Page 94 - Ultimate Visual Dictionary (DK)

PREHISTORIC EAR TH
Thyreophorans 1

THYREOPHORANS (“SHIELD BEARERS”) were a group of
quadrupedal armored dinosaurs. They were one clade among
several within the Ornithischia (bird-hipped dinosaurs),
they were characterized by rows of bony studs, plates, or spikes along the back,
which protected some from predators and may have helped others regulate TUOJIANGOSAURUS
body temperature. Up to 30 ft (9 m) long, with a small head and small cheek Group: Stegosauridae
Length: 23 ft (7 m)
teeth, thyreophorans had shorter forelimbs than hind limbs and probably
browsed on low-level vegetation. The earliest thyreophorans
were small and lived in Early Jurassic times Dorsal plate
(about 200 million years ago) in Europe,
North America, and China. Stegosaurs,
such as Stegosaurus and Kentrosaurus,
replaced these older forms. The earliest
stegosaur remains come mainly from
China. Several genera of stegosaurs
survived into the Early Cretaceous
period (145–100 million years ago).
Ankylosaurs, with a combination of
beak and teeth in close proximity,
and cheek teeth adapted for
cropping vegetation, appeared
at the same time as stegosaurs.
They originated in the
Late Jurassic period
(155 million years ago)
and in North America
survived until 65 million
years ago. Hip

Thigh
Cervical plate
Eye
Naris

Knee
Beak
Cheek
Neck Shoulder
Outer ear Long
Short forelimb hind limb

Elbow
Nail Ankle
Wrist
Hind foot
EXTERNAL FEATURES OF
STEGOSAURUS Nail
Forefoot

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