Plateosaurus
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 A Plateosaurus sketch by Tim Bekaert.
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Extinct (fossil)
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| Plateosaurus engelhardti von Meyer, 1837 |
Plateosaurus (meaning 'flat lizard' - Greek πλατυς/platys "broad" or "flat" from πλατη/platé meaning "flat surface" and σαυρος meaning "lizard")[1] was the largest dinosaur known to have existed during the Triassic Period of the Mesozoic Era, reaching 6 to 10 m in length[2] and up to an estimated 700 kg in mass. Like all sauropodomorphs, Plateosaurus was a saurischian.
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[edit] Discovery and species
Plateosaurus is one of the most common dinosaur fossils found in Europe and has been found in over 50 locations on that continent and is also known as the "Worlds deepest dinosaur" found in a drillcore in the North Sea 2256 meters below the seafloor.[3]
The first species, P. engelhardti, was described by the German palaeontologist Hermann von Meyer,[4] from some vertebrae and leg bones discovered at Heroldsberg near Nuremberg, in Germany, in 1837. P. longiceps was described by Jaekel in 1914,[5] and is the species to which the vast majority of fossil material belongs. P. engehardti is known only from Bavaria, Germany, while P. longiceps is known from other areas of southern Germany, France, Switzerland, and Greenland.[6]
P. longiceps had a longer snout and less massive hindlimbs than P. engelhardti.[6]
Plateosaurus species
A third species, P. gracilis lacks certain features of the genus Plateosaurus and has been placed in its own genus Sellosaurus.[6]
[edit] Paleobiology
A member of the group of early herbivores known as prosauropods, Plateosaurus had a long neck, stocky body and a pear-shaped trunk. A recent analysis of fossil deposits reveals there was considerable variation in size in individuals.[2] Furthermore, growth rings in bone suggests periods of varying growth which may relate to the surrounding environment. The paper's authors propose that the metabolism of Plateosaurus may have been intermediate between a reptilian and warm-blooded one.
The skull of Plateosaurus was deeper than that of Coelophysis, although still small and narrow compared to the size of its body. It was more powerfully built than that of similar animals such as Anchisaurus. It had four sets of fenestrae (skull openings); these openings were for the naris and orbit as well as an infratemporal fenestra at the back of the skull and an antorbital fenestra between the eye and nose.
It had a long snout and socketed teeth and its eyes were directed to the sides, rather than the front, providing all-round vision to watch for predators.
[edit] Posture and gait
Like all prosauropods, Plateosaurus had forelimbs which were much shorter than the hind limbs and they had distinct digits ('fingers') and a spiked 'thumb'. A 2007 anatomical study of the forelimbs demonstrated that their range of motion precluded effective habitual quadrupedal gait. Like theropods, Plateosaurus and other related prosauropods could not rotate the hand so that their palms faced downward, and so would have been unable to use the front limbs for standing or walking. The study also ruled out the possibility of "knuckle-walking" and other forms of locomotion that would avoid the issue of the limited ability of Plateosaurus to pronate its hands.[7] Thus, although its mass suggests a quadrupedal nature, it would have been restricted to its hind legs for locomotion. The forelimbs may have been used to rake trees for food, for grasping or for defence.[7]
The hand bones of Plateosaurus were large, and bore five digits. The last two digits on each hand were very small.
The natural environment of Plateosaurus was desert-like land in Europe.
[edit] Popular culture
Plateosaurus was featured briefly in the opening sequence of The Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure.
Plateosaurus featured briefly in Walking With Dinosaurs, to illustrate the success of dinosaurs.
Mounted Plateosaurus skeletons can be seen in the Institute and Museum for Geology and Paleontology, University of Tübingen, and the Humboldt Museum in Berlin, and the State Museum for Natural History in Stuttgart.
Plateosaurus is an adoptable animal in Zoo Tycoon: Dinosaur Digs.
[edit] References
- ^ Liddell & Scott (1980). Greek-English Lexicon, Abridged Edition. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. ISBN 0-19-910207-4.
- ^ a b Sander, M., and Klein, N. (2005). Developmental plasticity in the life history of a prosauropod dinosaur. Science 16 December 2005:1800-1802.
- ^ Hurum, J.H., Bergan, M., Müller, R., Nystuen, J.P., and Klein, N. (2006). A Late Triassic dinosaur bone, offshore Norway. Norwegian Journal of Geology 86:117-123. http://www.geologi.no/data/f/0/08/70/8_22301_0/117-123_NGT_print-3.pdf
- ^ von Meyer, H. (1837). Mitteilung an Prof. Bronn (Plateosaurus engelhardti). Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie 316. [German]
- ^ Jaekel, O. (1913-14). Über die Wirbeltierfunde in der oberen Trias von Halberstadt. Paläontologische Zeitschrift 1:155-215. [German]
- ^ a b c Galton, P.M., and Upchurch, P. (2004). "Prosauropoda", in Weishampel, D.B., Osmólska, H, and Dodson, P.: The Dinosauria (2nd Edition). University of California Press, 235. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.
- ^ a b Bonnan M, Senter P. (2007). "Were the basal sauropodomorph dinosaurs Plateosaurus and Massospondylus habitual quadrupeds?"; pp. 139-155 in Barrett, P.M. and Batten, D.J. (eds.), Evolution and Palaeobiology of Early Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs. Special Papers in Palaeontology 77.
[edit] External links
