The Complete Guide to Prehistoric Life
Encyclopedia
The Complete Guide to Prehistoric Life is an encyclopedia
featuring 111 of the prehistoric animals from the Walking With...
series
, as well as an additional one (Homo floresiensis
). It was published in 2006 by Firefly Books, and written by Tim Haines
with Paul Chambers. It accompanies all programs in the Walking with...
series except Walking with Cavemen
, Prehistoric Park
and Primeval
.
, the Mesozoic
, the Cenozoic
, and the Timeline
or the Tree of Life
. The previous three sections contain brief summaries of the time periods featured, and detailed entries for the featured animals. The lists of creatures are in the order they are shown in the book
.
Cambrian
Silurian
Devonian
Carboniferous
Permian
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Eocene
Oligocene
Pliocene
Pleistocene
Encyclopedia
An encyclopedia is a type of reference work, a compendium holding a summary of information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge....
featuring 111 of the prehistoric animals from the Walking With...
Walking with...
The Walking with... series is a collection of shows that are produced by the BBC and are made by Impossible Pictures. The aim of the series and specials, along with its books, is to recreate extinct animals and presents them as a wildlife documentary...
series
Series
series may refer to anything of a serial form:-Mathematics and science:* Series , a taxonomic rank between genus and species* Series , the sum of a sequence of terms* Series circuits, a kind of electrical network...
, as well as an additional one (Homo floresiensis
Homo floresiensis
Homo floresiensis is a possible species, now extinct, in the genus Homo. The remains were discovered in 2003 on the island of Flores in Indonesia. Partial skeletons of nine individuals have been recovered, including one complete cranium...
). It was published in 2006 by Firefly Books, and written by Tim Haines
Tim Haines
Tim Haines is a screenwriter, producer and director who is best known for his work on the BBC popular science shows Walking with Dinosaurs, Walking with Beasts, and Walking with Monsters...
with Paul Chambers. It accompanies all programs in the Walking with...
Walking with...
The Walking with... series is a collection of shows that are produced by the BBC and are made by Impossible Pictures. The aim of the series and specials, along with its books, is to recreate extinct animals and presents them as a wildlife documentary...
series except Walking with Cavemen
Walking with Cavemen
Walking with Cavemen is a four-part television documentary series about human evolution produced by the BBC in the United Kingdom. It was originally released in April 2003. It was subsequently presented in the United States as a two-part series by the Discovery Channel and its affiliates...
, Prehistoric Park
Prehistoric Park
Prehistoric Park is a six-episode mockumentary television mini-series that premiered on ITV on 22 July 2006 and on Animal Planet on 29 October 2006. The program was produced by Impossible Pictures, who also created Walking with Dinosaurs. In 2007, ITV cancelled Prehistoric Park, but introduced the...
and Primeval
Primeval
Primeval or primæval may refer to:* Primeval, a British science fiction television series.* Primeval , a 2007 film* Primeval , a score of music from the BBC TV series Doctor Who...
.
Contents
The book is divided into four sections other than the Index and Glossary, the PaleozoicPaleozoic
The Paleozoic era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon, spanning from roughly...
, the Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
, the Cenozoic
Cenozoic
The Cenozoic era is the current and most recent of the three Phanerozoic geological eras and covers the period from 65.5 mya to the present. The era began in the wake of the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous that saw the demise of the last non-avian dinosaurs and...
, and the Timeline
Timeline
A timeline is a way of displaying a list of events in chronological order, sometimes described as a project artifact . It is typically a graphic design showing a long bar labeled with dates alongside itself and events labeled on points where they would have happened.-Uses of timelines:Timelines...
or the Tree of Life
Tree of Life
The tree of life in the Book of Genesis is a tree planted by God in midst of the Garden of Eden , whose fruit gives everlasting life, i.e. immortality. Together with the tree of life, God planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil . According to some scholars, however, these are in fact...
. The previous three sections contain brief summaries of the time periods featured, and detailed entries for the featured animals. The lists of creatures are in the order they are shown in the book
Book
A book is a set or collection of written, printed, illustrated, or blank sheets, made of hot lava, paper, parchment, or other materials, usually fastened together to hinge at one side. A single sheet within a book is called a leaf or leaflet, and each side of a leaf is called a page...
.
CambrianCambrianThe Cambrian is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, lasting from Mya ; it is succeeded by the Ordovician. Its subdivisions, and indeed its base, are somewhat in flux. The period was established by Adam Sedgwick, who named it after Cambria, the Latin name for Wales, where Britain's...
(543 − 490 Million Years Ago)
- AnomalocarisAnomalocarisAnomalocaris is an extinct genus of anomalocaridid, which are, in turn, thought to be closely related to the arthropods. The first fossils of Anomalocaris were discovered in the Ogygopsis Shale by Joseph Frederick Whiteaves, with more examples found by Charles Doolittle Walcott in the famed...
- Trilobites
- HaikouichthysHaikouichthysHaikouichthys is an extinct genus of craniate believed to have lived c. 530 million years ago, during the Cambrian explosion of multicellular life...
SilurianSilurianThe Silurian is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Ordovician Period, about 443.7 ± 1.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Devonian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya . As with other geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period's start and end are well identified, but the...
(443 − 417 Million Years Ago)
- CephalaspisCephalaspisCephalaspis was a genus of armored goldfish-sized to trout-sized detritivorous fish that lived in freshwater streams and estuaries of early Devonian Western Europe...
- Brontoscorpio
- PterygotusPterygotusPterygotus is the second-largest known eurypterid, or sea scorpion and one of the largest arthropods of all time.-Description:...
DevonianDevonianThe Devonian is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic Era spanning from the end of the Silurian Period, about 416.0 ± 2.8 Mya , to the beginning of the Carboniferous Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya...
