Chapter from the book “Tyrannosaurus Chronicles. Deadly Tyrannosaurus T-Rex (Tyrannosaurus, T-Rex) Tyrannosaurus brief description

Tyrannosaur- dinosaur of the Cretaceous period. Tyrannosaur- a representative of saurian theropod dinosaurs, the infraorder of tyrannosaurids. Tyrannosaur was one of the largest land predatory lizards that ever existed on our planet. Tyrannosaur- a representative of the tyrannosaurid family. Among the predators of its time, Tyrannosaurus was the largest. Business card tyrannosaurus is the power of his jaws. Tyrannosaur was not the largest of the theropods of the Mesozoic era, but it had no equal in bite force.
Thanks to numerous films, tyrannosaur gained wide popularity. Maybe, tyrannosaur the most famous of the dinosaurs. His image can be seen on advertisements of some companies or products.

Huge and powerful mouth tyrannosaur he grabbed his victim and as soon as the jaw closed, the victim had no chance of salvation. Sharp Tyrannosaurus Rex Teeth were bent inward, which made it much easier to capture and hold the victim. Teeth tyrannosaurus were the longest among all land predators. According to many scientists, the length of the teeth tyrannosaurus was up to 30 centimeters. Mouth tyrannosaurus It was not adapted to chewing food, so the lizard tore off and swallowed pieces of meat whole. If you look closely at the skull, you will see that the nasal olfactory lobes are large. This suggests that tyrannosaurus the sense of smell was well developed. There is a high probability that the nose of the Tyrannosaurus rex was designed like the nose of modern scavenger birds, such as vultures.

Limbs and body structure of a tyrannosaurus:

Spine tyrannosaurus consists of 10 cervical, 12 thoracic, five sacral and about 40 caudal vertebrae. The dinosaur's tail is thick and heavy. With his help tyrannosaur kept balance while running. The tail also helped during turns. Some of the skeleton's bones were hollow inside, which made it possible to slightly reduce body weight without reducing the strength of the skeleton as a whole.

Tyrannosaur moved on powerful hind legs. The paws had 4 toes with sharp claws. Three fingers were facing forward and one back. They were fastened together for stability. The fourth toe was on the back of the paw and never touched the ground. Perhaps it served to rip open the victim's flesh or to hold it. Paws tyrannosaurus were well developed and supported the entire weight of a multi-ton predator. There is still debate about the speed at which he moved tyrannosaur. According to one version, tyrannosaur could not reach a speed of more than 5-7 km/h. According to another version, tyrannosaur could reach speeds of up to 40 km/h, but could not suddenly change direction. Also tyrannosaurus Although he moved at a decent speed, due to his size, he probably could not run for a long time.

tyrannosaurus paw

The forelimbs were very poorly developed. The short paws had 2 toes. And despite the fact that they ended in claws, it is unlikely tyrannosaur could use them when hunting. Most likely, they helped him maintain balance when moving.



structure of a tyrannosaurus

Tyrannosaurus rex diet:

Tyrannosaurus was a carnivorous predatory dinosaur, but studies of its fossilized remains do not provide a clear answer about the method of obtaining food. Despite the terrifying appearance, the version that tyrannosaur was ruthless killer overtaking everything and everyone. As already mentioned, his main weapon was a powerful jaw studded with large and razor-sharp teeth. But at the same time, its forelimbs were extremely poorly developed, and its body was very massive.

Version 1 - scavenger:

There is an assumption that tyrannosaur- any character who loves films about dinosaurs and the embodiment of uncontrollable rage, not only did not disdain the carcasses of dead dinosaurs, but also ate mainly on them. This assumption is based on studies of fossil remains tyrannosaurus. American scientists who examined the remains came to the conclusion that the massive, multi-ton body was unlikely to allow tyrannosaurus pursue quickly fleeing prey like the lighter Allosaurus, or even more so Deinonychus and Utahraptor.
Conclusions that tyrannosaur was more of a carrion eater than a hunter based on the results of a CT scan. Research, restored brain tyrannosaurus, or rather, its forms make it possible to learn more about its functionality and the structural features of the “inner ear,” which is responsible not only for the auditory function. Research of the "inner ear" tyrannosaurus showed that its structure differed from the structure of a similar organ of “dexterous hunters”.
The next argument in favor of the fact that tyrannosaur was a scavenger are the results of studies of the lizard's vertebrae. The conclusion states that tyrannosaur had limitations in movement and his body was not adapted for various maneuvers and sharp turns. Also big dagger-shaped teeth tyrannosaurus More suitable for leisurely grinding of bones. Such teeth are hardly needed by a “cold-blooded killer” who feeds on fresh meat and moves on, leaving the carcass for a feast for corpse eaters.
Modern and most likely prehistoric large animals are extremely slow. Wherein tyrannosaur due to its weight, it could seriously injure or even break ribs and legs if it fell. Small front paws with two fingers could hardly help in hunting. Therefore, it is very likely that the main food of the tyrannosaurus was fallen dinosaurs.

