Sunday 11 September 2011

what is, a dinosaur


Dinosaur (disambiguation).
Dinosaurs (from Greekδεινός terrible or potent, and σαύρα lizard) are a diverse group of animals that were the dominant terrestrialvertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period (about 230 million years ago) until the end of the Cretaceous (about 65 million years ago), when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of most dinosaur species at the close of theMesozoic era. The fossil record indicates that birds evolved within theropod dinosaurs during the Jurassic period. Some of them survived the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, including the ancestors of all modern birds. Consequently, in modern classification systems, birds are considered a type of dinosaur—the only group of which that has survived to the present day.
Dinosaurs are a diverse and varied group of animals; birds, at over 9,000 species, are the most diverse group of vertebrate besides perciformfish.[3] Paleontologists have identified over 500 distinct genera[4] and more than 1,000 different species of non-avian dinosaurs.[5] Dinosaurs are represented on every continent by both extant species and fossil remains.[6] Some dinosaurs are herbivorous, others carnivorous. Many dinosaurs, including birds, have been bipedal, though many extinct groups were quadrupedal, and some were able to shift between these body postures. Many species possess elaborate display structures such as horns or crests, and some prehistoric groups developed even more elaborate skeletal modifications such as bony armor. Avian dinosaurs have been the planet's dominant flying vertebrate since the extinction of the pterosaurs, and evidence suggests that all ancient dinosaurs built nests and laid eggs much as avian species do today. Although generally known for the large size of some species, most Mesozoic dinosaurs were human-sized or even smaller.
The term "dinosaur" was coined in 1842 by the English paleontologist Richard Owen, and derives from Greek δεινός (deinos) "terrible, powerful, wondrous, potent" + σαῦρος (sauros) "lizard". Through the first half of the 20th century, most of the scientific community believed dinosaurs to have been sluggish, unintelligent cold-blooded animals. Most research conducted since the 1970s, however, has indicated that dinosaurs were active animals with elevated metabolisms and numerous adaptations for social interaction.

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