Stegosaurus infraorder. Huayanosaurus - Huayangosaurus - Dinosaurs. Distinctive features of ankylosaurs

The name "stegosaurus" means "roofed lizard". The first researchers thought that its dorsal plates were arranged like tiles on a roof: obliquely and slightly overlapping. Subsequently, paleontologists hypothesized that they were located vertically in two rows, and this position rather corresponded to their function: to regulate body temperature.

The largest yet peaceful dinosaur was the Stegosaurus. Stegosaurs had one very interesting feature in the structure of the ridge - it had two rows of triangular plates. Most likely, these plates served to protect against enemies and to regulate body temperature: under the sun's rays, they accumulated heat, but if the body temperature became too high, then a light wind or shade was enough - and the same plates began to give off this heat.

What did a stegosaurus look like?

The stegosaurs were really huge, they could reach 9 meters in length, and on the tail the stegosaurus had long spikes (on the order of a meter), with which they could defend themselves from predators.
Stegosaurus was a herbivore, for this reason his teeth were weak and could only chew plant foods. The head was small compared to the massive body.

Stegosaurus- dinosaur jurassic . Stegosaurus- a representative of ornithischian dinosaurs - thyreophore. Stegosaurus- the largest representative of the group of stegosaurus. This group of dinosaurs was named after him.

The head ended in a horny beak, which stegosaurus plucked leaves from undersized vegetation and lower branches of trees.

Stegosaurus Nutrition:

To survive stegosaurus had to eat a large amount of food daily. Since his jaws were poorly developed, and his teeth are not very well adapted for chewing food to facilitate digestion, stegosaurus swallowed stones that helped him grind the leaves in his stomach. Other large plant-eating dinosaurs used a similar "trick".
Modern birds, thought to be descendants of dinosaurs, also use rocks for digestion..

Limbs and body structure of a stegosaurus:

Stegosaurs walked on four legs. Front legs stegosaurus were small and short compared to the powerful rear ones. Whole weight stegosaurus stood on its hind legs. The body had very unusual proportions due to the fact that the hind legs were much larger than the front ones, the back arched into a huge hump.

Though stegosaurus was a fairly peaceful creature, he was well protected. The entire body of the stegosaurus was littered with numerous bone growths, which were located even at the throat.
Plates on the back stegosaurus set it apart from other dinosaurs. Initially, scientists assumed that this was a means of protection against predatory lizards, but after a closer study, this version was rejected.

It is known that red for animals is the color of danger. In combination with the mass of the body and the spiny tail waving from side to side, the impression was impressive.
Stegosaurus could not only frighten, but also severely or even mortally injure the attacking lizard, attacking with tail spikes in unprotected paws and stomach.
In addition to protective functions, back plates stegosaurus served as a thermostat. In the morning when it's still cold stegosaurus turned its plates towards the sun and accumulated heat, like modern solar panels. In the heat, the plates removed excess heat, like radiators in modern technology.
Also, the color of the plates helped stegosaurus to compete with males during the mating season.

Detachment - Ornithischians

Family - Stegosaurs

Genus/Species - Stegosaurus stenops. Stegosaurus

Basic data:

DIMENSIONS

Length: up to 9 m.

Weight: 6-8 tons.

Head length: about 45 cm.

Brain size: 3 cm

Back plates: up to 60 cm high.

Tail spikes: length 1 m.

BREEDING

Mating period: time unknown; perhaps there were fights between males for the right to fertilize the female.

Laying time: probably several times a year.

LIFESTYLE

Habitat: in the tropics.

Food: vegetation.

Habits: stegosaurus (see picture) probably led a herd lifestyle.

RELATED SPECIES

A 5 meter long Kentrosaurus that lived in Africa.

The dinosaur Stegosaurus lived about 170 million years ago. Despite the intimidating appearance, he was a peaceful herbivore. It is likely that he lived in herds. They provided him with security more by their numbers than by the militancy of the members of the herd.

FOOD

Stegosaurus was a herbivore and fed on many kinds of plants. In that historical period, a tropical climate prevailed on Earth in America, the earth was covered with lush vegetation.

Studies of stegosaurus fossil skeletons have shown that stegosaurus had fairly strong dorsal muscles associated with outgrowths on the hips at the base of the tail. These muscles apparently allowed the Stegosaurus to stand up on its hind legs, thanks to which it reached plants that grew high. It is interesting to know that his body was not specially adapted to plant foods - his teeth were small and weak. It is believed that he, like other dinosaurs and modern crocodiles, swallowed stones to grind plant fibers.

BREEDING

One of the reasons why the study of dinosaurs is such a fascinating activity is that very little is known about them. Therefore, you can always make some kind of discovery, and the finds can be hidden in the ground right under our feet.

