"Three Ornithopods"
Coloured pencil illustration, June 2008
Adapted from Luis Rey's illustrations in Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-To-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages
Top left: Leaellynasaura amicagraphica Rich & Rich, 1989
Hypsilophodontidae; Ornithopoda; Ornithischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
From Early Cretaceous Australia
Top right: Iguanodon bernissartensis Boulenger, 1881
Iguanodontidae; Ornithopoda; Ornithischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
From Early Cretaceous Belgium
Bottom: Ouranosaurus nigeriensis Taquet, 1976
Ornithopoda; Ornithischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
From Early Cretaceous Niger
These ornithopods ("bird-feet") are all from the Early Cretaceous Period (146-110 million years ago), and spread across the world, being from both Laurasia (the continental mass made up of modern day North America and Eurasia, except India) and Gondwanaland (the southern land mass made of South America, Africa, Arabia, India, Madagascar, Australia and Antarctica). The genus Iguanodon was also much more widespread, with species found across Laurasia.
Leaellynasaura was named after the discoverers' daughter, Leaellyn Rich, and the species epithet, amicagraphica, roughly translates from Latin as "friends of geography", honouring the Friends of the Museum of Victoria and the National Geographic Society. Isn't etymology wonderful?
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