and tracks. |
| Caudal | Anatomical position referring to the tail of an animal, such as caudal vertebrae. |
| Centrosaurine | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia, Ceratopsia, and Neoceratopsia, characterized by short squamosals. |
| Cerapoda | Node-based clade of ornithischian dinosaurs. Includes sister clades of Marginocephalia and Ornithopoda. |
| Ceratopsia | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Marginocephalia, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: rostral bone anterior to the maxilla that paired with a predentary to form a sharp beak, frill formed by the parietals that hung past the rest of the skull, cheeks that extend laterally and posteriorly, and a palate positioned high in the skull. Includes sister clades of Psittacosauridae and Neoceratopsia. |
| Ceratopsidae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia, Ceratopsia, and Neoceratopsia. |
| Ceratosauria | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Theropoda, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: fusion of bones in ankle and feet, sacrum fused to ilium and ribs, two fenestrae on the pubis, four digits, but with digit IV reduced so that digits I through III were the most functional, and two pairs of cavities (pleurocoels) in the cervical vertebrae. |
| Cervical | Any body part with reference to the neck, such as cervical vertebrae. |
| Character | Trait or characteristic of an organism's anatomy distinctive enough to use for classification, such as in cladistics. |
| Chasmosaurine | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia, Ceratopsia, and Neoceratopsia, characterized by long squamosals. |
| Chordate | Clade of animal distinguished by a notochord, dorsal nerve cord, and pharyngeal gill slits. Placed with this clade is the clade Vertebrata. |
| Chromosome | Packet of genetic material in a cell, contains DNA. |
| Clade | Group of organisms defined on the basis of common ancestry as indicated by shared, derived characters (synapomorphies). |
| Cladistics | Classification system that places organisms into clades based on shared derived traits (synapomorphies). (See also phylogenetic classification.) |
| Cladogram | Diagram showing relatedness of clades to one another; serves as a visual display of a hypothesis on evolutionary relationships between clades. |
| Cleidoic Egg | Enclosed structure in combination with an embryo that provides a food supply (through a yolk sac) and a membrane for respiration, temperature maintenance, and waste disposal. |
| Cloaca | Organ in some birds that serves a dual purpose as the end orifice for the alimentary canal and oviduct. |
| Clutch | One or more eggs laid in a single egg-laying episode by a mother. |
| Coelophysoidea | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, dinosaurs placed with clades Theropoda and Ceratosauria. One of the first theropod clades in the Late Triassic. |
| Coelurosauria | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, and Avetheropoda. Includes other clades far too numerous to mention here, but with all of its members are united by possession of a semilunate carpal. |
| Cold-blooded | Popularized description of ectothermy. |
| Compression | Shape Overall geometric outline of a track. Useful for identifying a track made in substrates other than sand or mud, and a common mode of preservation for undertracks. |
| Continental Drift, (Hypothesis of ) | First substantial hypothesis, stated originally by Alfred Wegener, explaining the geographic distribution of similar fossils, rocks, and rock structures in widely separated continents that also have closely fitting coastlines. Seminal hypothesis for later development of the theory of plate tectonics. |
| Coprolite | Trace fossil representing the end product of digestion by an animal. Fossilized equivalent of feces. |
| Cranial | Anatomical position referring to the head of an animal, such as cranial bones. |
| Cretaceous Period | Time interval in the geologic time scale spanning from about 140 to 65 million years ago. Last period of the Mesozoic Era. |
| Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) | Boundary Division between Cretaceous and Tertiary Periods (from about 65 million years ago) marking a mass extinction that resulted in the end of the non-avian dinosaurs and many of their contemporary species. |
| Crop | Muscular organ anterior to the stomach and gizzard in the alimentary canal of some certain herbivorous animals, such as some birds, and presumed to have existed in some herbivorous dinosaurs. |
| Crust | Solid and less-dense upper part of the lithosphere. |
| Cursorial Hypothesis | Explanation of the origin of flight in theropods from ground-dwelling species. Also known as the "ground up" hypothesis. |
| Dahllite | Mineral composed primarily of calcium phosphate and described by approximately the same formula as the mineral apatite, Ca10(PO4)6(OH, CO3, F)2. Forms the main framework of hard parts (bones and teeth) in chordates. |
| Darwinism | Term used to describe older version of hypothesis of natural selection, as co-authored by Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace. |
| Diapsida | Clade of amniotes with paired temporal fenestrae on each side of the skull. Part of lineage for dinosaurs. |
| Deinonychosauria | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptiformes, and Maniraptora. |
