The photos below were taken at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, in June 2014, by Mo Hassan. They are presented in rough phylogenetic order.
Plateosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Plateosaurus (from the Ancient Greek for"flat lizard") was one of the first dinosaurs. Non-avian dinosaurs (that is, all dinosaurs that are not birds), arose during the Triassic Period and lasted until the end of the Cretaceous Period, a stretch of time lasting around 170 million years. Among the earliest were small theropods (bipedal carnivores) like Coelophysis (see below), and Plateosaurus. It was a prosauropod - early offshoots from the branch that later led to sauropods - the long-necked dinosaurs like Brontosaurus. Plateosaurus has been known since the 1830s, when several bones were found in Germany and later identified as dinosaur bone.
Plateosaurus remains one of the best known dinosaurs as over a hundred individuals are known from many parts of Germany. The individual photographed was named Plateosaurus trossingensis Fraas, 1913, but later synonymised with the type species of the genus, P. engelhardti. Its specimen number is AMNH 6810 and was collected by Friedrich von Huene in 1925 in Trossingen in southwest Germany, and dates from the late Norian stage of the Upper Triassic.
Brontosaurus excelsus Marsh, 1879
Diplodocidae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
You may have heard of Brontosaurus, it's got to be one of the most well known dinosaurs of all time. Except that for over a hundred years, it didn't even exist. Well, only in the sense that it has been known to science by another name. Apatosaurus ("deceptive lizard") and Brontosaurus ("thunder lizard") are both types of sauropod, both living at the same time in the same place. For most of the twentieth century they were assumed to belong to the same species, and as the name Apatosaurus was published first, due to the rules of zoological taxonomy, Brontosaurus became demoted to a synonym of Apatosaurus. A study published this year has determined that Brontosaurus is sufficiently distinct from Apatosaurus, and resurrected the name for three species previously assigned to Apatosaurus. One of these is A. excelsus, now B. excelsus, which the above pictured sauropod was identified as.
The specimen, AMNH 460, is mostly real, with the skull based on Apatosaurus louisae, and tips of tail and limbs from another specimen. It dates from 150 million years ago (Kimmeridgian/Tithonian stages of the Late Jurassic). According to the recent study (Tschopp, Mateus & Benson, 2015), which looked at individual specimens rather than species, AMNH 460 is a close relative of both Apatosaurus species and all three Brontosaurus species, but not a member of either. For now, it remains either Apatosaurus excelsus or Brontosaurus excelsus, until a new genus is erected for it if needs be.
Diplodocus longus Marsh, 1878
Diplodocidae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Everyone who's ever been to the Natural History Museum in London will know about Dippy the Diplodocus. Specifically, Dippy is a cast of CM 84, an almost complete skeleton of Diplodocus carnegii Hatcher, 1901, in the collections of the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The eponymous philanthropist Andrew Carnegie commissioned ten casts of CM 84 to museums around the world, including London of course. But D. carnegii was not the first species of Diplodocus to be described. D. longus is the type species, meaning it was the first species to be given the genus name Diplodocus.
This skull is specimen AMNH 969, and was collected in 1903 in Wyoming. It dates from the Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic.
Coelophysis bauri (Cope, 1887)
Coelophysidae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Like Plateosaurus, Coelophysis ("hollow form") is one of the earliest dinosaurs, and is the best-known early theropod. It lived in Late Triassic North America, dating back to around 200 million years ago. This specimen is a cast of CM 31374, a skull from Carnegie Museum collected in New Mexico.
Dilophosaurus wetherilli Welles, 1954
Dilophosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
If you've seen Jurassic Park (who hasn't?), you'll know Dilophosaurus as the cute, frilled, venom-spitting dinosaur that jumps into Dennis Nedry's car and subsequently kills him. Dilophosaurus ("two crested lizard") in reality was somewhat bigger than the film version, and did not have a frill or the ability to spit venom, as far as we know. It is another early theropod, dating to 193 million years ago in the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic. This skull is a cast of AMNH 27376, found in Arizona in 1942.
Ceratosaurus nasicornis Marsh, 1884
Ceratosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Ceratosaurus ("horned lizard") was a contemporary of Allosaurus from Late Jurassic North America. This skull is a cast of AMNH 27631 from Colorado.
Majungasaurus crenatissimus (Depéret, 1896)
Abelisauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Abelisaurids were a group of large theropods found mainly in the southern supercontinent Gondwana. Representatives of this family have been found in South America (e.g. Carnotaurus), India (e.g. Indosuchus), and Madagascar (e.g. Majungasaurus). They all have short heads and tiny hands and arms, making them look really, really silly. Although Majungasaurus ("lizard from Mahajanga/Majunga") has been known for more than a century, it was only since the late 90s that any good material has come out of Madagascar. Prior to that, some specimens were called Majungatholus atopus, and were thought to be the remains of pachycephalosaurs (bone-headed ornithischians).
This skull is a cast of FMNH PR 2100 collected in Madagascar, dating from the Maastrichtian stage dating to 66-70 million years ago.
Allosaurus fragilis Marsh, 1877
Allosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Allosaurus ("different lizard") is one of the most well-known theropods from the Jurassic Period, and was among the largest from the time too. This remarkably complete specimen, AMNH 5753, represents the first free-standing mount of a theropod anywhere in the world, and is depicted tearing apart a Brontosaurus skeleton. It came from Wyoming and dates from the Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic.
Ornitholestes hermanni (Osborn, 1903)
Family incertae sedis; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Ornitholestes ("bird thief") was another Morrison Formation theropod, believed to be a coelurosaur (an advanced group of theropods including tyrannosaurs and modern birds). This specimen is a cast of the holotype (first specimen), AMNH 619, discovered in 1900 in Wyoming, again of Kimmeridgian age.