Version 2 - hunter:

Despite the fact that the “scavenger” version has a fairly good justification, the “hunter” version is no less popular among paleontologists and is very much “promoted” by the creators of films about dinosaurs. And don't forget that tyrannosaur owner of the most powerful bite of any land animal of all time. Not a single bone could withstand the bite of this giant.
Main prey tyrannosaurus were herbivores torosaurs , Triceratops ,anatotitans and other dinosaurs. Considering the size, it can be assumed that tyrannosaur could not pursue the fleeing dinosaurs for long, and he had to overtake the victim in one jerk. It is known that tyrannosaur had binocular vision and could accurately estimate and calculate the distance to the victim. More likely, tyrannosaur attacked a potential victim from an ambush. Moreover, most likely, he more often attacked young or old and weakened dinosaurs than adults and full of strength. After all, some herbivorous dinosaurs, such as Triceratops or ankylosaur, could not only run away, but give a serious rebuff. Groups of dinosaurs were especially good at defending themselves. A modern confirmation of this opinion is a herd of buffalo. Even formidable lions do not always attack such large and powerful herbivores.
Tyrannosaurs They were loners and each hunted in their own territory, which measured hundreds of square kilometers. From time to time, skirmishes for territory arose between the lizards, in which one of them may have died. At such a moment, the lizards did not disdain the meat of their relatives.

More likely tyrannosaur, after all, he was a hunter, but he could also eat a dead dinosaur. Also, given its size and power, tyrannosaur could take prey from other predators.


Tyrannosaurus Reproduction:

Tyrannosaurs were loners, at least the adults. Their hunting territories measured hundreds of square kilometers. The female, with a characteristic roar, called for the wandering male. The process of courting a female is not an easy task for a male. Females tyrannosaurs larger and more aggressive than males. Therefore, it took a lot of effort for the male to win her over. The best remedy for this purpose there was a carcass of some kind of dinosaur as a treat. The mating process is not long. After this, the male leaves in search of food and other females, and the female prepares to become a mother and builds a nest in which she will lay eggs.

A few months later, the female tyrannosaurus laid 10 - 15 eggs in a nest located directly on the ground. It was very risky. They were scouring everywhere small predators who always didn't mind eating an egg tyrannosaurus. Therefore, after the eggs were laid, the female did not leave the nest. For two months, the female tirelessly guarded the nest with eggs. Tyrnosaurus nest attracts small egg hunters, e.g. drommaeosaurus. After two months, little ones are born tyrannosaurs. From the entire brood, 3-4 cubs are born.

During the Late Cretaceous period, the atmosphere was filled with gases that had a destructive effect on developing embryos. This is due to the great volcanic activity on earth during the Late Cretaceous period. Tyrannosaurs, despite their greatness and power, are doomed to death.

Tyrannosaurus is the largest predator dinosaur that lived in North America at the end of the Cretaceous period (68-65 million years ago).

Description of appearance

The Tyrannosaurus rex fully corresponded to its characteristics of being the largest. The body length was almost 13 meters, height could reach 3.5-4 m, and weight was almost 8 tons.

The T. rex skeleton consists of 299 bones, of which 58 are allocated to the skull. The spine contains 10 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 sacral, 40 caudal vertebrae. The neck, like that of many other theropods, was S-shaped, but it was short and thick, which served as a device for holding a large head. Another feature of tyrannosaurs was hollow bones, which helped reduce the overall body mass without losing strength.