(417 − 354 Million Years Ago)
- DunkleosteusDunkleosteusDunkleosteus is a genus of prehistoric fish, one of the largest arthrodire placoderms ever to have lived, existing during the Late Devonian period, about 380-360 million years ago.This hunter, measuring up to and weighing , was a hypercarnivorous apex predator...
- StethacanthusStethacanthusStethacanthus is an extinct genus of shark which lived in the Early Carboniferous epoch, around 360 million years ago. Fossils have been found in Europe and North America....
- HynerpetonHynerpetonHynerpeton was a basal carnivorous tetrapod that lived in the lakes and estuaries of the Late Devonian period around 360 million years ago. Like many primitive tetrapods, it is sometimes referred to as an "amphibian", though it is not a true member of the modern Lissamphibia...
- HyneriaHyneriaHyneria was a prehistoric predatory lobe-finned fish that lived during the Devonian period around 360 million years ago. It was approximately 4 meters in length and weighed as much as two tons...
CarboniferousCarboniferousThe Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that extends from the end of the Devonian Period, about 359.2 ± 2.5 Mya , to the beginning of the Permian Period, about 299.0 ± 0.8 Mya . The name is derived from the Latin word for coal, carbo. Carboniferous means "coal-bearing"...
(354 − 290 Million Years Ago)
- MeganeuraMeganeuraMeganeura is a genus of extinct insects from the Carboniferous period approximately 300 million years ago, which resembled and are related to the present-day dragonflies. With wingspans of more than 75 cm , M. monyi is one of the largest known flying insect species; the Permian Meganeuropsis...
- PetrolacosaurusPetrolacosaurusPetrolacosaurus was a small, long, reptile, and the earliest diapsid known. It lived during the late Carboniferous period, the Joggins strata where it was found are dated to 302 million years old....
- ArthropleuraArthropleuraArthropleura was a 0.3–2.6 metre long relative of centipedes and millipedes, native to the Upper Carboniferous of what is now northeastern North America and Scotland...
- ProterogyrinusProterogyrinusProterogyrinus was an anthracosaur, a large group of reptilian reptiliomorphs. It is likely that the first reptiles, such as Petrolacosaurus, evolved from reptilomorphs...
PermianPermianThe PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
(290 − 248 Million Years Ago)
- DimetrodonDimetrodonDimetrodon was a predatory synapsid genus that flourished during the Permian period, living between 280–265 million years ago ....
- SeymouriaSeymouriaSeymouria was a reptile-like labyrinthodont from the early Permian of North America and Europe . It was small, only 2 ft long...
- EdaphosaurusEdaphosaurusEdaphosaurus is a genus of prehistoric synapsid which lived around 303 to 265 million years ago, during the late Carboniferous to early Permian periods. The name Edaphosaurus means "ground lizard" and is derived from the Greek edaphos/εδαφος and σαυρος/sauros...
- GorgonopsGorgonopsGorgonops is an extinct genus of therapsid which lived about 255-250 million years ago, during the latest part of the Permian Period. It was a typical representative of the suborder Gorgonopsia, the dominant predators of their day, which in the largest forms grew to over four metres long...
- ScutosaurusScutosaurusScutosaurus was a genus of armor-covered pareiasaur that lived around 252-248 million years ago in Russia, in the later Permian period. Its genus name refers to large plates of armor scattered across its body...
- DiictodonDiictodonDiictodon was a genus of therapsid, roughly 45 cm long. It belonged to the sub-group Dicynodontia. These mammal-like synapsids lived during the Late Permian period, approximately 255 million years ago. Fossils have been found in Africa and Asia...
TriassicTriassicThe Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
(248 − 206 Million Years Ago)
- ProterosuchusProterosuchusProterosuchus is an extinct genus of Early Triassic proterosuchid archosaur. Remains have been found from South Africa and China. The genus Chasmatosaurus is considered a junior synonym of Proterosuchus, as all species of Chasmatosaurus, including C. aleandri, C. vanhoepeni, and C. yuani, have...
- LystrosaurusLystrosaurusLystrosaurus was a genus of Late Permian and Early Triassic Period dicynodont therapsids, which lived around 250 million years ago in what is now Antarctica, India, and South Africa...
- EuparkeriaEuparkeriaEuparkeria was a small African reptile of the early Triassic period between 248-245 million years ago, close to the ancestry of the archosaurs.- Palaeobiology :...
- NothosaurusNothosaurusNothosaurus is an extinct genus of sauropterygian reptile from the Triassic period, approximately 240-210 million years ago, with fossils being distributed from North Africa and Europe to China...
- CymbospondylusCymbospondylusCymbospondylus was a basal early ichthyosaur that lived between the middle and later years of the Triassic period...
- TanystropheusTanystropheusTanystropheus , was a 6 metre long reptile that dated from the Middle Triassic period. It is recognisable by its extremely elongated neck, which measured 3 metres long - longer than its body and tail combined. Despite this length, it had only ten neck vertebrae, each quite long...
- PlateosaurusPlateosaurusPlateosaurus is a genus of plateosaurid dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period, around 216 to 199 million years ago, in what is now Central and Northern Europe. Plateosaurus is a basal sauropodomorph dinosaur, a so-called "prosauropod"...
- PlaceriasPlaceriasPlacerias was a dicynodont that lived during the late Carnian age of the Triassic Period...
- ThrinaxodonThrinaxodonThrinaxodon was a cynodont, an ermine-sized therapsid. Pits on the skull suggest that Thrinaxodon may have had whiskers, and by extension a protective covering of fur. There are suggestions that it was warm-blooded...
- CoelophysisCoelophysisCoelophysis , meaning "hollow form" in reference to its hollow bones , is one of the earliest known genera of dinosaur...