| Dental Battery | Assemblage of interlocking teeth that form broad grinding or shearing surfaces for chewing of plant material. Typical in hadrosaurids and ceratopsians. |
| Dentition | Sum of an animal's teeth in its jawbones. |
| Diagenesis | Biological, chemical, and physical processes in a sediment or sedimentary rock that occur after those sediments have been deposited. Important factor in taphonomy. |
| Digitigrade | Locomotion that involves contact only through the digits. (Contrast with plantigrade.) |
| Dinosaur | (1) A reptile- or bird-like animal with an upright posture that spent most (perhaps all) of its life on land and lived only during the Mesozoic Period. (2) An animal that had a minimum of the following synapomorphies: three or more sacral vertebrae, shoulder girdle with backward-facing (caudally pointing) glenoid, asymmetrical manus with less than or equal to three phalanges on digit IV, acetabulum with open medial wall, tibia with cnemial crest, astragalus with a long ascending process that fits into the anterior part of the tibia, sigmoidally shaped third metatarsal, postfrontal absent, humerus with long deltopectoral crest, and femur with ball-like head on proximal end. (3) The closest common ancestor to Triceratops and modern birds. |
| Dinosauria | Clade of archosaurs characterized by certain synapomorphies. (See dinosaur.) Term originally coined by Sir Richard Owen. |
| Diplodocidae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Sauropodomorpha and Sauropoda, distinguished by more cervical and caudal vertebrae than other sauropods, teeth restricted to the anterior portion of the skull, and nares dorsal to the orbitals. |
| Diploid | Number of chromosomes that results from the uniting of two haploid gametes. |
| DNA | Deoxyribonucleic acid. |
| Dorsal | Reference referring to the top surface of a horizontally oriented animal. Dromaeosauridae Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptoriformes, Maniraptora, and Deinonychosauria. |
| Ecological Community | Collective group of organisms in an ecosystem. |
| Ecology | Study of interrelationships between organisms and their environments. |
| Ecosystem | Environment where organisms are interacting with both one another and abiotic (non-biological) factors. |
| Ectotherm | Animal that is dependent on the ambient temperature outside of its body for maintaining internal body temperature. (Contrast with endotherm.) |
| Egg (Cleidoic) | Permeable structure enclosing and interacting with an embryo. Is a body part of the embryo, hence its fossil equivalent is a body fossil. |
| Egg (Gamete) | Sex cell with only a haploid set of chromosomes supplied by the female of a species. |
| Eggshell Types | Categories of morphologically distinctive mineralized remains of cleidoic eggs. Examples include geckoid, testuoid, crocodiloid, dinosauroid spherulitic, dinosauroid prismatic, and ornithoid. |
| Eisospherite Layer | Inner, organic shell membrane of an egg. |
| Ellipsoid | In geometry, a body where all plane sections are either circles or ellipses. Used to describe geometry of most dinosaur eggs. |
| Embryo | Stage of development in ontogeny of an organism between a zygote (fertilized egg) and juvenile. In amniotes, associated with an amnion and (in cases of oviparous amniotes) an egg. |
| Enantiornithines | Clade of toothed avians that went extinct by the end of the Cretaceous Period. |
| Encephalization Quotient (EQ) | Ratio of cerebral cortex mass:totalbrain mass. Used as measure of relative "braininess" of an animal. |
| Endotherm | Animal that is dependent on its body for maintaining internal temperature rather than the ambient temperature outside of its body. (Contrast with ectotherm). |
| Entomology | Study of insects. |
| Ethics | Set of principles of conduct or behavior in human society and how that behavior affects people's relationships with one another. |
| Euornithopoda | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Ornithopoda, includes clades Hypsilophodontidae and Iguanodontia. |
| Evolution | Change in a population between generations, or descent with modification. See also biological evolution, (theory of). |
| Exospherite Layer | Crystalline (mineralized) exterior of an egg. |
| Extinction | Permanent cessation of propagation of a species, which can be either local or global. Occurs when the last individual of a species is prevented from reproducing. Extinction, (Mass) Near-simultaneous extinction of many different (unrelated) species. |
| Fabrosaurids | Paraphyletic group of primitive ornithiscian dinosaurs, most closely aligned with clade Ornithopoda. |
| Facies | All of the characteristics imparted by an environment to its sediment at approximately the same time; can be represented by biofacies (organismal remains), ichnofacies (traces left by organismal behavior), and lithofacies (composition and proportions of sediments). |
| Fact | Phenomenon that has an actual, objective existence, regardless of whether it was observed or not. |
| Feather | Integument associated with avian and known in a few non-avian theropods, which can function as flight or downy feathers but also is used for display and insulation. Consists of central shaft with barbs emanating from it, forming a vane in flight feathers. |
| Formation | Mappable unit of rock, given a formal name that typically refers to a place with a type section of the formation. |
| Fractionation | Fractional change in the amount of stable isotopes, where one becomes depleted while the other is enriched. |
