Dinosaur Excavation Stage IV: Skull and Forelimb Analysis

DINOSAUR EXCAVATION STAGE IV Excavation Stage IV- Skull and Forelimb Below is “site map” image of the excavation site(s). These images, and others you will need to complete this assignment, are available at: https://sites.google.com/tamu.edu/geol- 207-dinosaur-world-ex4/home . Arrows within the images indicate the direction of North. On your site map image, each bone has been numerically labeled. Figure 1. Skull of mystery dinosaur. Figure 2. Pectoral girdle of forelimb of the mystery dinosaur in close proximity to an oviraptor nest and possibly a sauropod claw. 1) Identify and Catalog the Bones: Use Table 4 below to catalog the bones recovered during the excavation. For each numbered bone, you should identify the type of bone and the region of the body the bone is from (in this lab, all bones are from the caudal region). Under notes, provide any features present that are important sharded derived characters that could help you in your identification. You should also provide an approximate measurement for each bone marked with a * using the scale bars on the zoom-in photos available at https://sites.google.com/tamu.edu/geol-207-dinosaur-world-ex4/home . Table 4. Bone catalog for Excavation Stage IV. (5 pts) Bone Number Bone Identification Skeletal Region Measurements Other Notes

Length (cm) Width (cm) 106 -- -- 107* 108* 109* 110 -- -- 111* 112 -- -- 113 -- -- 114 -- -- 115 -- -- 116 -- -- 117 -- -- 118* 119* 120*

2) Interpret the Skeleton (10 pts) a. Having identified the bones present in your specimen, list the order of the forelimb bones starting with the bones that are most proximal to the body. (Note. d and e have the same approximate placement). ( 2 pts) Terms to use: coracoid, phalanges, metacarpals, ulna, humerus, radius, unguals, scapula a. __________ b. __________ c. __________ d. __________ e. _____________ f. ___________ g. ___________ h. ___________ b. Considering the order the bones would be present in the living animal, are the bones preserved in approximately life position? (1 pt) c. How many digits are on the manus (hand)? (1 pt) d. Describe the size/shape of the teeth in the organism. Make a claim about the feeding strategy of this organism, list your evidence, and explain your reasoning. (2 pts) e. Count the number of teeth in each region of the skull: premaxillary, maxilla (upper jaw) and dentary/mandible. ( 2pts) Premaxillary teeth: __________ Maxillary teeth: __________ Dentary teeth: __________ f. What is the approximate length of the dinosaur? Hint: You may need to sum the length of the caudal region from Stage II, the length of the Spinal Region from Stage III, and the skull length from Stage IV. (2 pts) 3) Evaluate your evidence to reach a preliminary identification (12 pts) a) Given your observations of the forelimb and skull, provide evidence supporting or refuting the claim that the specimen belongs to an ornithopod dinosaur. Explain your reasoning. (3 pts) b) Given your observations of the forelimb and the skull, provide evidence supporting or refuting the claim that the specimen belongs to a theropod dinosaurs. Explain your reasoning. (3 pts) c) Suppose that this organism is a theropod dinosaur. Given the information in the table below from Currie et al. (2003), what genus (or genera) could your dinosaur belong to? (2 pts)

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d) Based upon your hypothesized genus identification from (c) and your size estimates, is the specimen most likely a juvenile or an adult? Explain your reasoning. (2 pt) e) Based upon your hypothesized genus identification from (c), what characteristics might you use to make a species-level determination? (2 pts)

Lab 8 Excavation Stage IV

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