Tyrannosauridae

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Tyrannosaurs
T. rex skull, picture taken at Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago
Conservation status
Extinct (fossil)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Superorder: Dinosauria
Order: Saurischia
Suborder: Theropoda
Superfamily: Tyrannosauroidea
Family: Tyrannosauridae
Osborn, 1906
Genera

See text.

Tyrannosaurs, tyrant lizards or members of the Tyrannosauridae are a carnivorous dinosaur family whose name is derived from the Greek words tyrannos, meaning 'tyrant' and sauros, meaning 'lizard'.

Tyrannosaurids were originally classified as 'carnosaurs', along with most of the rest of the large theropods. Recent phylogenetic studies, however, have determined that tyrannosaurids are coelurosaurs, a group which also includes the ornithomimids and the maniraptorans. Thus, they are more closely related to dromaeosaurids than to other large predatory dinosaur groups such as the allosaurids. Discoveries of basal, coelurid-like tyrannosauroids have helped solidify this link. [1] These discoveries also give evidence that tyrannosauroids may have been feathered.

Tyrannosaurs are characterized by broad, massive skulls, short, powerful necks, and reduced 'arms' with only two digits. Notable specimens include "Jane", the world's most complete juvenile T. rex.

Contents

[edit] Taxonomy

[edit] Classification

The Tyrannosaurids contain several genera and species, of which Tyrannosaurus rex is undoubtedly the most well-known.

[edit] Phylogeny

Cladogram after Carr (2005) and Mortimer (2006, online)[1].

Tyrannosauridae
|-?Aublysodon
|-?Deinodon
|--Albertosaurinae
|  |--+--Appalachiosaurus
|  |  `-?+--Bagaraatan
|  |     `-?Xinjiangovenator
|  `--Albertosaurini
|     |--Gorgosaurus
|     `--Albertosaurus
`--Tyrannosaurinae
   |--Daspletosaurus
   `--+-?Alioramus
      |--Tarbosaurus
      |-?Tyrannosaurus? zhuchengensis
      `--Tyrannosaurus

[edit] References

  1. ^ Xu, X., Norell, M. A., Kuang, X., Wang, X., Zhao, Q., and Jia, C. (2004). "Basal tyrannosauroids from China and evidence for protofeathers in tyrannosauroids." Nature, 431: 680-684. PMID: 15470426