- PeteinosaurusPeteinosaurusPeteinosaurus was a prehistoric reptile genus belonging to the Pterosauria. It lived in the late Triassic period in the middle Norian .-Name:...
- PostosuchusPostosuchusPostosuchus, meaning "crocodile from Post ", was a basal archosaur that lived in what is now North America during the middle through to the late Triassic period...
JurassicJurassicThe Jurassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about Mya to Mya, that is, from the end of the Triassic to the beginning of the Cretaceous. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of the Mesozoic era, also known as the age of reptiles. The start of the period is marked by...
(206 − 144 Million Years Ago)
- Ammonites
- LeedsichthysLeedsichthysLeedsichthys was a giant pachycormid that lived in the oceans of the Middle Jurassic period. The closest living relative of the pachycormids is the bowfin, Amia calva, but this is only very distantly related....
- MetriorhynchusMetriorhynchusMetriorhynchus is an extinct genus of marine crocodyliform that lived in the oceans during the Middle to Late Jurassic. Metriorhynchus was named by the German palaeontologist Christian von Meyer in 1830. Metriorhynchus was a carnivore that spent much, if not all, its life out at sea...
- RhamphorhynchusRhamphorhynchusRhamphorynchus may refer to:*Rhamphorhynchus, a genus of pterosaur*Rhamphorhynchus, a former monotypic genus of orchid, containing only the species now called Aspidogyne mendoncae...
- OphthalmosaurusOphthalmosaurusOphthalmosaurus is an ichthyosaur of the Middle to Late Jurassic period , named for its extremely large eyes. It had a graceful 6 metre long dolphin-shaped body, and its almost toothless jaw was well adapted for catching squid...
- LiopleurodonLiopleurodonLiopleurodon is a genus of large, carnivorous marine reptile belonging to the Pliosauroidea, a clade of short-necked plesiosaurs. Two species of Liopleurodon lived during the Callovian stage of the Middle Jurassic Period , while the third, L. rossicus, lived during the Late Jurassic...
- CryptoclidusCryptoclidusCryptoclidus was a genus of plesiosaur from the Middle Jurassic period of England.-Discovery:Cryptoclidus is a plesiosaur whose specimens include adult and juvenile skeletons, and remains which have been found in various degrees of preservation in England, Northern France, Russia, and South America...
- HybodusHybodusHybodus is an extinct genus of once-common, widespread and long lived sharks, first appearing towards the end of the Permian period, and disappearing at the beginning of the Cretaceous. During the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods the hybodonts were especially successful and could be...
- EustreptospondylusEustreptospondylusEustreptospondylus is a genus of megalosaurid dinosaur, from the Callovian stage of the Middle Jurassic period in southern England, at a time when Europe was a series of scattered islands Eustreptospondylus ("well-curved vertebra", in reference to the arrangement of the spine in the original...
- OthnieliaOthnieliaOthnielia is a genus of ornithischian dinosaur, named after its original describer, Professor Othniel Charles Marsh, an American paleontologist of the 19th century...
- DiplodocusDiplodocusDiplodocus , or )is a genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaur whose fossils were first discovered in 1877 by S. W. Williston. The generic name, coined by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1878, is a Neo-Latin term derived from Greek "double" and "beam", in reference to its double-beamed chevron bones...
- BrachiosaurusBrachiosaurusBrachiosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Jurassic Morrison Formation of North America. It was first described by Elmer S. Riggs in 1903 from fossils found in the Grand River Canyon of western Colorado, in the United States. Riggs named the dinosaur Brachiosaurus altithorax,...
- AnurognathusAnurognathusAnurognathus is a genus of small pterosaur that lived approximately 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic Period ....
- StegosaurusStegosaurusStegosaurus is a genus of armored stegosaurid dinosaur. They lived during the Late Jurassic period , some 155 to 150 million years ago in what is now western North America. In 2006, a specimen of Stegosaurus was announced from Portugal, showing that they were present in Europe as well...
- AllosaurusAllosaurusAllosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
- OrnitholestesOrnitholestesOrnitholestes was a small theropod dinosaur of the late Jurassic of Western Laurasia . To date, it is known only from a single partial skeleton, and badly crushed skull found at the Bone Cabin Quarry near Medicine Bow, Wyoming, in 1900...
CretaceousCretaceousThe Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
(144 − 65 Million Years Ago)
- IguanodonIguanodonIguanodon is a genus of ornithopod dinosaur that lived roughly halfway between the first of the swift bipedal hypsilophodontids and the ornithopods' culmination in the duck-billed dinosaurs...
- TapejaraTapejaraTapejara is a genus of Brazilian pterosaur from the Cretaceous Period...
- PolacanthusPolacanthusPolacanthus, deriving its name from the Ancient Greek poly-/πολυ- "many" and acantha/ακανθα "thorn" or "prickle", was an early armored, spiked, plant-eating ankylosaur from the early Cretaceous period. Early depictions often gave it a very vague head as it was only known from the rear half of the...
- IberomesornisIberomesornisIberomesornis is a monotypic genus of enantiornithine bird of the Cretaceous of Spain.In 1985 the fossil of Iberomesornis was discovered by Armando Díaz Romeral in the Early Cretaceous Calizas de La Huérguina Formation at Las Hoyas, Cuenca Province, east central Spain, which dates to the late...
- UtahraptorUtahraptorUtahraptor is a genus of theropod dinosaurs, including the largest known members of the family Dromaeosauridae. Fossil specimens date to the upper Barremian stage of the early Cretaceous period...
- OrnithocheirusOrnithocheirusOrnithocheirus was a pterosaur from the Cretaceous period of Europe and South America...
