Dinosaur Paleobiology

The study of dinosaurs has been experiencing a remarkable renaissance over the past few decades. Scientific understanding of dinosaur anatomy, biology, and evolution has advanced to such a degree that paleontologists often know more about 100–million–year–old dinosaurs than many species of living organisms. This book provides a contemporary review of dinosaur science intended for students, researchers, and dinosaur enthusiasts. It reviews the latest knowledge on dinosaur anatomy and phylogeny, how dinosaurs functioned as living animals, and the grand narrative of dinosaur evolution across the Mesozoic. A particular focus is on the fossil evidence and explicit methods that allow paleontologists to study dinosaurs in rigorous detail. Scientific knowledge of dinosaur biology and evolution is shifting fast, and this book aims to summarize current understanding of dinosaur science in a technical, but accessible, style, supplemented with vivid photographs and illustrations.

The Topics in Paleobiology Series is published in collaboration with the Palaeontological Association, and is edited by Professor Mike Benton, University of Bristol.

Foreword ix

Preface xi

Acknowledgments xiii

Chapter 1 An Introduction to Dinosaurs 1

Chapter 2 Hard Tissues 29

Chapter 3 Soft Tissues 65

Chapter 4 Phylogeny 88

Chapter 5 Form 117

Chapter 6 Locomotion and Posture 135

Chapter 7 Feeding and Diet 159

Chapter 8 Reproduction, Growth, and Physiology 191

Chapter 9 Paleoecology and Dwelling 227

Chapter 10 Macroevolution and Extinction 242

References 262

Index 309

Plate section between pp. 131 and 132

Stephen Brusatte is a vertebrate paleontologist and PhD student at Columbia University and the American Museum of Natural History. His research focuses on the anatomy, systematics, and evolution of fossil vertebrates, especially theropod dinosaurs. He is particularly interested in the origin of major groups such as dinosaurs, birds, and mammals. Steve is the author of over 40 research papers and three books, and his work has been profiled in the New York Times, on BBC Television and NPR, and in many other press outlets.

Anyone serious about learning details of dinosaur biology would do no better than to read this book.  Summing Up: Highly recommended.  Upper–division undergraduates through researchers/faculty; general readers.   (Choice, 1 November 2012)

It is up–to–date, well–researched and the topics are perceptively argued or discussed, and I would unhesitatingly recommend it, as start–up reading, to my own undergraduates and research students.   (Geological Magazine, 2012)