The shape of the skull was different from other theropods: it was wide at the back and narrowed at the front. Thanks to this, the dinosaur's eyes looked forward and not to the side. Consequently, T. rexes had developed binocular vision.

The forelimbs are small, with 2 active fingers. The hindquarters are strong and powerful with 3 toes. Theropods' tails were long and extremely heavy.

Due to the structural features of the skull, tyrannosaurs had a powerful bite. The teeth were different in shape. The D-shaped ones fit tightly together, were curved inward and had small serrations, and this reduced the risk of tearing out when biting and jerking.

The inner teeth were banana-shaped. Widely spaced, they enhanced the strength of the entire jaw.

The length of one tooth including the root, found among the remaining remains, is approximately 31 cm.

The running speed of the T. rex still causes heated debate, since the mass that the hind limb could withstand remains unknown. Some experts believe that tyrannosaurs had the most developed and voluminous leg muscles.

But studies conducted in 2002 found that the speed of theropods could have been no more than 40 km per hour. And studies in 2007 showed a figure of 29 km per hour.

Tyrannosaurus rex food

It is believed that T. rexes were carnivorous predators, but the studied remains do not allow us to give an exact answer as to how they obtained food. There is a theory according to which tyrannosaurs cannot be considered ruthless and cold-blooded killers, since their only weapon was a powerful jaw. And the poorly developed forelimbs and huge body did not allow him to destroy everyone and everything.

There are 2 known versions describing the methods and types of nutrition of theropods.

Scavenger

This version is based on studies of the found remains of tyrannosaurs: most likely, they not only did not disdain the carcasses of their dead brothers, but also ate them with great pleasure. There are several facts in favor of this theory:

  • Massive body, which weighed more than one ton, did not allow the T. rex to engage in long pursuits and tracking down prey.
  • CT scan. Using a study of the restored dinosaur brain, it was possible to study in more detail the functionality and structural features of the “inner ear,” which is responsible not only for hearing. Tyrannosaurs had an “inner ear” that was different in structure from other dinosaurs thought to be clever hunters.
  • Vertebral studies. The giant lizard had some limitations in movement: maneuverability and agility were not its strong points.
  • Teeth. The structure of T. rex teeth suggests that they are adapted for crushing and grinding bones, extracting large amounts of food from the remains, including bone marrow. As a rule, the teeth of dinosaurs that ate fresh meat were more fragile: after all, they simply ate the body.
  • Slowness. The size of tyrannosaurs harmed their owner: if they fell, the lizard could damage or break ribs or legs. Slow reaction and clumsiness, short forelimbs and two fingers did not help the hunt.

Based on all the above facts, scientists came to the conclusion that the tyrannosaurus was a scavenger.

Hunter

The previous version with the T. rex being a scavenger has quite good justification, but some paleontologists are inclined to think that the giants were hunters. And the following facts speak in favor of this version:

  • Powerful bite. His strength allowed the T. rex to break any bones.
  • Herbivorous dinosaurs. It is possible that the main prey of theropods were torosaurs, triceratops, anatotitans and others. Due to its size, the giant lizard could not pursue its victims. Possessing binocular vision, Tyrannosaurus was presumably able to judge the distance between itself and its prey, attacking in one burst from an ambush. But, most likely, the choice fell on young or old and weakened dinosaurs.

The theory that the theropod was a hunter has one caveat: T. rexes still did not disdain the remains of dead dinosaurs.

It is known that tyrannosaurs were loners, hunting exclusively in their own territory.

But, for sure, there were clashes.

If one of them died, the giant ate the meat of the deceased relative.

It turns out that if the T. rex was not a pure scavenger.

It’s also a stretch to call him a hunter: he could still eat dead carcasses or take food from other dinosaurs.

Fortunately, his size allowed him to do this.

T. rex breeding

Adult theropods were loners. The territories in which they could hunt measured hundreds of km2.

When mating is necessary, the female calls the male with a characteristic roar. But even here everything was not easy. The courtship process took time and required effort.

Female tyrannosaurs were much larger and more aggressive than males.

In order to gain favor, the males had to bring the carcass of some pangolin as a treat.

The mating process itself was short-lived. After it, the male T. rex went in search of food or other females, and the fertilized female prepared to become a mother: she built a nest for laying eggs.

