King Of The Crocodylians

Toward the end of the Age of Dinosaurs, during a time known as the Late Cretaceous, a new type of giant predator appeared along the southern coasts of North America. It was a huge species of crocodylian called Deinosuchus. Neither a crocodile nor an alligator, it was an ancestor of both modern groups; it reached weights of many tons and it had some features unique to its own species. Average-sized individuals were bigger than the carnivorous dinosaurs with which they co-existed; the largest specimens were the size of a T-rex. King of the Crocodylians, the biography of these giant beasts, tells the long history of their discovery and reports on new research about their makeup. The book also deals with the ancient life and geology of the coastal areas where Deinosuchus thrived, its competitors, and its prey, which probably included carnivorous dinosaurs. There is also detailed discussion of the methods used to determine the size of these giant animals, the dating of the fossils, the nature of their living environments, and how we know who ate whom 80 million years ago.

Biology and Evolution of Crocodylians is a comprehensive review of current knowledge about the world's largest and most famous living reptiles. Gordon Grigg's authoritative and accessible text and David Kirshner's stunning interpretive artwork and colour photographs combine expertly in this contemporary celebration of crocodiles, alligators, caimans and gharials. This book showcases the skills and capabilities that allow crocodylians to live how and where they do. It covers the biology and ecology of the extant species, conservation issues, crocodylian–human interaction and the evolutionary history of the group, and includes a vast amount of new information; 25 per cent of 1100 cited publications have appeared since 2007. Richly illustrated with more than 500 colour photographs and black and white illustrations, this book will be a benchmark reference work for crocodylian biologists, herpetologists and vertebrate biologists for years to come.

Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 1: Appearance Chapter 2: Behavior Chapter 3: Environment Conclusion Author Bio Bonus Dinosaur Content Introduction to Dinosaurs Facts about Dinosaurs Dinosaur Extinction Dinosaur Fossils Dinosaur Eggs Dinosaur Names Dinosaur Diet Feathered Dinosaurs Plant Eating Dinosaurs The Weirdest Dinosaurs The Deadliest Dinosaurs Flying Dinosaurs Kinds of Dinosaurs The Biggest Dinosaurs The Smallest Dinosaurs Author Bio Publisher Introduction Greetings young reader! Today we are going to take a step back in time and enter the age of the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs are an extinct species of animal that began to live on the Earth over 200 million years ago. “Extinct” means that they no longer exist. The dinosaurs are some of the most intriguing and awe-inspiring animals that have existed on our planet. The dinosaurs’ colossal size, strange characteristics, and mysterious disappearance make them inherently worthy of study and interest. Even more than these reasons, the study of dinosaurs itself is an incredible adventure which requires thought and imagination. The study of dinosaurs helps you to appreciate just how mysterious and amazing life and nature really is. Our planet supports not only us and the animals that live today, but it even supported creatures as gigantic and strange as the dinosaurs- just think how cool that is! I hope that you bring a spirit of openness and wonder to your study of the dinosaurs, and that you come to appreciate the mystery and value of the dinosaurs. The animal we are learning about today is called the Sarcosuchus. The Sarcosuchus is closely related to the dinosaurs, but it is not defined by scientists as a dinosaur. It is defined as a proto-crocodile. The Sarcosuchus is fun to learn about because it is one of the largest crocodiles to have ever lived. In this book we are going to learn about the appearance, behavior, and environment of the Sarcosuchus as well as about the dinosaurs it lived with. We know what we know about the dinosaurs from a variety of sources including fossils, biology, and other scientific disciplines. Fossils are the ancient remains of the dinosaurs, the most familiar being their bones. Biological science is the study of life in general, but many scientists compare the dinosaurs to modern day animals to support their theories. Before a talk about dinosaurs can take place it is important that we discuss the theory of evolution. Evolutionary theory supposes that all the animals we know and see today are the direct descendants of animals that existed millions of years ago. The dinosaurs and other creatures that existed millions of years ago either died out or gradually changed into different animals. For instance, birds are considered to be surviving dinosaurs because their dinosaur ancestors survived the dinosaur extinction event (we will discuss this later). The crocodiles are the modern descendants of the ancient Sarcosuchus.