| Gamete | Sex cell (egg or sperm) containing a haploid complement of chromosomes, that for better or worse will combine with another (complementary) gamete to form a zygote. |
| Gastrolith | Literally "stomach stones," refers to stones ingested by a vertebrate to use for either digestion or ballast. The fossil equivalent of this is a trace fossil. |
| Genasauria | Node-based clade that includes clades Thyreophora and Ornithopoda. |
| Gene | Nucleotide sequence in a DNA molecule that provides a code for a protein or part of a protein. Can be either dominant or recessive. |
| Genome | Sum total of genes, conveyed in a DNA molecule and encompassing coding for all of an organism's proteins. Represents the genetic potential of an organism. |
| Genotype | Genetic expression of an organism. A pair of genes at a locus on a chromosome. Contrast with phenotype. |
| Genus | Name applied as first part of binomial nomenclature used in species name. Can be used by itself but also represents a broader category that may include several species. |
| Geochemistry | Study of chemistry in regarding how it pertains to earth processes and geologic media. |
| Geographic Information Systems (GIS) | Computer programs, facilitated through computer hardware, that integrate spatial data with other forms of information. Geography Study of the earth's surface, typically facilitated through the use of maps. |
| Geologic Map | Graphical, two-dimensional representation of the outcrop patterns of rock units (formations) on the land surface. Typically has topographic information, (such as elevation changes) superimposed on it. |
| Geologic Time Scale | Standard description of time intervals in the history of the earth, based on a combination of relative dating and absolute dating criteria. Geophysics Study of how basic physical principles are used to better understand the earth, particularly its interior. |
| Gizzard | Muscular organ anterior of the stomach in the alimentary canal. In herbivorous dinosaurs, former presence is indicated by gastroliths. |
| Grades | Levels applied to classifying organisms, which are, (in order of most to least inclusive,) kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species. In botany, the equivalent grade to a phylum is a division. |
| Gradistics | Classification system that places organisms into grades (levels) that become more inclusive based on anatomical similarity. |
| Gravitation, (Theory of) | Generally accepted explanation for observations of the attraction of matter for matter. |
| Hadrosauridae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Ornithopoda, Euornithopoda, and Iguanodontia, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: long and wide anterior portion of skull ("duckbill"), well-developed dental batteries, loss of antorbital and surangular fenestrae, increase of vertebrae to at least 8 sacral and 12 cervical vertebrae, loss of digit I on the manus, development of prominent unguals on the pes, and long forelimbs relative to hindlimbs. |
| Haploid | Half of the normal complement of chromosomes in a somatic (body) cell. Characteristic of a gamete. |
| Herbivory; (Herbivorous) | Plant-eating. |
| Herpetology | Study of amphibians and reptiles. |
| Herrerasauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, often placed within clade Theropoda but sometimes placed outside of the Dinosauria. Consists of a minimum of the following traits: long pubis with relation to its femur, three sacral vertebrae, semiperforate to open acetabulum with a well-developed medial wall, femur length nearly twice that of the humerus, elongate skull nearly equal in length with its femur, serrated and recurved conical teeth, long and equally sized metatarsals I and V on the pes, and manus with five digits but digits IV and V reduced and without unguals. Considered one of the more primitive clades of dinosaurs. |
| Heterodont | Dentition that shows a variety of teeth adapted for different functions. Heterodontosauridae Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Ornithopoda, and limited to the Early Jurassic of South Africa. Identified by heterodont dentition. |
| Homocephalidae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Marginocephalia and Pachycephalosauria. Often known as "flat-headed" dinosaurs. |
| Homeotherm | Animal that maintains a near-constant internal body temperature, regardless of whether it is endothermic or ectothermic. |
| Homologue | Body parts that are the same in different animals, although they may have a different morphology because they have been modified with descent as adaptations. |
| Hydrodynamics | Physics of water flow. Important for interpreting sedimentary environments and taphonomy. |
| Hypothesis | Conditional explanation of an observation or series of observations that typically proposes a cause for the observations. Must be testable and falsifiable. |
| Hypsilophodontidae | Paraphyletic group of ornithischian dinosaurs within clade Ornithopoda and Euornithopoda. Among first dinosaurs to achieve pleurokinesis, a jointing between the premaxilla and the rest of the skull (including the premaxilla) that caused the maxilla to shift outward when the mouth closed. |
| Ichnofabric | Resultant patterns or texture imparted to a substrate (either unconsolidated or solid) as a result of organismal behavior, such as trampling of sediment by dinosaurs. |