After a few months, the female theropod laid about 10-15 eggs.

Fossilized Tyrannosaurus Rex Eggs

But the nest was located directly on the ground, and this was extremely risky: after all, small predators could eat the laid offspring.

For the purpose of protection and protection, the female did not leave the eggs for 2 months.

After a couple of months, offspring hatched from the laid and carefully guarded eggs.

As a rule, only 3-4 cubs appeared from the entire brood.

This is explained by the fact that in the Late Cretaceous period, in which tyrannosaurs existed, the atmosphere was filled with gases due to volcanic activity.

They had a detrimental effect on the development of the embryo, destroying it from the inside. Thus, the T. rexes were already doomed to death.

History of finds

Fossils were first found in Hell Creek, Montana in 1900. The expedition was organized by the American Museum of Natural History and led by B. Brown.

The remains obtained during this expedition were described by Henry Osborne in 1905. Then he classified the tyrannosaurus as Dynamosaurus imperiosus.

A reconstructed specimen of a tyrannosaurus obtained by B. Brown in 1902-1905.

1902: Fossil remains of a partial skeleton and incomplete skull discovered ( AMNH 973), the bones were removed over three years.

Henry Osborne in 1905 described the fossil data as Tyrannosaurus rex, and then the first remains were recognized Tyrannosaurus rex.

1906: The New York Times publishes an article about the first T. rex.

A partial skeleton of huge bones from the hind limbs and pelvis was installed in the American Museum.

1908: B. Brown discovered an almost complete specimen with a skull. G. Osborne described it in 1912.

1915: The first reconstruction of a complete skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex appeared at the American Museum of Natural History, with one drawback: the arms of a T. rex replaced the three-fingered limbs of an Allosaurus.

1967: W. Mac Manis, archaeologist, University of Montana, discovered the skull. The copy was assigned a number MOR 008. Scattered bones of an adult lizard were also found.

1980: The “black beauty” was found. Black Beauty received its name due to the dark color of the remains. J. Baker discovered a large bone on the banks of a river in Alberta. The excavation of the entire T. rex lasted a whole year. The sample is displayed in Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, Alberta, Canada.

1988: Kathy Wankel, a farmer, found bones sticking out of the ground in the sediments of Hell Creek (Island national reserve Montana).

The specimen was not recovered until 1990 by a team at the Museum of the Rockies, led by Jack Horner.

It includes about half of the skeleton. It was here that complete theropod forelimbs were first discovered.

This sample is called "Wankel Rex" (MOR 555). He was about 18 years old at the time of his death. An adult dinosaur that has not reached its maximum size. These are the first fossils to show biological molecules in their bones.

1987: Tyrannosaurus, nicknamed Sten. Discovered by Stan Sakrison in Hardling County, South Dakota. Excavations were completed in 1992. The remains were initially thought to be those of a Triceratops.

Additional "Wall" bones were found in 1993 and 2003. The length of its body is 12 meters, the length of the skull is 1.3 m. Moreover, the T. rex had many pathologies: broken ribs, fused cervical vertebrae, holes in the back of the head from the teeth of relatives.

Real "Sue" skull

1990: Sue Hendrickson was lucky enough to discover the largest complete specimen of a Tyrannosaurus rex.

The remains are 73% complete. The length is 12.5 meters, the skull is 1.5 m.

1998-99: preparation and thorough cleaning of the found remains.

2000: the skeleton is completely mounted and presented to the public.

A study of "Sue" revealed that the individual was approximately 28 years old at the time of death. And it reached its maximum size by the age of 19.

1998: T. rex found " Bucky". It was discovered along with the bones of Edmontosaurus and Triceratops. Bucky is the first giant in whose bones a “fork” was discovered—fused clavicles in the shape of a “fork.”

Skeleton "Sue"

Its dimensions were: 29 cm wide and 14 cm high.

The “fork” is the link between dinosaurs and birds.

2010: Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton discovered " Tristan Otto". Carter County, Montana.

Excavations were completed in 2012, after which the bones were cleaned and processed over the course of 2 years.

49% were recovered with the skull intact.

The individual died at the age of 20. The body length was 12 m, height - 3.5 m, weight -7 tons.

2015: a copy of " Rees Rex". Hell Creek, northeastern part state of Montana.

