Dinosaurs

What is a dinosaur?

How do we know about them?

FOSSILSDinosaurs

What are fossils?

Fossils are the petrified remains of ancient objects.

Petrified – means turned to stone.

Ancient – means very, very old.

PETRIFIED FOSSILThe Field Museum in Chicago displays

a fossil of a Tyrannosaurus rex.

What kinds of things make fossils?

Fossils can be of animals, plants, or other objects.

Most of the time we think of dinosaurs when we hear the word fossil.

Fossils, big or small….

Fossils can be very large or very small

Scientists even have found fossilized dinosaur teeth and claws!

How are fossils made?

1. SedimentAn animal is buried by sediment, such as volcanic ash or silt, shortly after it dies. Its bones are protected from rotting by the layer of sediment.

4. ErosionErosion from rain, rivers, and wind wears away the remaining rock layers. Eventually, erosion or people digging for fossils will expose the preserved remains.

2. LayersMore sediment layers accumulate above the animal’s remains, and minerals, such as silica (a compound of silicon and oxygen), slowly replace the calcium phosphate in the bones.

3. MovementMovement of tectonic plates, or giant rock slabs that make up Earth’s surface, lifts up the sediments and pushes the fossil closer to the surface.

Five kinds of fossils:

PetrifiedFossils

Molds andCasts

CarbonFilms

TraceFossils

PreservedRemains

Why are fossils important?

A paleontologist is a scientist who digs up fossils, puts the bones together and tries to figure out what type of animal it used to be. Fossils give clues about organisms that

lived long ago. They help to show that evolution has occurred.

They also provide evidence about how Earth’s surface has changed over time.

Fossils help scientists understand what past environments may have been like.

Let’s Make a Fossil!

We are going to make mold and trace fossils1. Flatten a ball of clay

on manila paper

2. Press objects lightly into the clay

After the clay is fired in the kiln, we will paint it to make it look ancient and weathered!

WHAT TYPES OF DINOSAURS WERE THERE?

Dinosaurs

Dinosaurs

Dinosaurs lived millions of years ago! Mesozoic Era

Triassic Period (245-208 million years ago) Jurassic Period (208-145 million years ago) Cretaceous Period (145-66 million years ago)

Dinosaurs could be: Herbivores: vegetarian; eats plants Carnivores: eats meat

TYRANNOSAURUS

“Tyrant Lizard”

7” teeth

23’ tall, 50’ long

16,000 lbs.

Could run at 30 MPH

Could lift 450 lbs.

Carnivore

Found in North American and Asia

STEGOSAURUS

“Roof Lizard”

Herbivore

14’ tall, 28’ long

6,000 lbs.

Found in western North America

ANKYLOSAURUS

“Fused Lizard”

Herbivore

11’ tall, 35” long

10,000 lbs.

Tail was used as a weapon against predators

Found in North America

BACTROSAURUSPronunciation: BAK-truh-SAWR-us Translation: Bactrian LizardAlso known as:Description: Herbivore, BipedalOrder: OrnithischiaSuborder: OrnithopodaInfraorder: IguanodontiaFamily: HadrosauridaeHeight: 8 feet (2.4 meters) Length: 20 feet (6.1 meters) Weight: Period: Late Cretaceous

Notes: Bactrosaurus is one of the earliest known duck-billed hadrosaurs. It had fewer teeth than did later hadrosaurs. It lived in what is now Mongolia.

BAGACERATOPSPronunciation: bag-uh-SAIR-uh-tops Translation: Small Horned FaceAlso known as: Description: Herbivore, QuadrupedalOrder: OrnithischiaSuborder: MarginocephaliaInfraorder: CeratopsiaMicro-order NeoceratopsiaFamily: ProtoceratopsidaeHeight: 12 inches (0.3 meters)Length: 36 inches (0.9 meters)Weight: 7 pounds (3.2 kg) Period: Late Cretaceous

Notes: Discovered in the Gobi desert of Mongolia, Bagaceratops was a small, primitive ceratopsian. It had a very small horn on its nose and its neck was protected by a very short frill. Glossary In Asia, the protoceratopsians were prevalent during the Late Cretaceous, while no certain neoceratopsians are known, whereas at the same time in North America, the neoceratopsians were more prevalent and only a few protoceratopsians have been discovered.

BAHARIASAURUSPronunciation: buh-HAR-ee-uh-SAWR-us Translation: Baharije LizardAlso known as:Description: Carnivore, BipedalOrder: SaurischiaSuborder: TheropodaInfraorder: TetanuraeMicro-order: CarnosauriaHeight: Length:Weight: Period: Cretaceous

Notes: The name was given to fragmentary remains found in Egypt. It was probably similar to Megalosaurus.No further study of Bahariasaurus is possible until new specimens are identified, for its remains were destroyed in the World War II bombing of Stuttgart, Germany.