| Ichnology | Study of traces left by organisms as a result of their behavior. |
| Ichnotaxon | Name given to a trace fossil on the basis of its form (not its tracemaker). A type of parataxonomy, where binomial nomenclature is used for both ichnogenera and ichnospecies. |
| Igneous Rock | Rock formed from originally molten material (magma), can be either plutonic (cooling far below the earth's surface) or volcanic (cooling on or near the earth's surface). Minerals from these rocks often are used for calculating radiometric ages. |
| Iguanodontia | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Ornithopoda and Euornithopoda. Includes Hadrosauridae. |
| Ilium | One of the hip bones, paired and lateral to the sacral vertebrae of the axial skeleton. |
| Inclusions, (Principle of ) | Basic geologic principle used in determining relative ages of rocks; particles of a pre-existing rocks incorporated into a sediment must be older than the rock including them. |
| Insectivory; (Insectivorous) | Insect-eating habit. Considered as a hypothetical feeding strategy for some theropods (therizinosaurs). |
| Integument | Skin and its derivatives, such as scales or feathers. |
| Interspecific | Between different species, such as in most parasitic or predator-prey relations. |
| Intraspecific | Within the same species, such as in intraspecific competition for mates. |
| Ischium | One of the hip bones, posterior to both the pubis and ilium. |
| Isotope | Variation on atomic weight of an element, can be either radioactive (undergoing decay) or stable (not decaying). |
| Jurassic Period | Time interval in the geologic time scale spanning about 206 to 140 million years ago. Middle period of the Mesozoic Era. |
| Lateral | Anatomical reference to the side of an organism, or of any body part, farther away from a midline. |
| Lineage | "Line of descent," defined by populations that went through generations, from ancestors leading to descendants. |
| Lines of Arrested Growth (LAG's) | Lines recorded in dinosaur bones that represent periods of interrupted growth, which can be attributed to yearly cycles in growth and thus suggestive of ectothermy. |
| Linnaean Classification | Hierarchical classification system of organisms based on grades (levels), also known as gradistics. Defined by Carl von Linnz, (also known as Carolus Linneaus). |
| Lithosphere | Cool, rigid exterior of the earth that incorporates the crust and upper part of the mantle. Composes plates (which can have continents) that interact with one another as a result of processes emanating from the asthenosphere. |
| Mammalia | Clade of amniotes characterized by hair and mammary glands, among other traits. Descended from synapsid ancestors during the Late Triassic. |
| Maniraptoriformes | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanuare, Avetheropoda, and Coelurosauria. |
| Mantle | Relatively more dense and thickest layer of the earth, immediately below the crust, and forming the lower part of the lithosphere and all of the asthenosphere. |
| Manus | Hand, associated with the forelimbs. Contrast with pes. |
| Marginocephalia | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, considered a sister clade to Ornithopoda. Characterized by an abbreviated posterior portion of the premaxillary as it contributes to the palate and a shortened pubis accompanied by widely spaced hip sockets. Includes clades Pachycephalosauria and Ceratopsia. |
| Medial | Middle part of an organism, especially definable in those organisms with bilateral symmetry, but also can refer to the middle portion of a body part. |
| Meiosis | Splitting of diploid cells into haploid cells, which produces gametes. |
| Megalosauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda and Tetanurae. Considered as an outgroup of the latter. |
| Mesozoic Era | Division of geologic time scale that is defined as lasting from about 245 to 65 million years ago, consisting of the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Periods. |
| Metamorphic Rock | Rock formed from heat and pressure that changes the original minerals or texture of a previous rock, such as another metamorphic rock, igneous rock, or sedimentary rock. |
| Mineral | Solid, naturally occurring, inorganic substance with a definite chemical composition and an ordered internal arrangement of atoms expressed as a crystal habit. |
| Mitosis | Splitting of diploid cells to form more diploid cells. |
| Mold | Impression made as a result of a body or body part contacting with a substrate. Can be either external or internal. Contrast with cast. |
| Monophyletic | Group of organisms with a common ancestor. |
| Morphology | Study of form in an organism, but also refers to the overall shapes of an organism and products of its behavior, i.e., track morphology and egg morphology. |
| Morrison Formation | Well-known Upper Jurassic rock unit made famous for its abundant dinosaur body fossils and some trace fossils. Named after its type area in Morrison, Colorado. |
| Mummification | Mode of preservation that involves desiccation (dehydration) of a body. |
| Mutualism | Form of commensalism, where two of or more species benefit from associating with one another. |
| Natural Selection | Hypothesis that is part of the theory of biological evolution. States that species have genetic variation within their populations. These variations may constitute adaptations with relation to intraspecific competition or environmental factors, and those better adapted individuals survive long enough to reproduce, thus selectively passing on their inheritable traits. Older version called Darwinism, new version called Neo-Darwinism. |
