DINOSAURS 101 is your one-stop source for everything you should know about dinosaurs and paleontology. Authored by world-renowned paleontologists, this book masterfully breaks down the otherwise complex world of dinosaurs and paleontology into well-organized and easy to understand language, concepts, and lessons. Further facilitating the reader’s knowledge of dinosaurs and paleontology, this book also includes over one hundred figures directly illustrating the language, concepts, and lessons it presents. Topics covered in detail include dinosaur: anatomy; eating habits and diet; attack and defense mechanisms; birth, growth, and reproduction; origins and evolution; species and diversity; fossilization; and extinction. Also addressed is how paleontology relates to geology, geography, and other disciplines. The reader will even learn how dinosaurs relate to modern life-forms, including how some dinosaurs are still alive today and whether those that are not can be resurrected. No matter your age, no matter your level of existing knowledge, and no matter your reason for interest, if you are looking for a comprehensive and easy to understand overview of the world of dinosaurs and paleontology, then this is the book for you.

DINOSAURS 101 is your one-stop source for everything you should know about dinosaurs and paleontology. Authored by world-renowned paleontologists, this book masterfully breaks down the otherwise complex world of dinosaurs and paleontology into well-organized and easy to understand language, concepts, and lessons. Further facilitating the reader's knowledge of dinosaurs and paleontology, this book also includes over one hundred figures directly illustrating the language, concepts, and lessons it presents. Topics covered in detail include dinosaur: anatomy; eating habits and diet; attack and defense mechanisms; birth, growth, and reproduction; origins and evolution; species and diversity; fossilization; and extinction. Also addressed is how paleontology relates to geology, geography, and other disciplines. The reader will even learn how dinosaurs relate to modern life-forms, including how some dinosaurs are still alive today and whether those that are not can be resurrected. No matter your age, no matter your level of existing knowledge, and no matter your reason for interest, if you are looking for a comprehensive and easy to understand overview of the world of dinosaurs and paleontology, then this is the book for you. ABOUT THE AUTHORS: DR. W. SCOTT PERSONS IV is a paleontologist who holds a bachelor's degree in Geology from Macalester College and a master's degree and PhD in Evolution and Systematics from the University of Alberta, where he was a student of world-renowned paleontologist Dr. Philip J. Currie. Dr. Persons's research focuses primarily on evolutionary arms races between dinosaurian predators and prey, on the biomechanics and evolution of dinosaur locomotion, and on the evolution of dinosaurian feathers. He has taken part in fossil-hunting expeditions throughout the American West, Mongolia, Tanzania, Argentina, and China. Dr. Persons is the author of the book Dinosaurs of the Alberta Badlands, and his work has been featured on the National Geographic and Discovery channels and in Smithsonian and Discover Magazine. DR. PHILIP J. CURRIE is a full professor and Canada Research Chair of Dinosaur Paleobiology at the University of Alberta. As a world-renowned paleontologist, Dr. Currie's scientific accomplishments have led to a greater understanding of dinosaurs and their significance. He was instrumental in the development of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology and has made major contributions to paleontology on both the Canadian and the world stage through his extensive fieldwork, academic research, writing, and teaching. In addition to the numerous awards and medals Dr. Currie has received, he has published 170 scientific articles, 140 popular articles, and 15 books, has given more than 800 lectures attended by over 50,000 people, and has given more than 1,200 newspaper, magazine, radio, film, and television interviews for articles and programs.