Dinosaurs, including Stegosaurus, are known to have laid several relatively small eggs in shallow holes dug in the ground. They covered the eggs with sand so that the sun's rays warmed them. Newborn cubs grew very quickly, thereby avoiding the fate of becoming easy prey for predators.

During the defense against attackers, the cubs were placed in the center of the herd. Since the Stegosaurus was a herd animal, the males competed for the right to possess the female and be the leader of the herd. In such situations, herbivores only make threatening sounds and demonstrate their strength to other males, but do not enter into an open fight.

ENEMIES

The peace-loving stegosaurus often fell prey to predatory dinosaurs, such as the dangerous one.

The Stegosaurus was most likely rather slow and defenseless, especially when attacked from the side and in the leg area. He was slow and therefore could not run away from predators. He defended himself by unexpectedly hitting the attacker with his tail, which was covered with spikes. Each of the spikes on the tail was about 1 m long. Stegosaurus had two pairs of them.

Some species related to Stegosaurus had four pairs of spines. The spikes were quite keratinized and could seriously injure the enemy if he fell into their reach.

SPECIAL SIGNS. DESCRIPTION

Stegosaurus is one of the dinosaurs that has a double row of bony plates along its back.

There are many theories that try to explain the purpose of the plates, the highest of which is 60 cm high. Some argue that the plates were needed for self-defense. According to other theories, they served to regulate the temperature.

If the plates were covered with skin with many blood vessels, then, being turned towards the sun, they could serve the animal for heating the body, and when placed in the shade, they cooled the body.

The Stegosaurus had four spikes at the end of its tail, which it apparently used to protect itself.

Stegosaurus did not belong to the largest dinosaurs, however, its body length reached 9 meters. The forelimbs were half as long as the hind ones, so the stegosaurus moved by leaning forward strongly.

The head of the Stegosaurus was very small, about 45 centimeters long, and almost touched the ground. His brain was also small - only about 3 cm.

WHERE THE DINOSAUR STEGOSAUR LIVED

Stegosaurus lived over 170 million years ago on the ancient continent that would later form North America.

At that time, a warm, almost tropical climate prevailed there - ideal for such herbivorous dinosaurs as the Stegosaurus. The vegetation that grew on the continent, at first glance, resembled a modern rainforest, but today's plant species did not exist at that time. So, there were no flower plants. Everywhere, next to ferns and coniferous trees, ancient palm trees grew, which, in their appearance, resembled modern ones.

INTERESTING INFORMATION. DO YOU KNOW WHAT...

• Fossilized remains of a relative of the Stegosaurus have been found in Western Europe.
• Obviously, stegosaurs lived for a short time in the Jurassic period. The remains of these dinosaurs are found only in the upper layers of rocks.
• Some modern reptiles look like smaller versions of extinct dinosaurs.
• The lizard, which lives in Africa, has spikes on its head and body, similar to those that were in a stegosaurus. However, this lizard is 60 times smaller than a Stegosaurus, and its length reaches only 60 cm.

CHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF THE STEGOSAUR

Back plates: went from head to tail. There are many theories that explain their purpose, including one that suggests that they served to regulate body temperature.

Head: small compared to the large body. The brain is the size of a walnut.

Forelimbs: much shorter than the rear, designed for walking.

Hind limbs: strong, capable of bearing the weight of the entire body of the animal.

- Habitat of Stegosaurus

WHERE AND WHEN THE STEGOSAUR LIVED

The dinosaur Stegosaurus lived during the late Jurassic period 170 million years ago in North America. Its fossilized footprints have been found in Colorado, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming. It is not uncommon for Stegosaurus footprints to be found in large numbers and extend for many kilometers. Other members of the Stegosaurus family lived in places like Western Europe, East Asia, and East Africa.

Dinosaur Stegosaurus, also known as Stegosaurus. The name is translated from Latin as "roof-lizard". This is a bright representative of the plant fauna of the late Jurassic period, which took place about one hundred and fifty million years ago. Stegosaurus got its name due to the bone plates that were located on its back in the amount of seventeen pieces.

Stegosaurs were very large dinosaurs, their body length was nine meters, almost four meters in height. Each had three short toes on its hind legs, two of which were internal and ended in blunt hooves. Four limbs were supported by massive "blocks" that were located behind the fingers. The front legs were much shorter than the stocky hind legs, and due to this, the dinosaur moved in a rather curious posture.

The dinosaur's head was located quite low, about one meter above the ground. The skull was narrow and long, very small in proportion to the size of the body, and had a small preorbital fenestra, that is, a hole between the eyes and nose, which is characteristic of all archosaurs and is present in modern birds, although not preserved in crocodiles. The animal's skull, despite its size, was similar in size to that of a dog. Charles Marsh, in the 1880s, estimated the brain size of a Stegosaurus from a perfectly preserved cranium, and concluded that the brain of a Stegosaurus, weighing almost five tons, weighed only eighty grams. This fact gave rise to the hypothesis that, in general, these animals could be unintelligent. However, these days this idea is practically not subject to consideration.