30% of the skeleton and a well-preserved skull were recovered, which is considered the most complete T. rex skull ever recovered.

Tyrannosaurus, translated from Greek, means “tyrant lizard”, it was one of the last dinosaurs to exist on the planet. T-Rex, as it is also called, was the largest and most powerful of the predatory carnivorous dinosaurs.

Its size was larger than a modern elephant, the length of the tyrannosaurus was the width of a tennis court and could easily look into the windows of the third floor.

Characteristics of Tyrannosaurus

  • Length: up to 13 meters
  • Height: 4m (from ground to hips)
  • Skull - 1.5 m.
    • Teeth – up to 31 cm (including root length)
    • Weight: up to 7 tons (possibly large individuals can weigh up to 9 tons)
    • Lifespan: About 30 years
    • Travel speed: 17 – 40 km/h
    • Epoch:68-65 million years ago
    • Diet: large herbivorous dinosaurs
    • Habitat: Canada, USA (South Dakota, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Wyoming).

Tyrannosaurus had a massive head measuring one and a half meters in diameter, set on a flexible and powerful neck. His brain was elongated and narrow in shape.

The dinosaur's vision was very well developed, as well as hearing and smell, so sniffing out prey was a simple matter for him. The eyes of the tyrannosaurus accurately assessed the distance to the victim and allowed the animal, baring its gaping mouth, to rush and tear the victim to pieces in a matter of seconds.


Tyrannosaurus (Tyrannosaurus), T-Rex is the most big predator dinosaurs.

The rows of teeth arranged in a curve on the upper jaw resembled a scalpel blade. Tyrannosaurus easily pierced even the toughest animal skin with its sharp teeth, and then with quick movements of its head tore it into pieces. The teeth of a Tyrannosaurus rex could grow up to 18 cm in length. When teeth wore out, new ones grew in their place.

Physique of Tyrannosaurus T-Rex

Compared to the massive hind legs, the front legs could seem ridiculously small. The front legs looked like two clumsy appendages, they were useless for attacking prey and too short for carrying food to the mouth. Despite this, everyone knows that the front legs also had developed muscles. Most likely, you have seen how pets use their forelimbs to stand up or, conversely, lower themselves to the ground.


They roamed alone or in pairs and followed herds of large herbivores, waiting for weak, young or sick individuals. Sometimes they hunted from ambush in order to catch prey after a short chase, and the tyrannosaurus could reach speeds of up to 40 km/h. Most experts are still arguing on this issue, but almost all of them agree that this dinosaur was active predator and did not refuse carrion.

Very often, the tyrannosaurus is depicted with a steeply raised head, a wide belly, legs apart and a snake tail that drags along the ground. Now we know that the body of the tyrannosaurus is located horizontally, and the powerful tail goes into the back and balances the head. Recently in South America Skeletons of an even more enormous predator were found - Gigantosaurus, with a skull size of 1.83 meters in diameter. The largest known Tyrannosaurus rex skull was discovered in the sixties in Montana (USA). Its dimensions were 1.5 m.


T-Rex is a terrible predator who also did not refuse carrion.

The tyrannosaurus had a massive, heavy tail, which acted as a counterweight to its head.

History of the study

general description

The two-fingered forelimbs are relatively small in comparison with the powerful legs. The tail is long and heavy. The spine consists of 10 cervical, 12 thoracic, five sacral and about 40 caudal vertebrae. The neck, like that of other theropods, is S-shaped, but short and thick to support the massive head. Some bones of the skeleton have voids, thus reducing the overall mass of the body without significant loss of strength. The body weight of an adult tyrannosaurus reached 6-7 tons, the largest individuals (Sue) could weigh about 9.5 tons.

The largest known Tyrannosaurus rex skull is 1.53 m long. There is a fragment of a jaw (UCMP 118 742), the length of which could be 1.75 meters; the estimated weight of the owner of such a jaw could reach 12 - 15 tons. The shape of the skull has significant differences in comparison with theropods from other families: extremely wide at the back, the skull narrows strongly at the front. According to experts, with such a skull structure, tyrannosaurs had excellent binocular vision. The structural features of the skull bones in the tyrannosaurid family make their bite incomparably more powerful compared to other theropods. The apex of the upper jaws is U-shaped (most other carnivorous theropods are V-shaped), which increases the volume of meat and bone that a Tyrannosaurus can tear off in a single bite, although at the expense of additional stress on the front teeth.