- KoolasuchusKoolasuchusKoolasuchus is an extinct genus of brachyopoid temnospondyl in the family Chigutisauridae. Fossils have been found from Victoria, Australia and date back 120 Ma to the Aptian stage of the Early Cretaceous. Koolasuchus is the latest known temnospondyl. Koolasuchus is known from several fragments of...
- LeaellynasauraLeaellynasauraLeaellynasaura is a genus of small herbivorous ornithischian dinosaur from the Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous, first discovered in Dinosaur Cove, Australia. The type species is Leaellynasaura amicagraphica...
- SarcosuchusSarcosuchusSarcosuchus is an extinct genus of crocodyliform and distant relative of the crocodile that lived 112 million years ago. It dates from the early Cretaceous Period of what is now Africa and is one of the largest giant crocodile-like reptiles that ever lived...
- GiganotosaurusGiganotosaurusGiganotosaurus is a genus of carcharodontosaurid dinosaur that lived around 97 million years ago during the early Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period. It included some of the largest known terrestrial carnivores, slightly larger than the largest Tyrannosaurus, but smaller than the...
- ArgentinosaurusArgentinosaurusArgentinosaurus is a genus of titanosaur sauropod dinosaur first discovered by Guillermo Heredia in Argentina. The generic name refers to the country in which it was discovered...
- PteranodonPteranodonPteranodon , from the Late Cretaceous geological period of North America in present day Kansas, Alabama, Nebraska, Wyoming, and South Dakota, was one of the largest pterosaur genera and had a maximum wingspan of over...
- TherizinosaurusTherizinosaurusTherizinosaurus is a genus of very large theropod dinosaur. Therizinosaurus lived in the late Cretaceous Period , and was one of the last and largest representatives of its unique group, the Therizinosauria...
- TarbosaurusTarbosaurusTarbosaurus is a genus of tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur that flourished in Asia about 70 million years ago, at the end of the Late Cretaceous Period. Fossils have been recovered in Mongolia, with more fragmentary remains found further afield in parts of China. Although many species have been...
- MononykusMononykusMononykus was a theropod dinosaur from late Cretaceous Mongolia with long, skinny legs. It moved about on two legs, was very nimble, and could run at high speeds, something that would have been useful in the open desert plains where it lived...
- VelociraptorVelociraptorVelociraptor is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur that existed approximately 75 to 71 million years ago during the later part of the Cretaceous Period. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in the past. The type species is V. mongoliensis; fossils...
- ProtoceratopsProtoceratopsProtoceratops is a genus of sheep-sized herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaur, from the Upper Cretaceous Period of what is now Mongolia. It was a member of the Protoceratopsidae, a group of early horned dinosaurs...
- ArchelonArchelonArchelon is a genus of extinct sea turtle, the largest that has ever been documented.-Discovery:...
- ElasmosaurusElasmosaurusElasmosaurus + σαυρος sauros 'lizard') is a genus of plesiosaur with an extremely long neck that lived in the Late Cretaceous period , 80.5 million years ago.-Description:...
- TylosaurusTylosaurusTylosaurus was a mosasaur, a large, predatory marine lizard closely related to modern monitor lizards and to snakes.-Paleobiology:...
- XiphactinusXiphactinusXiphactinus was a large, 4.5 to 6 m long predatory bony fish that lived in the Western Interior Sea, over what is now the middle of North America, during the Late Cretaceous. When alive, the fish would have resembled a gargantuan, fanged tarpon...
- HesperornisHesperornisHesperornis is a genus of flightless aquatic birds that spanned the first half of the Campanian age of the Late Cretaceous period . One of the lesser-known discoveries of the paleontologist O. C. Marsh in the late 19th century Bone Wars, it was an important early find in the history of avian...
- TyrannosaurusTyrannosaurusTyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
- TorosaurusTorosaurusTorosaurus is a genus of ceratopsid dinosaur that lived during the late Cretaceous period , between 70 and 65 million years ago. It possessed one of the largest skulls of any known land animal. The frilled skull reached in length...
- AnkylosaurusAnkylosaurusAnkylosaurus is a genus of ankylosaurid dinosaur, containing one species, A. magniventris...
- AnatotitanAnatotitanAnatotitan is a genus of flat-headed or hadrosaurine hadrosaurid ornithopod dinosaur from the very end of the Cretaceous Period, in what is now North America...
- DidelphodonDidelphodonDidelphodon is a genus of stagodont marsupials from the Late Cretaceous of North America. Three species are known: Didelphodon vorax, D. padanicus, and D. coyi. Although perhaps little larger than a Virginia Opossum, it was one of the largest mammals of the Mesozoic...
EoceneEoceneThe Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
(55 − 34 Million Years Ago)
- LeptictidiumLeptictidiumLeptictidium is an extinct genus of small mammals; together with macropods and humans, they are the only known completely bipedal mammals. Comprising five species, they resembled today's elephant shrews...
- GodinotiaGodinotiaGodinotia is an extinct genus of lemur-like prosimians belonging to the Adapidae family. It lived during the Eocene epoch , and its fossils have been found in the Messel Pit, Germany, showing that it already exhibited hominid features that would help make the primates such a successful group...
- PropalaeotheriumPropalaeotheriumPropalaeotherium was an early genus of perissodactyl ancestral to the horse endemic to Europe and Asia during the Middle Eocene.Its name means "before Palaeotherium", as it is the ancestor of Palaeotherium, another relative of early horses...
- AmbulocetusAmbulocetusAmbulocetus was an early cetacean that could walk as well as swim. It lived during early Eocene some 50-49 million years ago. It is a transitional fossil that shows how whales evolved from land-living mammals. The Ambulocetus fossils were found in Pakistan by anthropologist Johannes Thewissen...
- Andrewsarchus
- EmbolotheriumEmbolotheriumEmbolotherium is an extinct genus of brontothere that lived in Mongolia during the late Eocene period. It is most easily recognized by a large bony protuberance emanating from the anterior end of the skull...