| Necrolysis | Decomposition of a body after it dies. Important process in taphonomy. |
| Neoceratopsia | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia and Ceratopsia. |
| Neo-Darwinism | Term used to describe newer version of Darwinism, which includes concepts of modern genetics. |
| Neornithines | Clade of avians represented by modern birds, originated in the Cretaceous Period. Can be divided into carinates (flighted birds) and ratites (flightless birds). |
| Nest | Biogenic structure that typically (but not always) contains a clutch. Best represented by an arrangement of eggs or eggshells in definite patterns, but can also be denoted as a semicircular depression with a raised rim that was originally used to hold eggs or young (mound nest), or a hollow, subsurface chamber for holding eggs (hole nest). |
| Node-based Clade | Clade that has all of the descendants of the most recent common ancestor for two groups, where the common ancestor forms the node. |
| Occlusion | Closing of an animal's mouth so that the teeth from the upper and lower jaws come together on a surface (occlusal surface). |
| Omnivory; (Omnivorous) | Eating of both plants and animals. |
| Ontogeny | Growth history (development) of an organism during its lifetime. |
| Opinion | Idea that may or may not be based on factual information, but more on how a person feels. |
| Original Horizontality | Basic geologic principle that sediments are originally deposited in more-or-less horizontal layers. |
| Ornithischia | Clade placed with the Dinosauria that is one of the two defining all dinosaurs. Characterized by a hip arrangement that has the pubis together with the ischium and pointing posteriorly. |
| Ornithomimosauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptiformes, and Arctometatarsalia. Also known as the "ostrich dinosaurs." |
| Ornithopoda | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: offset tooth row, where the maxillary teeth are more dorsal than those in the premaxillary, (but teeth in the latter might be missing altogether), occlusal surface more dorsal than jaw joint, crescent-shaped paraoccipital process, and premaxilla with an elongate process that touches either, (or both,) the prefrontal or lachrymal. |
| Osteoderm | Bony outgrowth of skin. Typical trait in titanosaurids and thyreophorans. |
| Oviduct | In female birds and reptiles, the passageway between uterus and cloaca, colloquially called a "birth canal." Paired in some crocodilians. |
| Oviparous | Amniote that reproduces by laying an enclosed egg on land. |
| Oviraptorisauria | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, and Maniraptoriformes. |
| Pace Angulation | In a trackway, angle described by the pace of one side in comparison to the overall stride. |
| Pace Length | In a trackway, the distance between two successive tracks made by appendages from opposite sides, such as right-left or left-right. |
| Pachycephalosauria | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Marginocephalia. Characterized by fusing together the frontals and parietals into a thick deposit of bone, thus the popular nickname of "bonehead" dinosaurs. |
| Pachycephalosauridae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia and Pachycephalosauria. Also known as the "dome-headed" dinosaurs. |
| Paleobiogeography | Study of how maps can be used to describe the geographic distribution of organisms during the geologic past. |
| Paleoecology | Study of interrelationships between ancient organisms and their original environments. |
| Paleontology | Study of ancient life. Can include invertebrate paleontology (animals without backbones), vertebrate paleontology (animals with backbones), micropaleontology (one-celled organisms), and paleobotany (plants). |
| Paleopathology | Study of sickness, injuries, and other abnormalities in the health of ancient organisms. |
| Paraphyletic | A group of related organisms but excluding some of their descendants that might be much different. (See monophyletic.) |
| Parasitism | Form of symbiosis where one organism is living at the expense of another host organism. Parasitic organisms can be either endoparasites (within the host) or ectoparasites (outside the host). |
| Parataxonomy | Naming of either trace fossils or some body fossils, (such as eggs,) similar to that for biological species, using binomial nomenclature to identify a specific morphology. |
| Permineralization | Filling of pores in a fossil by minerals precipitated from solution. Common mode of preservation for petrified wood and bones. |
| Pes | Foot, associated with the hindlimbs. Contrast with manus. |
| pH | Negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration in a solution, measured on a scale from 1 (most acidic) to 14 (most basic). |
| Phalangeal Formula | Count of phalanges associated with each digit in a manus or pes. |
| Phalanges (plural of phalanx) | Distal bones associated with the digits of either a manus or pes. |
| Phylogenetic Classification | System used for classifying organisms on the basis of their inferred phylogeny. Also known as cladistics. |
| Phylogeny | Evolutionary history of an organism. |