Tyrannosaurus teeth vary in shape. D-shaped cross section The front teeth fit tightly together. They are curved inside the mouth and reinforced with ridges on the back side. The position and shape of the front teeth reduce the risk of them being pulled out during biting and pulling. The inner teeth are more banana-shaped than dagger-shaped. They are more widely spaced, but also have strength-enhancing ridges on the back side. The total (including root) length of the largest tooth found is estimated at 30 cm. This is the longest tooth among all found teeth of carnivorous dinosaurs.

Tyrannosaurus walked on its hind limbs, like other members of the tyrannosaurid family.

A Tyrannosaurus running at 5 m/s requires almost 6 liters of oxygen gas per second, which also leads to the idea that Tyrannosaurus is warm-blooded.

Evolution

At approximately the same time as the Tyrannosaurus, a species almost indistinguishable from it lived on the territory of what is now Asia - Tarbosaurus. Tarbosaurs had a slightly more elegant structure and slightly smaller size.

Nutrition method

It has not been conclusively established whether tyrannosaurs were predators or whether they fed on carrion.

Many large herbivorous dinosaurs had protection on their backs, indicating the danger of being attacked by a tall predator with powerful jaws.

Tyrannosaurs are predators and scavengers. Many scientists believe that tyrannosaurs could have had a mixed diet, like modern lions - predators, but could eat the remains of animals killed by hyenas.

Way to travel

The mode of movement of the Tyrannosaurus remains a controversial issue. Some scientists are inclined to believe that they could run, reaching speeds of 40-70 km/h. Others believe that tyrannosaurs walked, not ran.

“Apparently,” writes Herbert Wells in the famous “Essays on the History of Civilization,” “tyrannosaurs moved like kangaroos, relying on a massive tail and hind legs. Some scientists even suggest that the Tyrannosaurus moved by jumping - in this case, it must have had absolutely incredible muscles. A leaping elephant would be much less impressive. Most likely, the tyrannosaurus hunted herbivorous reptiles - inhabitants of swamps. Half immersed in liquid swamp mud, he pursued his prey through the channels and pools of swampy plains, such as the present-day Norfolk swamps or the Everglades swamps in Florida.

The opinion about bipedal dinosaurs similar to kangaroos was widespread until the middle of the 20th century. Examination of the tracks, however, did not show the presence of tail prints. All predatory dinosaurs kept their bodies horizontal when walking, with the tail serving as a counterweight and balancer. In general, the tyrannosaurus is close in appearance to a huge running bird.

Phylogenesis

Recent studies of proteins found in a fossilized Tyrannosaurus rex femur have shown the dinosaurs' closeness to birds. Tyrannosaurus is descended from small carnivorous dinosaurs of the late Jurassic era, rather than from carnosaurs. The currently known small ancestors of Tyrannosaurus (such as Dilong from the Early Cretaceous of China) were feathered with fine hair-like feathers. Tyrannosaurus Rex itself may not have had feathers (known impressions of the skin of the Tyrannosaurus rex thigh bear the typical dinosaur pattern of polygonal scales).

Tyrannosaurus in popular culture

Thanks to huge size, huge teeth and other impressive attributes, in the 20th century the Tyrannosaurus rex became one of the most recognizable dinosaurs in the world. That is why he often became a “super monster” - a killer dinosaur in films such as “The Lost World”, “King Kong”, etc. The main and most memorable film with the participation of a tyrannosaurus is Steven Spielberg’s film “Jurassic Park”, where this character had undergone careful elaboration and therefore looked very impressive.
In the sequel - the film "Jurassic Park 2" - there was already a whole family of tyrannosaurs present - a male and a female with a cub, which significantly reduced their negative role; Moreover, the pursuit of the tyrannosaurs after the heroes of the film, and then the destruction caused by the male tyrannosaurus on the streets of San Diego, was to some extent justified by their parental instinct and desire to save their cub.
Ultimately, in the film Jurassic Park 3, the developers needed a new dinosaur to play the role of the main villain, and their choice fell on the Egyptian Spinosaurus. The Tyrannosaurus itself only made a cameo appearance in the film.

