The very first species of dinosaurs on earth. Dinosaurs

Life on Earth arose about 3000 million years ago. It began with tiny single-celled creatures. Then other forms of life began to appear. But dinosaurs populated the planet only 200-230 million years ago. Scientists to this day put forward various theories about how dinosaurs appeared, and it is not known which of them is correct.

Ancient world

Different types dinosaurs lived on earth different time: some species died out, others appeared. In general, the era of these creatures lasted more than 150 million years. If we compare the time of human existence with this period, then we live only 200,000 years. By official version, people and dinosaurs lived in different eras, but cave paintings, various archaeological finds, cast doubt on this version.

The very word "dinosaur" means a terrible or terrible lizard. These creatures were cold-blooded, needed a lot of sunlight. The official version of how dinosaurs came to be says that these creatures evolved from reptiles that lived on the planet before them. Dinosaur ancestors lived both on land and in water. They are called archosaurs - ancient lizards. They looked like amphibians, fed on plant foods. The ancient lizards had lungs, they laid their eggs on land. Gradually, the reptiles became larger, although the first dinosaurs were small, the size of a chicken. Some species have remained so throughout their existence. Other species became large, they increased in size, grew stronger. This is how dinosaurs appeared, which changed and improved over millions of years, populating the Earth.

dinosaur ancestors

Since dinosaurs appeared, where did they come from? It is generally accepted that all dinosaurs evolved from thecodonts. These creatures were of various sizes: small, large, medium. They walked on four legs, and some on two. It was from them that the first dinosaurs came.

A distinctive feature of thecodonts is that they had special structure skeleton: the place of articulation of the thigh and pelvis was such that this type of reptile could move on two legs.

world domination

After the dinosaurs appeared, they began to evolve. Gradually, these creatures took over the Earth, becoming the real masters of the land. Their success in survival lay in the fact that they had a unique evolutionary flexibility, as well as being able to eat a wide variety of foods. Also, dinosaurs could move on two legs, which allowed them to overcome great distances. As soon as new living conditions were formed, dinosaurs immediately adapted to them. Because of this feature, new species began to appear: herbivores, carnivores, omnivores. There were giants and there were small individuals. Some creatures grew wings and began to fly.

Secrets of the Dinosaur Era

Where the dinosaurs came from remains a mystery, as does their death. Another mystery - did these creatures live in the same era with people, or did they die out before the appearance of mankind? According to scientists, the eras of people and giants differed, although archaeological finds in the form of rock paintings indicate otherwise. Fairy tales and legends of the peoples of the world, which speak of ancient lizards and people, remain doubtful.

In the sixties of the twentieth century, burials of the pre-Indian period were found in Peru. The stones depicted people and dinosaurs that closely existed together. This discovery contradicts the official theory of evolution. On the found stones, a sauropod with spikes was depicted. The fact that this creature has spikes, scientists learned only in the nineties. In addition to the found drawings on the stones, the Bible speaks of the existence of people and dinosaurs in the same era, albeit indirectly. Scientists have also found human footprints next to dinosaur footprints. And all this remains a mystery, since according to the accepted version, people and dinosaurs lived with a difference of millions of years, but judging by the findings, this is not so.

Dinosaurs are someone's ancestors

If giants came from ancient reptiles, then who came from dinosaurs, what are the inhabitants of the planet?

Modern animals have some similarities with the ancient inhabitants of the Earth, but only a small part is considered their descendants. During jurassic Archeopteryx lived, which became the progenitor of birds. Scientists have found many similar features of birds with this type of dinosaur: the presence of scales, the structure of the limbs, the method of reproduction. Deinonychus, Compsognathus, and Struthiomimus are considered direct ancestors of birds, although according to appearance this cannot be said.

Ancestors of mammals

After the dinosaurs disappeared, mammals began to evolve. Initially they led night image life, settled, constantly developed. From them came modern mammals. For example, didelphodons once lived on Earth, which had bags. They look like modern possums. The ancient erythrotherium had the ability to climb trees. This creature is considered the ancestor of monkeys.

