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My, How You've Grown!
Fossils of young dinosaurs help paleontologists understand what changes took place as the dinosaur grew. Since the hatchling skull doesn't have a head crest, we know that this feature grew as the animal got older. Not all oviraptorid fossils have head crests. Paleontologist Mark Norell explains, "Some oviraptorids had noticeable head crests, others did not. The crests may have helped the different species recognize each other, or may have marked the difference between the sexes."
Oviraptorid Skull
(O-va-rap-tor-id)
Locality Found: Mongolia
Age: Cretaceous 80 MYA
Size: 7 inches long
Prepared For: 2000 Museum exhibit Fighting Dinosaurs
Characteristics: This skull is one of the most well preserved oviraptorid specimens ever discovered.
What sound did this oviraptorid make when it was attracting its mate?
teeka-loo, teeka-loo
wickle-woo, wickle-woo
no one knows
Correct!
Based on fossil evidence alone, paleontologists are unable to know what sound long-extinct animals made.
This oviraptorid's features link it to which modern animal?
squirrels
cats
birds
Correct!
Although this skull has primitive dinosaur features, it had some advanced features that link it to birds.
Some modern birds have head crests like this extinct oviraptorid.
Fact
OR
Fiction
?
Fact
Many living birds, such as the Australian cassowary, have head crests.
By studying fossils of an animal, it is impossible to tell the growth rates of different body parts.
Fact
OR
Fiction
?
Fiction
By comparing young and adult dinosaur fossils, scientists have learned which body parts, such as eyes, grow at a slower rate.