Tyrannosaurus appears in many documentaries, such as "Walking with Dinosaurs", "The Truth About Killer Dinosaurs", etc. It was most accurately presented in the series documentaries"Dinosaur Battles"

The image of the Tyrannosaurus rex has also taken root in cartoons. Under the name "Sharptooth", the tyrannosaurus appears as the main negative character in the popular series of American full-length cartoons "The Land Before Time", the characters of which are dinosaurs.

The Tyrannosaurus also became a character in a number of animated series about Transformers. So, in his “image and likeness” Trypticon was created - a colossal transformer, a Decepticon fortress city. He is also the “mount” of Zadavala, the commander of the “Battle Dinosaur” squad in the series “Transformers: Victory”. The leader of the Predacons, Megatron, transforms into a tyrannosaurus (as the most terrible earthly creature) in the series “Beast Wars”, when the transformers, having got to prehistoric Earth, take the form of earthly animals - both living and extinct. However, not only the bearers of an evil principle take on the guise of a tyrannosaurus: Grimlock, the commander of a group of Dinobots - not particularly smart, but powerful robots created by the Autobots and fighting with them against the Decepticons - also transforms into a tyrannosaurus.

Tyrannosaurus is also featured in the Dino Crisis game series. In the game Dino Crisis, he is the most powerful dinosaur (as well as in the game Dino Stalker) throughout the entire game, and in Dino Crisis 2, the Tyrannosaurus only at the end of the game supposedly dies in the fight against the Giganotosaurus, which in the game is presented as much larger (length more than 20 meters) than is known from fossil remains. computer game ParaWorld The Tyrannosaurus is the strongest unit of the Desert race and the strongest unit in the game. In the game the Tyrannosaurus is much larger than in reality.

Notes

  1. Erickson, Gregory M.; Makovicky, Peter J.; Currie, Philip J.; Norell, Mark A.; Yerby, Scott A.; & Brochu, Christopher A. (2004). “Gigantism and comparative life-history parameters of tyrannosaurid dinosaurs.” Nature 430 (7001): 772–775. DOI:10.1038/nature02699.
  2. Brochu Christopher A. Osteology of Tyrannosaurus Rex: Insights from a Nearly Complete Skeleton and High-resolution Computed Tomographic Analysis of the Skull. - Northbrook, Illinois: Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, 2003.
  3. see: Denver Formation
  4. see en:Lance Formation
  5. Breithaupt, Brent H.; Elizabeth H. Southwell and Neffra A. Matthews (2005-10-18). "In Celebration of 100 years of Tyrannosaurus Rex: Manospondylus Gigas, Ornithomimus Grandis, and Dynamosaurus Imperiosus, the Earliest Discoveries of Tyrannosaurus Rex in the West" in 2005 Salt Lake City Annual Meeting . Abstracts with Programs 37 : 406, Geological Society of America. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  6. , p. 81-82
  7. , p. 122
  8. , p. 112
  9. , p. 113
  10. , - Northern State University:: Aberdeen, SD
  11. Montana State University (2006-04-07). Museum unveils world's largest T-rex skull. Press release . Retrieved 2008-09-13.
  12. Mickey Mortimer (2003-07-21). And the Largest Theropod Is..... Press release . Retrieved 2012-04-20.
  13. Stevens, Kent A. (June 2006). "Binocular vision in theropod dinosaurs" (PDF). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 26 (2): 321–330. DOI:10.1671/0272-4634(2006)262.0.CO;2.
  14. Jaffe, Eric (2006-07-01). "Sight for "Saur Eyes: T. rex vision was among nature's best." Science News 170 (1): 3. DOI:10.2307/4017288. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
  15. Holtz, Thomas R. (1994). "The Phylogenetic Position of the Tyrannosauridae: Implications for Theropod Systematics". Journal of Palaeontology 68 (5): 1100–1117. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
  16. Paul, Gregory S. Predatory dinosaurs of the world: a complete illustrated guide. - New York: Simon and Schuster, 1988. - ISBN 0-671-61946-2 Template:Pn
  17. Sue's vital statistics. Sue at the Field Museum. Field Museum of Natural History. (inaccessible link - story) Retrieved September 15, 2007.
  18. All large dinosaurs were warm-blooded
  19. Remains of a mutant tyrannosaurus found in Mongolia
  20. T. rex, Meet Your Great-Grandfather Science Magazine September 17, 2009
  21. El antepasado enano del Tiranosaurio Rex El Mundo.es September 17, 2009 (Spanish)
  22. Denver W. Fowler, Holly N. Woodward, Elizabeth A. Freedman, Peter L. Larson, & John R. Horner. Reanalysis of "Raptorex kriegsteini": A Juvenile Tyrannosaurid Dinosaur from Mongolia // PloS ONE. - 2011. - T. 6. - No. 6. - PMID 21738646.
  23. Horner, J.R. and Lessem, D. (1993). The Complete T. rex : How Stunning New Discoveries Are Changing Our Understanding of the World’s Most Famous Dinosaur. New York: Simon & Schuster.
  24. Sue at The Field Museum
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Tyrannosaurus, which lived during the Cretaceous period, had a body length of about 14 m; he lived in Asia, North America; it is the largest carnivorous land animal ever to exist.


