Stegosaurus
| Stegosaurus
Conservation status: Fossil | ||||||||||||||
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| Fossil skeleton, | ||||||||||||||
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?S. affinis |
Stegosaurus was a large herbivorous dinosaur genus from the Upper Jurassic of North America. It is among the most easily identifiable dinosaurs, owing to the distinctive double row of kite-shaped plates along the back and the four long spikes on the tail. Its name is derived from the plates, and means "roofed" or "covered lizard" in Greek. It is one of the most popular dinosaurs in children's fiction.
Table of contents |
Characteristics
Stegosaurus is the largest stegosaur, and reached up to 12 meters (40 feet) in length, and 5,000 kg (5.5 short tons) in mass, though most species never exceeded 7 meters (23 feet), and about 2,000 kg (2 short tons).
The largest plates, over the hips, were 60 centimeters (2 feet) wide and 60 centimeters tall. The arrangement of the plates has long been a subject of debate, but most scientists now agree that the plates form a pair of alternating rows down the back. The plates are highly modified osteoderms, or bony-cored scales, similar to those seen in crocodiles and many lizards.
The purpose of the plates is debated. Their large size suggests that they may have been used to increase the apparent height of the animal, to intimidate enemies or impress other members of the species. A recent theory is that they may have helped to control the temperature of the animal, much as elephants and jackrabbits do with their ears. The plates have blood vessels running through grooves in them. Wind flowing around the plates would have cooled the blood flowing through them. The tail appears simply to have acted as a weapon.
The skull of Stegosaurus was long and narrow, and its head was carried close to the ground, probably no higher than 1 meter (3 feet).
Relationships
Stegosaurus was a member of the armored dinosaurs, or Thyreophora. Relatives include Ankylosaurus and Nodosaurus.
In film
As one of the most recognizable dinosaurs, Stegosaurus has seen its share of screen time. In the classic monster film, King Kong (1933), the first creature the band of rescuers meet as they chase the abducted Fay Wray deep into Skull Island is a roaring Stegosaurus, which behaves like an irritable rhinoceros, and charges. It eventually goes down under several fusillades of small arms fire.
External links
- Stegosaurus "roofed lizard", by T. Mike Keesey at The Dinosauricon.
- Stegosaurus, at DinoData.
Categories: Dinosaurs