Marsh, after describing the animal, noted an extension in the pelvic region of the spinal canal containing the spinal cord. The spinal cord, judging by its size, could be twenty times larger than the brain. Thus came the well-known idea that dinosaurs like the Stegosaurus might have had what would be called a "second brain" located in the tail, which controlled reflexes in the back of the body. He also suggested that this brain may have provided the dinosaur with temporary support when it was threatened by predators. By the way, scientists recently proved that this space, which was also found in sauropods, most likely contained a glycogen body, that is, a structure whose analogue can now be observed in modern birds. It is assumed that this body replenished the supply of glycogen in the nervous system.

But the most remarkable body parts of the dinosaur were the back and tail. At that distant time, giant sauropods such as Apatosaurus and Diplodocus dominated the land. They relied on the size of their body as the best defense against predators. Stegosaurs, on the other hand, had their own defense mechanism against predators. And if the purpose of the tail spikes as a weapon to fight the enemy is indisputable, apparently, the main function of the dorsal plates was completely different.

These dinosaurs ate exclusively low-growing plants, namely, they loved to feast on coniferous fruits, horsetails, ferns, mosses and cycads.

Stegosaurus belonged to a family of dinosaurs that had a double row of bony plates along the spine from neck to tail. For defense purposes, it used a tail with sharp spikes at the end.

Stegosaurus lived about 170 million years ago. Despite its intimidating appearance, it was a peaceful herbivore. It is likely that he lived in herds. They provided him with security rather by their numbers than by the militancy of the members of the herd.

Special signs

Stegosaurus is one of the dinosaurs that has a double row of bony plates along the spine on its back.

There are many theories trying to explain the purpose of the plates, the tallest of which was 60 cm high. Some argue that the plates were for self-defense. Other theories say that they served the purpose of temperature regulation.

If the plates were covered with skin with many blood vessels, then, facing the sun, they could serve the animal to heat the body; placed in the shade, cooled the body.

At the end of the tail, the stegosaurus had 4 spikes, which it used, apparently, for defense.

The stegosaurus did not belong to the largest dinosaurs, however, its body length reached 9 meters. The forelimbs were half as long as the hind ones, so the stegosaurus moved, leaning forward strongly.

The head of the Stegosaurus was very small, about 45 cm long, and almost touched the ground.

His brain was also small - about .3cm

Habitat

A little over 170 years ago, millions of years ago, the Stegosaurus lived on the ancient continent that later formed North America. At that time, a warm, almost tropical climate prevailed there - ideal for such a herbivore as the stegosaurus.

The vegetation that grew on the continent, at first glance, resembled a modern rainforest, but today's plant species did not yet exist at that time.

There were no flowering plants.

Everywhere, along with ferns and conifers, ancient palm trees grew, seemingly reminiscent of modern ones.

Food

Stegosaurus was a herbivore and fed on many types of plants. At that time in the history of the Earth, a tropical climate prevailed in America, the earth was covered with lush vegetation.

Studies of fossilized skeletons have shown that Stegosaurus had strong dorsal muscles associated with outgrowths on the thighs at the base of the tail. These muscles,

apparently, they allowed the stegosaurus to rise on its hind legs, thanks to which it reached high-growing plants. Meanwhile, it was not specially adapted for plant food, its teeth were small and weak. It is believed that he, like other dinosaurs and modern crocodiles, swallowed stones to grind plant fibers.

reproduction

One of the reasons why studying dinosaurs is such a fascinating activity is that very little is known about them. Therefore, there is a chance to make a discovery, and the finds may be hidden in the ground right under our feet.

Dinosaurs, including Stegosaurus, are known to have laid several relatively small eggs in shallow holes dug in the ground. The eggs were covered with sand so that the sun's rays warmed them. Newborn cubs grew very quickly so as not to become easy prey for predators. To protect predators, the cubs were placed in the center of the herd. Since the stegosaurus was a herd animal, males fought for the right to take possession of the female and lead the herd. In such situations, herbivores only make threatening sounds and show their strength without engaging in an open duel.

Enemies

The peace-loving Stegosaurus was often the victim of carnivorous dinosaurs such as the dangerous Tyrannosaurus Rex.

The Stegosaurus was most likely rather slow and defenseless, especially when attacked from the side and in the leg area. He was slow and therefore could not run away from predators. He defended himself by unexpectedly striking with his tail dotted with spikes. Each of the spikes on the tail was about 1 meter long. Stegosaurus had 2 pairs.

Some species related to Stegosaurus had 4 pairs of spines. The spikes were quite keratinized and could seriously injure the enemy if he fell into their reach.