- MoeritheriumMoeritheriumMoeritherium is a genus consisting of several species. These prehistoric mammals are related to the elephant and, more distantly, the sea cow...
- ArsinoitheriumArsinoitheriumArsinoitherium is an extinct genus of paenungulate mammal related to elephants, sirenians, hyraxes and the extinct desmostylians, as well as to other extinct embrithopods...
- BasilosaurusBasilosaurusBasilosaurus is a genus of cetacean that lived from in the Late Eocene. Its fossilized remains were first discovered in the southern United States . The American fossils were initially believed to be some sort of reptile, hence the suffix -"saurus", but later found to be a marine mammal...
- DorudonDorudonDorudon was a genus of ancient cetacean that lived alongside Basilosaurus 41 to 33 million years ago, in the Eocene. They were about five meters long and were most likely carnivorous, feeding on small fish and mollusks. Dorudontines lived in warm seas around the world...
- ApidiumApidiumThe genus Apidium is that of at least three extinct primates living in the early Oligocene, roughly 36 to 32 millions years ago. Apidium fossils are common in the Fayoum deposits of Egypt...
OligoceneOligoceneThe Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
(34 − 24 Million Years Ago)
- HyaenodonHyaenodonHyaenodon is an extinct genus of Hyaenodonts, a group of carnivorous creodonts of the family Hyaenodontidae endemic to all continents except South America, Australia and Antarctica, living from 42—15.9 mya, existing for approximately .-Morphology:Some species of this genus were amongst the largest...
- EntelodonEntelodonEntelodon , is a genus of Entelodontidae endemic to Europe, Eurasia, Asia from the early Eocene through Oligocene living 37.2—28.4 mya, existing approximately ....
- Indricotherium
- CynodictisCynodictisCynodictis, is a member of extinct terrestrial carnivores belonging to the family Amphicyonidae, suborder Caniformia, and which inhabited Euroasia and Asia from the Late Eocene subepoch to the Early Oligocene subepoch living from 37.2—28.4 Ma, existing for approximately .Cynodictis was one of the...
PliocenePlioceneThe Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
(5 − 1.8 Million Years Ago)
- AncylotheriumAncylotheriumAncylotherium is an extinct genus of the family Chalicotheriidae, subfamily Schizotheriinae, endemic to Europe, Asia, and Africa during the Late Miocene-Pliocene , existing for approximately .-Taxonomy:...
- DinofelisDinofelisDinofelis is a genus of sabre-toothed cats belonging to the tribe Metailurini. They were widespread in Europe, Asia, Africa and North America at least 5 million to about 1.2 million years ago...
- Australopithecus afarensisAustralopithecus afarensisAustralopithecus afarensis is an extinct hominid that lived between 3.9 and 2.9 million years ago. A. afarensis was slenderly built, like the younger Australopithecus africanus. It is thought that A...
- Carcharodon megalodon
- OdobenocetopsOdobenocetopsOdobenocetops was a small whale from the Pliocene. It had two tusks, and, in some fossils, one tusk was longer than the other.-Description:...
- SmilodonSmilodonSmilodon , often called a saber-toothed cat or saber-toothed tiger, is an extinct genus of machairodonts. This saber-toothed cat was endemic to North America and South America, living from near the beginning through the very end of the Pleistocene epoch .-Etymology:The nickname "saber-tooth" refers...
- PhorusrhacosPhorusrhacosPhorusrhacos was a genus of giant flightless predatory birds that lived in Patagonia, containing the single species Phorusrhacos longissimus. Their closest living relatives are the much smaller seriema birds...
- MegatheriumMegatheriumMegatherium was a genus of elephant-sized ground sloths endemic to Central America and South America that lived from the Pliocene through Pleistocene existing approximately...
- MacraucheniaMacraucheniaMacrauchenia was a long-necked and long-limbed, three-toed South American ungulate mammal, typifying the order Litopterna. The oldest fossils date back to around 7 million years ago, and M...
- DoedicurusDoedicurusDoedicurus clavicaudatus was a prehistoric glyptodont, living during the Pleistocene until the end of the last glacial period, some 11,000 years ago. This was the largest known glyptodontid, and one of the better known members of the New World Pleistocene megafauna, with a height of 1.5 meters and...
PleistocenePleistoceneThe Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
(1.8 − 0.01 Million Years Ago)
- MegalocerosMegalocerosThe deer of the genus Megaloceros - ; see also Lister - were found throughout Eurasia from the late Pliocene to the Late Pleistocene, and were important herbivores during the Ice Ages. The largest species, M...
- Panthera leo
- Homo neanderthalensis
- Mammuthus
- Coelodonta
- Homo sapiens
- Homo floresiensisHomo floresiensisHomo floresiensis is a possible species, now extinct, in the genus Homo. The remains were discovered in 2003 on the island of Flores in Indonesia. Partial skeletons of nine individuals have been recovered, including one complete cranium...
Mentioned creatures
- MegarachneMegarachneMegarachne servinei, the only species belonging to the genus Megarachne, was an Upper Carboniferous eurypterid found near Córdoba, Argentina. It was originally described as a spider with a body length of , which would have made it the largest spider ever to have existed...
- EusthenopteronEusthenopteronEusthenopteron is a genus of prehistoric lobe-finned fish which has attained an iconic status from its close relationships to tetrapods. Early depictions of this animal show it emerging onto land, however paleontologists now widely agree that it was a strictly aquatic animal...
- SordesSordesSordes was a small basal pterosaur from the Late Jurassic Karabastau Svita of Kazakhstan.The genus was named in 1971 by Aleksandr Grigorevich Sharov. The type species is Sordes pilosus. The genus name means "filth" or "scum" in Latin, a reference to evil spirits in local folklore...