Gorgosaurus libratus Lambe, 1914
Tyrannosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Gorgosaurus ("fierce lizard") is a smaller and slenderer relative of Tyrannosaurus. It has previously been placed in the genus Albertosaurus, but is deemed distinct nowadays. It lived slightly earlier than Tyrannosaurus, in the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous. Despite being smaller than its more famous relative, it was still an apex predator.
This specimen is a cast of the skull of AMNH 5664 from Alberta. It was initially named G. sternbergi, after its discoverer, Charles Sternberg, but is now considered to be a young individual of G. libratus.
Tyrannosaurus rex Osborn, 1905
Tyrannosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
T. rex needs no introduction, so you're not getting one. This specimen is AMNH 5027, collected in Montana in 1908.
Struthiomimus altus Lambe, 1902
Ornithomimidae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Struthiomimus ("ostrich mimic") was a very slender dinosaur related to Ornithomimus from Campanian-Maastrichtian North America. This specimen is AMNH 5339, collected in Alberta in 1914, and displays the commonly found "death pose" seen in many theropod specimens, and which is also present in modern theropods, birds. The head and neck curl back to touch the back, in a condition similar to rigor mortis known as opisthotonus ("tension behind").
Mononykus olecranus Perle et al., 1993
Alvarezsauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
One group of dinosaurs that were quite close to the ancestor of modern birds is the alvarezsaurids. Mononykus ("one claw") is one of the best known of this group. In fact, Mononykus (previously known as Mononychus before it was realised that name was already occupied by a butterfly) was considered to actually be a bird, more advanced than Archaeopteryx (see below). Mononykus got its name because of large thumb claw, and it has very reduced forelimbs.
This specimen is a mounted composite cast of two specimens, AMNH 28508 and AMNH 28498, collected at different times from different locations in Mongolia. It dates from the early Maastrichtian of the late Cretaceous (70 million years ago).
Archaeopteryx siemensii Dames, 1897
Archaeopterygidae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Archaeopteryx ("ancient wing") is known from around twelve exquisitely preserved specimens from Solnhofen, in Bavaria (Germany). There are now considered to be two species of Archaeopteryx: the type A. lithographica, and A. siemensii. This is a cast (AMNH 5120) of a specimen of A. siemensii known as the Berlin Specimen, as the original is housed at Humboldt Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin. It is the most complete Archaeopteryx specimen. All Archaeopteryx lived during the Tithonian in the Late Jurassic, 150-148 million years ago.
Hesperornis regalis Marsh, 1872
Hesperornithidae; Hesperornithiformes; Avialae; Chordata
Hesperornis ("western bird") was a toothed grebe-like bird that lived during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous in North America and Russia. This specimen, AMNH 5100, was collected in Kansas by Charles Sternberg in 1907.
Gastornis giganteus (Cope, 1876)
Gastornithidae; Anseriformes; Aves; Chordata
The first true bird in this series of photos, Gastornis ("Gaston [Planté]'s bird") was a not-too-distant relative of ducks, geese, and swans, being a member of the order Anseriformes. Gastornithids lived during the Palaeocene and Eocene epochs, some 56-45 million years ago, hence not too long (broadly speaking) after the non-avian dinosaurs went extinct (66 million years ago). It was always considered to be a savage predator due to the shape of its bill, but recent studies on bone histology indicate it never ate meat. Gastornis giganteus used to be considered distinct enough from Eurasian Gastornis that it was placed in its own genus, Diatryma. This specimen, AMNH 6169, was collected in Wyoming in 1916.
Psilopterus australis (Moreno & Mercerat, 1891)
Phorusrhacidae; Cariamiformes; Aves; Chordata
Psilopterus ("smooth wing") was a type of phorusrhacid, birds colloquially called "terror birds" for their fearsome looking appearance and size. Psilopterus is one of the smaller members of this family though, looking more like a seriema on steroids. This skull is AMNH 9157, from Argentina, dating to the early Miocene epoch (21 million years ago).
Saurornithoides mongoliensis Osborn, 1924
Troodontidae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Saurornithoides ("bird-like lizard") is a troodontid from the Campanian of Mongolia. It was a small-sized big-eyed dinosaur, most likely feathered, and this is the type specimen, AMNH 6516.
Velociraptor mongoliensis Osborn, 1924
Dromaeosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Velociraptor ("fast seizer") is another very well known dinosaur, but is much smaller than most people imagine. Blame Jurassic Park again, the animals represented in the film are closer to Deinonychus (see below) in size. Nonetheless, Velociraptor is well known from some beautifully preserved specimens from Mongolia, again from the Campanian. This skull is also the type specimen, AMNH 6515.
Deinonychus antirrhopus Ostrom, 1969
Dromaeosauridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
Closely related to Velociraptor, Deinonychus ("terrible claw") is known from much earlier strata (Aptian-Albian) in North America. It would have been a more fearsome creature than Velociraptor considering its size, no doubt using its switch-blade "terrible claw" to good effect. This specimen is AMNH 3015, from Montana.
Khaan mckennai Clark, Norell & Barsbold, 2001
Oviraptoridae; Saurischia; Sauropsida; Chordata
The final dinosaur in this parade is a relative of the more well known (only in the popular sense, not from the point of view of specimens) Oviraptor. They were toothless, crested, bird-like dinosaurs. Khaan was a contemporary of Velociraptor and Saurornithoides and was most likely feathered. This specimen is a cast of the original specimen IGM 100/973, housed in Ulaan Bataar, Mongolia,
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