BARAPASAURUSPronunciation: buh-RAP-puh-SAWR-us Translation: Big Leg Lizard Also known as: Description: Herbivore, Quadrupedal Order: SaurischiaSuborder: SauropodomorphaInfraorder: SauropodaFamily: VulcanodontidaeHeight: 25 feet (7.6 meters) Length: 60 feet (18.3 meters)Weight:Period: Early Jurassic

Notes: Known from parts of over 300 individual specimens found in India yet no skulls have been recovered. Barapasaurus is the oldest known sauropod certain to have been a sauropod, however; Vulcanodon may be older. While Barapasaurus gathered in herds, as did many sauropods, it differed in that it had comparatively slender legs.

BAROSAURUSPronunciation: BARE-uh-SAWR-us Translation: Heavy LizardAlso known as: Description: Herbivore, QuadrupedalOrder: SaurischiaSuborder: SauropodomorphaInfraorder: SauropodaFamily: DiplodocidaeHeight: 40 feet (12.2 meters) Length: 79 feet (24.1 meters)Weight: 50,000 pounds (22,680 kg)Period: Late Jurassic

Notes: Barosaurus is a relatively rare sauropod. The first dinosaur to be found in the Black Hills of South Dakota, its remains have also been found in East Africa suggesting the connection of the modern African and North American continents during Late Jurassic times. The neck of Barosaurus was 30 feet long, longer than its closest relative, the whip-tailed giant Diplodocus but its tail was shorter and its hind limbs stockier. Gastroliths were discovered among its the bones, indicating that at least some dinosaurs swallowed stones to grind the food they consumed.

BARYONYXPronunciation: bare-ee-ON-iks Translation: Heavy ClawAlso known as:Description: Carnivore, Bipedal, semi QuadrupedalOrder: SaurischiaSuborder: TheropodaFamily: Height: 6 feet (1.8 meters) Length: 30 feet (9.1 meters)Weight: 4,000 lbs (1,814 kg)Period: Early Cretaceous

Notes: Discovered in southern England, Baronyx had a huge curved claw over 12 inches (30-cm) in length on each hand. Its long narrow jaws were equipped with small pointed teeth, twice as many as a theropod would normally have, which leads many to think that Baryonyx was a fisher. It might have waded in shallow water to spear fish with its claws.

BELLUSAURUSPronunciation: BEL-uh-SAWR-us Translation: Beautiful lizard Also known as:Description: Herbivore, QuadrupedalOrder: SaurischiaSuborder: SauropodomorphaInfraorder: SauropodaFamily: Cetiosauridae (not confirmed) Height: Length: 16.4 feet (5 meters) Weight: Period: Middle Jurassic

Notes: Sauropod skulls were small and light-boned, and finds are rare, but a complete Bellusaurus skull exists, showing that this very small sauropod had a deep head with a sloping face. There is a possibility that all Bellusaurus finds may be juveniles, hence their small size.

BOTHRIOSPONDYLUSPronunciation: bah-three-uh-SPON-dih-lus Translation: Excavated VertebraeAlso known as: MarmarospondylusDescription: Herbivore, QuadrupedalOrder: SaurischiaSuborder: SauropodomorphaInfraorder: SauropodaFamily: BrachiosauridaeHeight: 35 feet (10.7 meters)Length: 66 feet (20.1 meters) Weight: Period: Late Jurassic

Notes: Bothriospondylus is known from fragmentary remains discovered in Western Europe and Madagascar. This sauropod had large teeth and a long tail. Its forelegs were approximately as long as its hind legs.

BRACHIOSAURUS

“Arm Lizard”

Herbivore

50’ tall, 100’ long

120,000 lbs.

Complete skeleton fossil found in Tanzania

TRICERATOPS

Three-Horned Face”

Herbivore

9.5’ tall, 26’ long

14,000 lbs.

Found in North America

Fossils of Dinosaur Skin

Fossils of Dinosaur Skin

Extinction

No one knows for sure what caused the dinosaurs to go extinct, or die Starvation A meteor Climate change

Some animals did survive though! Alligators and crocodiles Mosquitoes Sharks Turtles Frogs

Let’s Draw Dinosaur Texture!

Choose a dinosaur to draw a close-up view of!

Draw the texture on the dinosaur skin using line and shape

Color neatly!

I Can…

…draw texture

…draw a dinosaur

…color neatly

WHAT DID THE EARTH LOOK LIKE TO DINOSAURS?

Dinosaurs

Pangea

The world looked A LOT different when the dinosaurs roamed the earth

The earth is constantly changing, as it has been around for millions of years Continental drift has caused the continents we

have today When the dinosaurs roamed the earth, there was

only one continent, Pangea

The Environment

Earth was a lot warmer!

No grass! Only ferns covered the ground!

No winter! Average global temperature: 50-60 degrees

There were: Deserts Forests Tropical areas

The Environment

There were: Volcanoes Mountains Tropical trees Forests Deserts Fields Lakes Ponds

Dinosaur World

Create a drawing of a dinosaur world Draw an appropriate

environment Draw 3 dinosaurs Draw good texture on their skin Show depth

Draw with pencil first

Outline with black marker

Color with crayons

I can… Draw a dinosaur Draw texture Create depth in my

artwork Describe the world

when dinosaurs lived