STL Science Center

STL Science Center

11 February 2011

Nanotyrannus!

 
This week's dinosaur is a debated genus. The paleo community hasn't decided unanimously whether Nanotyrannus is a juvenile T Rex or another species or another genus. Some clues in the teeth, skull shape, and brain case point toward a different species at least, but the jury is still out on this animal. We're going to build up the evidence this week and we can all decide for ourselves which way we feel it should fall!

1 comment:

  1. Personally, i think nanotyrannus is a real dinosaur for a few reasons:
    A: Saying nanotyrannus is a juvenile t-rex is like saying that triceratops is a juvenile torosaurus, just because they are similar dinosaurs that are found in the same area doesn't mean they are one and the same.

    B: Nanotyrannus (Who i'll now be calling N-rex for Simplicity's sake.) and T-rex look quite different from eachother. Their teeth aren't the same, N-rex's teeth are thinner and sharper used for ripping flesh off while T-rex's are blunter but thicker, used for crushing bone.

    C: Their skulls are much different from each-others as N-rex has a streamlined skull rather than the T-rex's bulky noggin.

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