All-new edition of the world’s leading vertebrate palaeontology textbook, now addressing key evolutionary transitions and ecological drivers for vertebrate evolution Richly illustrated with colour illustrations of the key species and cladograms of all major vertebrate taxa, Vertebrate Palaeontology provides a complete account of the evolution of vertebrates, including macroevolutionary trends and drivers that have shaped their organs and body plans, key transitions such as terrestrialization, endothermy, flight and impacts of mass extinctions on biodiversity and ecological drivers behind the origin of chordates and vertebrates, their limbs, jaws, feathers, and hairs. This revised and updated fifth edition features numerous recent examples of breakthrough discoveries in line with the current macroevolutionary approach in palaeontology research, such as the evolutionary drivers that have shaped vertebrate development. Didactical features have been enhanced and include new functional and developmental feature spreads, key questions, and extensive references to useful websites. Written by a leading academic in the field, Vertebrate Palaeontology discusses topics such as: Palaeozoic fishes, including Cambrian vertebrates, placoderms (‘armour-plated monsters’), Pan-Chondrichthyes such as sharks and rays, and Osteichthyes (‘bony fishes’) The first tetrapods, covering problems of life on land, diversity of Carboniferous tetrapods and temnospondyls and reptiliomorphs following the Carboniferous Mesozoic reptiles, such as Testudinata (turtles), Crocodylomorpha, Pterosauria, Dinosauria, great sea dragons and Lepidosauria (lizards and snakes) Mammals of the southern and northern hemispheres, covering Xenarthra (sloths, anteaters), Afrotheria (African mammals), Laurasiatheria (bats, ungulates, carnivores), and Euarchontoglires (rodents, primates) A highly comprehensive and completely up-to-date reference on vertebrate evolution, Vertebrate Palaeontology is an ideal learning aid for palaeontology courses in biology and geology departments. The text is also highly valuable to enthusiasts who want to experience the flavour of how modern research in the field is conducted.

Archosaurs, an important reptile group that includes today's crocodiles and birds, arose during the Triassic in the aftermath of the greatest mass extinction of all time. In the last 20 years, our understanding of the early evolution of the group has improved substantially with the discovery of new fossils and species of early archosaurs and their closest relatives, a better understanding of the relationships of these animals, and new insights into their palaeobiology. In order to synthesize these new data, researchers of early archosaurs from around the world met at the first symposium of early archosaur evolution at the IV Congreso Latinoamericano de Paleontología de Vertebrados (September 2011) in San Juan, Argentina. This symposium facilitated collaboration and strove to paint a better understanding of these extraordinary animals. The resultant body of work is a state-of-the-art examination of early archosaur groups and their close relatives including historical, anatomical, biogeographical, evolutionary and palaeobiological data. This contribution furthers our knowledge of the anatomy, relationships, and palaeobiology of species-level taxa as well as more global patterns of archosaur evolution during the Triassic -- P. 4 of cover.

With more than 10,000 known species, recent reptiles (excluding birds) are the most specious tetrapod class. Their diversity is high, and many of them are frequently used as model organisms in phylogeographic and ecological studies. On the other hand, unique aspects of their biology are still being studied and important contributions to their understanding have just been issued. These aspects include the evolution of viviparity and of venom glands, metabolic regulation in poikilotherms, their ecophysiological tolerance and neurobiological and sensorial capacities such as infrared imaging and chemosensitivity. Genetic and developmental phenomena such as parthenogenesis and temperature-dependent sex determination are also special to reptiles. They are generally important for understanding evolutionary processes in vertebrates. The latest results of worldwide research on dinosaurs and other fossil reptiles, crocodiles and turtles conclude this first volume of Reptilia in the Handbook of Zoology.

McGowan attempts to solve some of the enduring mysteries about dinosaurs and other prehistoric reptiles, making fascinating comparisons between living and extinct animals, and drawing on science and engineering concepts to explain the similarities between the aerodynamics of pteradons and Spitfire planes. Illustrations.

This second edition includes coverage of dinosaur systematics, reproduction, life history strategies, biogeography, taphonomy, paleoecology, thermoregulation & extinction.

This study identifies the fall of dinosaurs as the factor that allowed mammals to evolve into the dominant tetrapod form. It refutes the single-cause impact theory for dinosaur extinction and demonstrates that multiple factors--massive volcanic eruptions, loss of shallow seas, and extraterrestrial impact--likely led to their demise. While their avian relatives ultimately survived and thrived, terrestrial dinosaurs did not. Taking their place as the dominant land and sea tetrapods were mammals, whose radiation was explosive following nonavian dinosaur extinction. The author argues that because of dinosaurs, Mesozoic mammals changed relatively slowly for 145 million years compared to the prodigious Cenozoic radiation that followed. Finally out from under the shadow of the giant reptiles, Cenozoic mammals evolved into the forms we recognize today in a mere ten million years after dinosaur extinction.