Crocodilians are one of the most interesting, yet misunderstood predators on this planet. Much about what we know surrounding crocodilians is rooted in a history that is full of false information. Subjects such as enormous crocodilians, the history of alligators living in sewers, and their evolution are usually answered with faulty facts. In addition, there is still much we don’t understand about these animals, such as their taxonomy, biology, behavior, and more. Did you know crocodilians show signs of regeneration, what’s going on there? To find the truth in all the lies, exaggerations, or unknowns, one must either spend decades studying these animals or pay a hefty price buying complex literature. What We Get Wrong About Crocodilians fixes these problems. The book looks over myths, misconceptions, and mysteries surrounding these animals for an affordable price and is written for a more general audience to understand. The topics discussed range from the 5th century B.C.E. to present day. Some of the topics will be recognizable, some are generally unknown to many, and some may be shocking. Whether you are causally interested in these animals, or have spent decades studying them, What We Get Wrong About Crocodilians will present information rarely discussed and enlighten all.

Discusses prehistoric crocodiles, including the discovery of SuperCroc in the Sahara Desert, and the lifestyles, habitats, and conservation of modern crocodiles.

Modern crocodylians—crocodiles, alligators, caiman (Central and South America), and gharials (India)—have evolved over 250 million years from a fully terrestrial, bipedal ancestor. Along with birds, crocodylians are the only living members of Archosauria, the group including nonavian dinosaurs. Ruling Reptiles features contributions on a broad range of topics surrounding crocodylian evolution and biology including osteology, osteohistology, developmental biology, myology, odontology, functional morphology, allometry, body size estimation, taphonomy, parasitology, ecology, thermophysiology, and ichnology. It demonstrates how the wide variety of these studies can also provide crucial insights into dinosaurian biology and evolution. Featuring the latest findings and interpretations, Ruling Reptiles: Crocodylian Biology and Archosaur Paleobiology is an essential resource for zoologists, biologists, and paleontologists.

"There is much to love between this book’s covers. . . . There are many eureka moments in Life Sculpted—and some truly beautiful ones."—Eugenia Bone, Wall Street Journal Meet the menagerie of lifeforms that dig, crunch, bore, and otherwise reshape our planet. Did you know elephants dig ballroom-sized caves alongside volcanoes? Or that parrotfish chew coral reefs and poop sandy beaches? Or that our planet once hosted a five-ton dinosaur-crunching alligator cousin? In fact, almost since its fascinating start, life was boring. Billions of years ago bacteria, algae, and fungi began breaking down rocks in oceans, a role they still perform today. About a half-billion years ago, animal ancestors began drilling, scraping, gnawing, or breaking rocky seascapes. In turn, their descendants crunched through the materials of life itself—shells, wood, and bones. Today, such “bioeroders” continue to shape our planet—from the bacteria that devour our teeth to the mighty moon snail, always hunting for food, as evidenced by tiny snail-made boreholes in clams and other moon snails. There is no better guide to these lifeforms than Anthony J. Martin, a popular science author, paleontologist, and co-discoverer of the first known burrowing dinosaur. Following the crumbs of lichens, sponges, worms, clams, snails, octopi, barnacles, sea urchins, termites, beetles, fishes, dinosaurs, crocodilians, birds, elephants, and (of course) humans, Life Sculpted reveals how bioerosion expanded with the tree of life, becoming an essential part of how ecosystems function while reshaping the face of our planet. With vast knowledge and no small amount of whimsy, Martin uses paleontology, biology, and geology to reveal the awesome power of life’s chewing force. He provokes us to think deeply about the past and present of bioerosion, while also considering how knowledge of this history might aid us in mitigating and adapting to climate change in the future. Yes, Martin concedes, sometimes life can be hard—but life also makes everything less hard every day.

This overview of dinosaur discoveries in Mexico synthesizes current information about the geography and environment of the region during the Mesozoic when it was the western margin of the ancient continent of Pangea. The book summarizes research on various groups, including turtles, lepidosauromorphs, plesiosaurs, crocodyliforms, pterosaurs, and last but not least, dinosaurs. In addition, chapters focus on trackways and other trace fossils and on K/P boundary (the Chicxulub crater, beneath the Gulf of Mexico, has been hypothesized as the site of the boloid impact that killed off the dinosaurs). Dinosaurs and Other Reptiles from the Mesozoic of Mexico is an up-to-date, informative volume on an area that has not been comprehensively described until now.