- ArchaeopteryxArchaeopteryxArchaeopteryx , sometimes referred to by its German name Urvogel , is a genus of theropod dinosaur that is closely related to birds. The name derives from the Ancient Greek meaning "ancient", and , meaning "feather" or "wing"...
- MegalosaurusMegalosaurusMegalosaurus is a genus of large meat-eating theropod dinosaurs of the Middle Jurassic period of Europe...
- Seismosaurus
- CompsognathusCompsognathusCompsognathus was a small, bipedal, carnivorous theropod dinosaur. The animal was the size of a turkey and lived around 150 million years ago, the early Tithonian stage of the late Jurassic Period, in what is now Europe. Paleontologists have found two well-preserved fossils, one in Germany...
- TriceratopsTriceratopsTriceratops is a genus of herbivorous ceratopsid dinosaur which lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago in what is now North America. It was one of the last dinosaur genera to appear before the great Cretaceous–Paleogene...
- DeinonychusDeinonychusDeinonychus was a genus of carnivorous dromaeosaurid dinosaur. There is one described species, Deinonychus antirrhopus. This 3.4 meter long dinosaur lived during the early Cretaceous Period, about 115–108 million years ago . Fossils have been recovered from the U.S...
- SinosauropteryxSinosauropteryxSinosauropteryx was the first genus of dinosaur outside of Avialae to be found with evidence of feathers. They were covered with "furry" coats of very simple filament-like feathers...
- Protoarchaeopteryx
- MicroraptorMicroraptorMicroraptor is a genus of small, four-winged dromaeosaurid dinosaurs. Numerous well-preserved fossil specimens have been recovered from Liaoning, China...
- PachycephalosaurusPachycephalosaurusPachycephalosaurus is a genus of pachycephalosaurid dinosaur. It lived during the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America. Remains have been excavated in Montana, South Dakota, and Wyoming. It was an herbivorous or omnivorous creature which is only known from a single skull and a few...
- Sinornis
- ConfuciusornisConfuciusornisConfuciusornis is a genus of primitive crow-sized birds from the Early Cretaceous Yixian and Jiufotang Formations of China, dating from 125 to 120 million years ago...
- DeinosuchusDeinosuchusDeinosuchus is an extinct genus related to the alligator that lived 73 to 80 Ma , during the late Cretaceous period. The name translates as "terrible crocodile" and is derived from the Greek deinos , "terrible", and soukhos , "crocodile"...
- AndesaurusAndesaurusAndesaurus is a genus of basal titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur which existed during the middle of the Cretaceous Period in South America. Like most sauropods, it would have had a small head on the end of a long neck and an equally long tail...
- QuetzalcoatlusQuetzalcoatlusQuetzalcoatlus was a pterodactyloid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous of North America , and one of the largest known flying animals of all time. It was a member of the Azhdarchidae, a family of advanced toothless pterosaurs with unusually long, stiffened necks...
Scientific errors
- On page 209, on the family treeFamily treeA family tree, or pedigree chart, is a chart representing family relationships in a conventional tree structure. The more detailed family trees used in medicine, genealogy, and social work are known as genograms.-Family tree representations:...
, PteranodonPteranodonPteranodon , from the Late Cretaceous geological period of North America in present day Kansas, Alabama, Nebraska, Wyoming, and South Dakota, was one of the largest pterosaur genera and had a maximum wingspan of over...
is incorrectly placed in the crocodileCrocodileA crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s branchBranchA branch or tree branch is a woody structural member connected to but not part of the central trunk of a tree...
. - Also in the family tree, NothosaurusNothosaurusNothosaurus is an extinct genus of sauropterygian reptile from the Triassic period, approximately 240-210 million years ago, with fossils being distributed from North Africa and Europe to China...
is placed on a separate branch from the one labeled nothosaurNothosaurNothosaurs were Triassic marine sauropterygian reptiles that may have lived like seals of today, catching food in water but coming ashore on rocks and beaches. They averaged about in length, with a long body and tail. The feet were paddle-like, and are known to have been webbed in life, to help...
s. - In the family tree, it is said that the mesonychians were the ancestorAncestorAn ancestor is a parent or the parent of an ancestor ....
s of the whaleWhaleWhale is the common name for various marine mammals of the order Cetacea. The term whale sometimes refers to all cetaceans, but more often it excludes dolphins and porpoises, which belong to suborder Odontoceti . This suborder also includes the sperm whale, killer whale, pilot whale, and beluga...
s. However, this theory has been discarded in favor of one where cetaceans and artiodactyls share a common ancestor. - The family tree also claims that the CarnivoraCarnivoraThe diverse order Carnivora |Latin]] carō "flesh", + vorāre "to devour") includes over 260 species of placental mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" can refer to any meat-eating animal...
descended from the creodonts. However, this is a grossly outdated theory. Rather, the carnivoreCarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
s more likely descended from the treeTreeA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
-dwelling miacids. - The family tree shows that the apeApeApes are Old World anthropoid mammals, more specifically a clade of tailless catarrhine primates, belonging to the biological superfamily Hominoidea. The apes are native to Africa and South-east Asia, although in relatively recent times humans have spread all over the world...
s first appeared in the OligoceneOligoceneThe Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
, while the oldest known ape, ProconsulProconsulA proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a...
, dates back to the later MioceneMioceneThe Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
. - Cameroceras is repeatedly misspelled as "Cameraceras". This is probably just an accident.
- On page 46, it is said that turtleTurtleTurtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
s and tortoiseTortoiseTortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...
s may have descended from ScutosaurusScutosaurusScutosaurus was a genus of armor-covered pareiasaur that lived around 252-248 million years ago in Russia, in the later Permian period. Its genus name refers to large plates of armor scattered across its body...