The largest was the tyrannosaurus, 5-6 meters high and 12 m long. Its mouth was 1 m long. In one sitting, it could swallow prey weighing 200 kg. Tyrannosaurs – the most terrible land predators in the history of the planet. Adults weighed about 5-6 tons, and therefore were 15 times heavier than the largest modern predator - polar bear. The dinosaur that walked the Earth 65 million years ago was the largest land predator of all time.

How long did tyrannosaurs live?
Tyrannosaurs, the most feared land predators in the history of the planet, died young. The predator grew quickly, gaining two kilograms a day, like a modern one African elephant. How did they manage to grow to such sizes? Some experts believed that they grew slowly throughout their lives, others that they grew rapidly in their youth, and then the rate of increase in size slowed down, as in birds and mammals. that all these creatures were between two and 28 years old at the time of death. The animals grew the most in the 14th to 18th years of their lives, subsequently maintaining the achieved sizes.

Feathered Tyrannosaurus

Ancestors tyrannosaurus were covered with small feathers rather than bare skin. The skeleton of the ancestor, about 130 million years old, is the most ancient representative of the genus of tyrannosaurs, and is still the only one whose “feathering” is beyond doubt among paleontologists. It was about one and a half meters from the nose to the tip of the tail. However, it walked on its hind legs and was a formidable predator - for smaller herbivorous dinosaurs. The tyrannosaurus itself was unlikely to be covered with feathers - they would have hindered it more than helped it; due to its large size, it was more important for it to give the world excess heat to avoid overheating. However, its "chicks" could hatch from eggs covered with some analogue of down, and lose it as they grow older. Slow predators

Most large predator in the world of dinosaurs was probably quite slow.
Tyrannosaur rex could not accelerate to a speed of more than 40 km/h, although many scientists believe that it was capable of running almost twice as fast. Scientists made their conclusions based on a computer model of a six-ton ​​lizard.

What did tyrannosaurs eat?

The size of tyrannosaurs posed problems for these animals - as they became larger, they most likely gradually lost the ability to move quickly. Young small animals could reach speeds of up to 40 kilometers per hour, but as soon as the weight became more than a ton, this became impossible for biomechanical reasons. So if this animal was a predator and not a scavenger, it seems a mystery how it managed to obtain enough food to maintain a gigantic body growth rate. Perhaps the Jurassic ecosystem produced enough carrion that the tyrannosaurs simply did not need to actively hunt. There was plenty of carrion around. It is still unclear whether tyrannosaurs were predators, or fed primarily on carrion?


Powerful bite

The tyrannosaurus did not simply sink its teeth into the body of the victim, as, say, lions do today. He quickly and easily bit through muscles, cartilage and even thick bones to great depths, and then tore large pieces of flesh out of the victim. The ground bones were eaten along with the meat. Tyrannosaurus had a very strong skull and jaw. And the most amazing thing is that the monster also had a whole shock absorption system. In particular, unlike most animals, part of the bones that make up the skull of the tyrannosaurus retained some mobility relative to each other. Connective tissues helped dissipate the impact energy. Of course, this way of feeding the tyrannosaurus was also facilitated by its sharp 15-centimeter teeth.



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