| Piscivory; (Piscivorous) | Fish-eating habit. Proposed as a hypothetical feeding strategy for some theropods, such as spinosaurs. |
| Plantigrade | Locomotion that involves contact of the digits and more proximal bones of the limb, such as tarsals and metatarsals. Also known as "flat-footed." (Contrast with digitigrade.) |
| Plate Tectonics, (Theory of ) | Generally accepted explanation for observed earthquakes, volcanoes, and some other geologic phenomena that occur in definite places on the earth. |
| Plesiomorphy | Character in an ancestor that is also observable in a descendant. Considered as a primitive trait, such as ziphodont teeth. |
| Pleurocoels | Cavities within vertebrae of some dinosaurs, such as ceratosaurs. |
| Pneumatic (Bones) | Air-filled or otherwise less dense bones. Typical trait of both avian and non-avian theropods. |
| Polyphyletic | Group of organisms that had separate ancestors. |
| Population | Group of organisms interbreeding with one another, presumably representing a species. |
| Posterior | Anatomical reference to the rear of an animal or any part. |
| Precocial | Behavioral reference to juveniles capable of moving and fending for themselves soon after birth, with little or no parental care. |
| Pressure-release Structure | Deformity associated with a track caused by the application or release of pressure by a foot. |
| Prosauropoda | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Sauropodomorpha, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: atlas and a total of 10 cervical vertebrae, 15 dorsal, three sacral (attached to the pelvic bones), and nearly 50 caudal vertebrae, phalangeal formula on pes of 2-3-4-5-1, with small unguals, and phalanx on digit V seemingly vestigial, phalangeal formula on manus of 2-3- 4-3-2, with unguals present on digits I through III, enlarged ungual on digit I, which is deviated from the rest of the manus. |
| Protein | Combination of any 20 amino acids into a compound that facilitates biochemical reactions or provides structural support for an organism. Examples are albumin, collagen, hemoglobin, and osteocalcin. |
| Protoceratopsidae | Uncertainly assigned as a clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia, Ceratopsia, and Neoceratopsia, among the most primitive of neoceratopsians. |
| Proximal | Anatomical reference to a body part that is close to an organism's midline. Contrast with distal. |
| Psittacosauridae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Marginocephalia and Ceratopsia, considered as the oldest clade of ceratopsians. |
| Pubis | One of the hip bones, anterior and medial with relative to the ischium and ilium. |
| Quadrupedal | Using four legs for locomotion. |
| Quantum Mechanics, (Theory of) | Generally accepted explanation for observed behavior of atomic and subatomic particles. |
| Replacement | Process where a body part of an organism is replaced by a material with a different composition from the original material. |
| Reproductive Isolation | Separateness of a species from another, represented by an inability to reproduce with one another to produce viable offspring. |
| Reptilia; (Reptiles) | General term for a polyphyletic group of amniotes that includes modern snakes, lizards, crocodillans, and turtles. Sometimes synonymized with clade Eureptilia, but the latter excludes clade Anapsida, which includes turtles. |
| Resonating Chambers | Tube-like structures that connected with nasal cavities in some hadrosaurids. Hypothetically used for changing sounds produced by moving air through the skull. |
| Respiratory Turbinates | Spaces within nasal cavities that accommodate folded bony or cartilaginous structures, often lined with mucous membranes. Considered as an indicator of endothermy. |
| RNA | Ribonucleic acid. |
| Ruminant | Herbivore that uses a multi-chambered stomach for the digestion of its food, which is physically mashed into a compacted mass called a bolus, (or cud). |
| Sacral | Body parts referring to the hip region, such as sacral vertebrae. |
| Saurischia | Clade placed with the clade Dinosauria that is one of the two defining all dinosaurs. Characterized by a hip arrangement that has the pubis pointing anterior and separate from the ischium. |
| Sauropoda | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Sauropodomorpha, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: 12 or more cervical vertebrae, neural arches and other processes smaller but forming better support for musculature as struts, sacrum with four or more vertebrae, large and separate pelvic bones, including an ilium with an expanded anterior end, minimum of 45 to more than 80 caudal vertebrae. |
| Sauropodomorpha | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: distal part of the tibia covered by an ascending process of the astralagus, short hindlimbs in comparison to the torso length, thin and flat (spatula-like) teeth with bladed and serrated crowns, minimum of 10 cervical vertebrae that are typically elongated and a total of 25 presacral vertebrae, and large digit I on the manus, pes with five digits and unguals on digits I-III, manus with five digits with smaller phalanges on digits II-V, ungual on digit I of manus. Includes clades Prosauropoda and Sauropoda. |
| Sediment | Unconsolidated material, typically formed as a result of weathering from a previously existing rock. |
| Sedimentary Environment | Place where sediments are deposited. |