. However, chelonianChelonianChelonian has multiple, interrelated meanings:*Green turtle*Chelonia, the superorder uniting turtles, tortoises and terrapins with the "proto-turtle" Australochelys*Chelonians, monsters from Doctor Who...
s are now thought to be more closely related to modern reptileReptileReptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s than to pareiasaurPareiasaurThe Pareiasaurs - Family Pareiasauridae - are a clade of medium-sized to large herbivorous anapsid reptiles that flourished during the Permian period....
s. - CoelophysisCoelophysisCoelophysis , meaning "hollow form" in reference to its hollow bones , is one of the earliest known genera of dinosaur...
is repeatedly misclassified as a coelurosaur, while it was actually a much more primitivePrimitivePrimitive may refer to:* Anarcho-primitivism, an anarchist critique of the origins and progress of civilization* Primitive culture, one that lacks major signs of economic development or modernity...
coelophysid. - On page 64, it is said that nothosaurs laid eggEgg (biology)An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
s. However, it is now generally agreed that they gave live birthBirthBirth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
like their descendants, the plesiosaurPlesiosaurPlesiosauroidea is an extinct clade of carnivorous plesiosaur marine reptiles. Plesiosauroids, are known from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods...
s and pliosaurPliosaurPliosauroidea is an extinct clade of marine reptiles. Pliosauroids, also commonly known as pliosaurs, are known from the Jurassic and Cretaceous Periods. The pliosauroids were short-necked plesiosaurs with large heads and massive toothed jaws. These swimming reptiles were not dinosaurs but distant...
s. - On page 65, CymbospondylusCymbospondylusCymbospondylus was a basal early ichthyosaur that lived between the middle and later years of the Triassic period...
is dubbed the largest ichthyosaurIchthyosaurIchthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins...
of all time. In fact, the creature was not even half the size of Shonisaurus, which is also the largest known marineMarine (ocean)Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
reptile. Interestingly, the book Chased by Sea Monsters states that the largest ichthyosaur is either Shonisaurus or an undescribed genusGenusIn biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
. - On page 90, EustreptospondylusEustreptospondylusEustreptospondylus is a genus of megalosaurid dinosaur, from the Callovian stage of the Middle Jurassic period in southern England, at a time when Europe was a series of scattered islands Eustreptospondylus ("well-curved vertebra", in reference to the arrangement of the spine in the original...
and MegalosaurusMegalosaurusMegalosaurus is a genus of large meat-eating theropod dinosaurs of the Middle Jurassic period of Europe...
are said to be carnosaurs, while they are closer relativeRelative-General use:*Kinship, the principle binding the most basic social units society. If two people are connected by circumstances of birth, they are said to be relatives-Philosophy:...
s of the spinosaurs. - On page 112, LeaellynasauraLeaellynasauraLeaellynasaura is a genus of small herbivorous ornithischian dinosaur from the Albian stage of the Early Cretaceous, first discovered in Dinosaur Cove, Australia. The type species is Leaellynasaura amicagraphica...
is said to be an ornithopodOrnithopodOrnithopods or members of the clade Ornithopoda are a group of ornithischian dinosaurs that started out as small, bipedal running grazers, and grew in size and numbers until they became one of the most successful groups of herbivores in the Cretaceous world, and dominated the North American...
. However, it may have been a more primitive ornithischian that does not fit in any of the known families. - On page 127, it is said that there is no evidence for VelociraptorVelociraptorVelociraptor is a genus of dromaeosaurid theropod dinosaur that existed approximately 75 to 71 million years ago during the later part of the Cretaceous Period. Two species are currently recognized, although others have been assigned in the past. The type species is V. mongoliensis; fossils...
having feathers. However, quill knobs have been found in association with the creature's skeletonSkeletonThe skeleton is the body part that forms the supporting structure of an organism. There are two different skeletal types: the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, and the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside the body.In a figurative sense, skeleton can...
, showing that its armArmIn human anatomy, the arm is the part of the upper limb between the shoulder and the elbow joints. In other animals, the term arm can also be used for analogous structures, such as one of the paired forelimbs of a four-legged animal or the arms of cephalopods...
s at least were feathered. However, this discovery was made after the book was published. - On page 128, ProtoceratopsProtoceratopsProtoceratops is a genus of sheep-sized herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaur, from the Upper Cretaceous Period of what is now Mongolia. It was a member of the Protoceratopsidae, a group of early horned dinosaurs...
is incorrectly identified as an ornithopod, while it's actually a ceratopsian. - On page 137, it is said that TyrannosaurusTyrannosaurusTyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
means "terrible reptile". However, this is what the term dinosaurDinosaurDinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
means. Tyrannosaurus means "tyrant reptile". - On page 137, it is said that Tyrannosaurus lived from 75 to 65 million years ago. However, the oldest fossilFossilFossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
s that can be confidently assigned to this genus date back only 68.5 million years ago. - On page 138, it is said that TorosaurusTorosaurusTorosaurus is a genus of ceratopsid dinosaur that lived during the late Cretaceous period , between 70 and 65 million years ago. It possessed one of the largest skulls of any known land animal. The frilled skull reached in length...
means "bull reptile". However, this is a common misconception. It actually means "perforated reptile". - On page 188, SmilodonSmilodonSmilodon , often called a saber-toothed cat or saber-toothed tiger, is an extinct genus of machairodonts. This saber-toothed cat was endemic to North America and South America, living from near the beginning through the very end of the Pleistocene epoch .-Etymology:The nickname "saber-tooth" refers...
is said to have died out 100,000 years ago. However, it is known to have survived until 11,000 years ago. - On page 190, the closest living relative to PhorusrhacosPhorusrhacosPhorusrhacos was a genus of giant flightless predatory birds that lived in Patagonia, containing the single species Phorusrhacos longissimus. Their closest living relatives are the much smaller seriema birds...
is said to be the secretary birdSecretary BirdThe Secretarybird or Secretary Bird is a large, mostly terrestrial bird of prey. Endemic to Africa, it is usually found in the open grasslands and savannah of the sub-Sahara...
