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The Pachycephalosaur Thread
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16-03-2012 8:30pm#1It seems that pachycephalosaurs have very strange bony structures on their tails (previously misidentified as gastralia), that are not found in any other tetrapod (although they are similar to structures seen in some fish!). The function of this "tail-basket" remains unknown, but the paper suggests that it may have helped the pachycephalosaur to attain a tripodal stance (!) probably during fighting (!!).
I personally wonder now if these creatures would be able to stand in their tails alone, like kangaroos, and maybe use their feet as well as their head to fight? Or even, mostly the feet? Has anyone ever cared to study the feet of pachycephalosaurs?
Or there may be another explanation for the tail-basket... what do you think?
Very interesting stuff.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0030212
Oh, and just because it's cool and looks like a pachycephalosaur, here's a rhinoceros iguana:
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As if the reinforced neck vertebrae (and the enormously thick skull, of course) weren´t enough proof, here's a study about a specimen of Pachycephalosaurus that seems to have evidence of injury (followed by infection) that matches what one would expect if the animal fought by headbutting.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0036227
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Stegoceras apparently did have ornaments on its head dome as a juvenile that changed/dissappeared as it grew larger.
I guess it gives some credibility to the idea that Dracorex/Stygimoloch could possibly be juvenile Pachycephalosaurus.
http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/dinosaur/2012/08/how-domed-dinosaurs-grew-up/
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Cute little guy, could probably break your knees:
http://www.sci-news.com/paleontology/article01059.html0 -
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Pachycephalosaurus was born spikey
http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2016/03/30/paleontologists-uncover-the-tiniest-bonehead/
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Pachycephalosaurus is usually thought to have been a vegetarian but a new skull with well preserved teeth shows that those in the front of the jaws were sharp and serrated, practically the same as those of carnivorous theropods. The skull is from a juvenile (a "Dracorex" type), so it is not clear whether this was a trait of the juveniles only (in which case this would be another case of a dinosaur switching from carnivore/omnivore to vegetarian as it aged) or if it was a normal trait of the species/genus.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2018/10/news-vegetarian-dinosaur-ate-meat-pachycephalosaurus-paleontology/
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New study on cerapodan phylogeny finds heterodontosaurs to be basal pachycephalosaurs:
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08912963.2020.1793979
Not particularly surprising considering juvenile pachycephalosaurs seemingly had long, sharp teeth resembling the heterodontosaur's tusks- apparently these creatures made it all the way to the latest Cretaceous!
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NaBHCuxqhA
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