| Sedimentary Rock | Rock formed through consolidation of sediment, forming either chemical or clastic sedimentary rocks. |
| Sedimentology | Study of sediments, specifically how they are formed, transported, buried, and altered with burial. |
| Semi-erect Posture | Body alignment used by an animal that is in between and an upright and sprawling posture, with its legs directly underneath its torso. |
| Serrations | Square-, triangular-, oval-, or rectangular-shaped denticles on carinae separated by narrow indentations (cellae) along a tooth surface. |
| Sexual Selection | Choosing of mates on the basis of attractive traits possessed by that mate. An important part of natural selection. |
| Sister Group | Taxon that had the same "parent," or ancestral group, as another taxon and split from that ancestral group, e.g., Sauropodomorpha is a sister group to Theropoda because they both have a saurischian ancestor. |
| Site Fidelity | Habitual (annual) visitation and inhabitation of an area by a species of animal, typically for breeding and brooding purposes. |
| Speciation | Evolution of one species into another species. Has been observed in some organisms, thus is part of factual basis of the theory of biological evolution. |
| Species (Biological Concept) | Population of organisms that can interbreed and produce offspring that can also reproduce with one another. A closed gene pool. |
| Species (Name) | Taxon for biological species based on binomial nomenclature, italicized and using genus and trivial name; e.g., Triceratops horridus, Tyrannosaurus rex. |
| Sperm | Male gamete containing a haploid complement of chromosomes. Although outnumbered by millions of its compatriots, one will combine with female gamete (egg) to form a zygote. (Everyone should know this, but if not, this textbook was worth writing in order to pass on that knowledge alone.) |
| Sprawling Posture | Body alignment used by an animal that has its legs lateral to (outside of ) the plane of its torso. |
| Stable Isotope | Variation of an element based on differing numbers of neutrons, which affect its mass (isotope) that does not undergo radioactive decay. Ratios of stable isotopes are used for interpreting temperatures in ancient ecosystems. |
| Stegosauria | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with the clade Thyreophora, characterized by osteoderms evident as spikes on the shoulder regions (parascapular spines) and dermal armor restricted to two rows of vertically oriented plates, parallel to but also lateral to the axial skeleton (parasagittal plates) or spikes. |
| Stem-based Clade | Clade that has a shared common ancestor more recent than that of another group. |
| Straddle | Width of a trackway, measured across the diameter of the trackway. |
| Stratigraphy | Study of rock layers, (particularly sedimentary rocks:), how they were formed, and mapping of their geometry (areal distribution and thickness). |
| Stride Length | In a trackway, the distance between two successive steps made by the same foot. |
| Superposition, (Principle of ) | Basic geologic principle that originally horizontal layers have the oldest layers on the bottom and youngest layers on the top of a sequence, i.e., whatever is on the top is younger and vice versa. |
| Symbiosis | Two or more organisms of different species living together or interacting in a way that one or all are dependent on the relationship for survival. Parasitism is a form of symbiosis, as is mutualism. |
| Synapomorphy | Character, shared between two or more groups of organisms, that was derived from earlier characters. Evolutionarily derived ("new" or "novel") anatomical trait. Used in cladistic (phylogenetic) classification system. |
| Synapsida | Clade of amniotes characterized by single temporal foramen on each side of the skull. Clade Mammalia is placed with this clade. |
| Synonymy | Different species name assigned to an organism that has already been given a species name (a common problem in naming of dinosaur species). |
| Taphonomy | Study of all processes that affect an organism after it dies, (such as scavenging, tissue degradation, transport of a body, and burial) and its fossilization potential. Also can be applied to the preservation of trace fossils. |
| Taxonomy | Classification system in which names are applied to organisms or groups of organisms with regard to defining features; name given is a taxon. System applied to naming traces of behavior by organisms or their eggs is parataxonomy. |
| Tetanurae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clade Theropoda, characterized by a minimum of the following traits: dentition in the maxilla only anterior to the orbital, antorbital and maxillary fenestrae, accompanied by increased pneumaticity of the skull, manus with digits I through III but digit III is absent in some cases, tibia that overlapped a reduced fibula, development of a large notch on the ischium, well-developed stiffening of the caudal vertebrae by processes (zygopophyses) that extended anterior and posterior from the neural arches. |
| Theory | Hypothesis, or set of related hypotheses, that withstood repeated testing to the point of widespread acceptance by the scientific community. |
| Thanatocoenosis | Assemblage of organisms in the fossil record that may be composed of only allochthonous species or a mixture of allochthonous and autochthonous species. Also known as a "death assemblage." |
| Therizinosauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, and Maniraptiformes. Considered as the most unusual of theropods, especially in their dentition. They possibly were insectivorous, omnivorous, or herbivorous. |
| Thermodynamics | Study of heat and its relationship to work. |
| Theropoda | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, has minimum of following traits: lachrymal bone prominently exposed on dorsal surface of skull, minimum of five sacral vertebrae, manus with claws (unguals) and reduction or loss of digits IV and V, slightly curved femur, which is also more than twice as long as the humerus, pes with digits II through IV, digit I separate from pes, pes length greater than width, bilaterally symmetrical from digit III, and a well-defined processes on cervical and caudal vertebrae. Generally known as "carnivorous dinosaurs" but probably with some exceptions. |
| Thoracic | Any body part referring to the thorax (torso), such as thoracic vertebrae. |
| Thyreophora | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, characterized by dermal armor, typically present as osteoderms in rows parallel to the midline of the body and a well-developed postorbital process associated with the jugal and a palpebral (supraorbital bone). Includes clades Stegosauria and Ankylosauridae. |
| Titanosauridae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Sauropodomorpha and Sauropoda, distinguished by dermal armor (osteoderms) and procoelous caudal vertebrae. |
| Tooth | Bone-like projection from the jaw of a chordate used primarily for grasping, biting, or chewing food. If found in the fossil record is considered as a body fossil. |
| Toothmark | Trace left on a substrate, either as a puncture or scrape mark, that represents behavior by an animal using its teeth. If found in the fossil record is considered as a trace fossil. |
| Topographic Map | Graphical, two-dimensional representation of differences in elevation in a specific area as well as its surface features, such as forested areas, roads, and cities. |
| Trace Element | Element that is normally in very small amounts in the earth's crust or in a body. |
| Trace Fossil | Any indirect evidence of ancient life as represented by the effects of behavior. Includes tracks, trails, burrows, toothmarks, gastroliths, coprolites, and nests. |
| Track | Trace left by appendage of an animal, typically as a result of its locomotion. If found in the fossil record is considered as a type of trace fossil. A series of two or more successive tracks made by the same foot is a trackway. |
| Trail | Path worn by repeated movement of animals along a route, typically the result of numerous trackways. |
| Triassic Period | Time interval in the geologic time scale spanning from about 245 to 206 million years ago. Dinosaurs had evolved from archosaur ancestors by the latter part of this period, including the clades Theropoda and Sauropodomorpha. Tridactyl Three-toed track or foot, often affiliated with either theropods or most ornithopods, (especially hadrosaurids). |
| Trivial Name | Second part of a species name (in binomial nomenclature) that must always be used in combination with and preceded by a genus name. Is always lowercase and italicized. |
| Troodontidae | Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptoriformes, and Arctometatarsalia. |
| Type Specimen | Individual organism or parts of an organism used to define a species. Tyrannosauridae Clade of saurischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Theropoda, Tetanurae, Avetheropoda, Coelurosauria, Maniraptoriformes, and Arctometatarsalia. |
| Undertrack | Track preserved below the actual surface on which an animal walked as a result of compression of underlying layers. |
| Ungual | Nail or hoof, located at the distal ends of phalanges. |
| Upright posture | Body alignment used by an animal that stands and walks with its legs directly underneath its torso. |
| Ventral | Bottom side of a horizontally oriented organism or a body part; contrast with dorsal. |
| Vertebrata, (Vertebrates) | Clade with synapomorphy of a series of bones (vertebrae) forming the main axial elements in the dorsal part of the skeleton. Placed with clade Chordata. |
| Vertebrae (plural of Vertebra) | Repeated and interconnected bones that formed the main axial elements in the dorsal part of a skeleton. Can be classified as cervical, dorsal, sacral, and caudal, in order from cranially to caudally, and with each composed of a centrum, neural arch, and nerve canal. |
| Viviparous | Amniote that reproduces by giving "live birth," where its juveniles are retained in its body just before birth, rather than being born from cleidoic eggs. |
| Warm-blooded | Popularized description of endothermy. |
| Yolk Sac | Food supply in a cleidoic egg. |
| Ziphodont | Curved and serrated teeth; considered as a plesiomorphic trait in dinosaurs and present in most theropods. |
| Zygopophyses | Processes emanating from the caudal vertebrae that, when welldeveloped, helped to stiffen the tail. |
| Zygote | Female gamete (egg) that has combined its haploid complement of chromosomes with that of a male gamete (sperm); a fertilized egg. |
| Nodosauridae | Clade of ornithischian dinosaurs, placed with clades Thyreophora and Ankylosauria. Had laterally placed nares, and lacked horns and tail club. |
| Nucleic Acids | Biomolecules such as RNA and DNA that are chains of nucleotides. |
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