. That would actually be the seriemaSeriemaThe seriemas are the sole extant members of the small and ancient family Cariamidae, which is also the sole surviving family of the Cariamae. Once believed to be related to cranes, they have been placed by one recent study near the falcons, parrots and passerines, as well as the extinct terror birds...
bird. - On page 196, MegalocerosMegalocerosThe deer of the genus Megaloceros - ; see also Lister - were found throughout Eurasia from the late Pliocene to the Late Pleistocene, and were important herbivores during the Ice Ages. The largest species, M...
is said to reach antlerAntlerAntlers are the usually large, branching bony appendages on the heads of most deer species.-Etymology:Antler originally meant the lowest tine, the "brow tine"...
spans up to 3 metres (10 feet) while, in fact, specimenSpecimenA specimen is a portion/quantity of material for use in testing, examination, or study.BiologyA laboratory specimen is an individual animal, part of an animal, a plant, part of a plant, or a microorganism, used as a representative to study the properties of the whole population of that species or...
s with 3.6 metres (12 feet) are not uncommon. - On page 197, the cave lionCave lionPanthera leo spelaea also known as the European or Eurasian cave lion, is an extinct subspecies of lion known from fossils and many examples of prehistoric art.-Physical characteristics:This subspecies was one of the largest lions...
is depicted with a much shorter tailTailThe tail is the section at the rear end of an animal's body; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, reptiles, and birds...
than it had in real life. - On page 201, it is said that a populationPopulationA population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of pygmy mammothPygmy MammothThe Pygmy Mammoth or Channel Islands Mammoth is an extinct species of dwarf elephant descended from the Columbian mammoth . A case of island or insular dwarfism, M. exilis was only to tall at the shoulder and weighed about , in contrast to its tall, ancestor.Remains of M...
s survived on an islandIslandAn island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
off the east coastCoastA coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term "coastal zone" can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs...
of RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
until about 6,000 years ago. In fact, this timeTimeTime is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
estimate is only accurate about the population on the AlaskaAlaskaAlaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
n St. Paul Island than the real last sanctuary, the Wrangel IslandWrangel IslandWrangel Island is an island in the Arctic Ocean, between the Chukchi Sea and East Siberian Sea. Wrangel Island lies astride the 180° meridian. The International Date Line is displaced eastwards at this latitude to avoid the island as well as the Chukchi Peninsula on the Russian mainland...
, where the most recent remains are as young as 3,700 years old. - The size comparison images of some animals are erroneous, such as MeganeuraMeganeuraMeganeura is a genus of extinct insects from the Carboniferous period approximately 300 million years ago, which resembled and are related to the present-day dragonflies. With wingspans of more than 75 cm , M. monyi is one of the largest known flying insect species; the Permian Meganeuropsis...
, OrnitholestesOrnitholestesOrnitholestes was a small theropod dinosaur of the late Jurassic of Western Laurasia . To date, it is known only from a single partial skeleton, and badly crushed skull found at the Bone Cabin Quarry near Medicine Bow, Wyoming, in 1900...
(both too big), MegatheriumMegatheriumMegatherium was a genus of elephant-sized ground sloths endemic to Central America and South America that lived from the Pliocene through Pleistocene existing approximately...
and Megaloceros (both too small). Also, the silhouette used for TarbosaurusTarbosaurusTarbosaurus is a genus of tyrannosaurid theropod dinosaur that flourished in Asia about 70 million years ago, at the end of the Late Cretaceous Period. Fossils have been recovered in Mongolia, with more fragmentary remains found further afield in parts of China. Although many species have been...
(actually a stock imageStock imageStock image can mean the following:* A stock image in publishing is an image that is commercially available .* A stock image in finance is a stock valuation coefficient based on the "stock profile" , as it is really or as investors perceive it...
that has been used in older books) depicts the animal standing in a kangarooKangarooA kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae . In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, especially those of the genus Macropus, Red Kangaroo, Antilopine Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo and Western Grey Kangaroo. Kangaroos are endemic to the country...
-like mannerMannerManner is a line of confectionery from the Austrian conglomerate, Josef Manner & Comp AG. The corporation, founded in 1890, produces a wide assortment of confectionery products...
, instead with its spineSpine-Medicine:*Vertebral column, commonly known as the backbone or spine, so named for its spinous processes**Lumbar puncture, a colloquial term for which is a spinal tap**Spinal anaesthesia, a type of regional anaesthetic...
parallel to the groundGroundGround may refer to:* Earth's surface* Soil, a mixture of clay, sand and organic matter present on the surface of the Earth and serving as substrate for plant growth and micro-organisms development...
. Also, an old stock image of EryopsEryopsEryops meaning "drawn-out face" because most of its skull was in front of its eyes is a genus of extinct, semi-aquatic amphibian found primarily in the Lower Permian-aged Admiral Formation of Archer County, Texas, but fossils are also found in New Mexico and parts of the eastern United...
was used for the size comparison model for ProterogyrinusProterogyrinusProterogyrinus was an anthracosaur, a large group of reptilian reptiliomorphs. It is likely that the first reptiles, such as Petrolacosaurus, evolved from reptilomorphs...
, although Eryops had a more rounded skull than Proterogyrinus. Lastly, the silhouette of the Indricotherium is actually that of a calfCalfCalves are the young of domestic cattle. Calves are reared to become adult cattle, or are slaughtered for their meat, called veal.-Terminology:...
, as you can tell by its proportions.