Types of dinosaurs

All known types of dinosaurs are divided into two large orders: ornithischians and lizards. These units have their own classifications. So, there are groups of aquatic, flying, herbivorous, carnivorous dinosaurs and some others. Where did dinosaurs come from and why were they divided into groups?

Since scientists began to find the remains of aquatic representatives, the question has arisen, how are dinosaurs of this group born? Those that move on land, fly, usually lay eggs, and aquatic reproduction occurs either by the creature coming to land to lay eggs, as modern turtles do, or there were other methods of reproduction.

Among the aquatic inhabitants, the most unusual are:

1. Pliosaurus. It is considered a predator, eating everything it saw. This creature had no enemies, which is why it attacked first.
2. Ichthyosaur. The first remains of these creatures were found in Russia, but most of the finds were in Germany. These lizards lived in packs, so they could easily repel enemies, and it was easier for them to get food.
3. Mosasaurus. The remains of these saurs have been found all over the planet, even in cold Antarctica. It is believed that monitor lizards originated from this species. Mosasaurus lived in water, moved like a snake, like conger eels.
4. Elasmosaurus. It is considered an unusual predator that could hunt from any distance. This dinosaur easily caught any prey, even the fastest.
5. Shonisaurus. Among aquatic reptiles, this creature is considered the largest. It fed on squid, mollusks, and some species of octopus.

These are not all representatives water world that inhabited the planet millions of years ago.

Flying species include Pterosaurus, Archeopteryx, Pterodactyl, Ornithocheirus. Some of them reached the size of a small plane.

The most popular predatory dinosaurs are tyrannosaurus, megalosaurus, spinosaurus, tarbosaurus, giganotosaurus, velociraptor.

Representatives of herbivores are stegosaurus, brachiosaurus, diplodocus, brontosaurus, triceratops, iguanodon.

Why extinct

Scientists still don't know exactly where the dinosaurs came from, but why they died out remains an even bigger mystery. This happened about 60 million years ago Cretaceous. Simultaneously with the giants, marine reptiles, flying representatives, some types of mollusks, and algae died out. According to scientists, about 20% of land vertebrates and about 15% marine life. The most common theory of this phenomenon is the fall of a meteorite in the Yucatan region of the Mexican peninsula.

There are other versions of the cause of the extinction of dinosaurs, including high volcanic activity. Approximately 6 million years ago there was a strong eruption with a giant outpouring of magma.

Other scientists suggest that the extinction was caused by the extermination of egg clutches, cubs first predatory mammals. The possibility of extinction due to a sharp drop in the level of the World Ocean, changes in magnetic field Earth.

Scientists from the University of Reading put forward a different theory, according to which dinosaurs were already dying out even before the meteorite fell. In their opinion, the extinction caused the appearance of other species. Scientists have estimated the extinction of several thousand species of dinosaurs. As a result of the work carried out, it was possible to find out that the rate of emergence of new species and the rate of disappearance of old ones are interrelated. And about 80 million years ago, part of the giant species died out, instead of them new creatures appeared that inhabit the planet.

The generally accepted story of the origin of life on Earth is outdated. Two scientists, Peter Ward and Joseph Kirschvink, offer a book that summarizes all the findings latest research. The authors show that many of our previous ideas about the history of the origin of life are incorrect. First, the development of life was not a slow, gradual process: cataclysms contributed to the formation of life more than all other forces combined. Secondly, the basis of life is carbon, but what other elements determined its evolution? Third, since Darwin we have been thinking in terms of the evolution of species. In fact, the evolution of ecosystems has taken place - from underwater volcanoes to rainforest who have shaped the world as we know it. Drawing on their years of experience in paleontology, biology, chemistry, astrobiology, Ward and Kirschvink tell a story of life on Earth that is so fantastic that it is difficult to imagine, and at the same time, so familiar that it is impossible to pass by.

Unlike the lungs of mammals, the folded lungs of reptiles and birds are one large alveolus. To increase the surface area for respiratory exchange, such lungs contain many leaf-like folds of tissue directed into the air sac, which is why such lungs are called folded. There are several options for the device of such a lung system. Some have several smaller sections, others have secondary air sacs that are separate from the lungs, but connected to them by tubes. As with alveolar lungs, air enters and exits in most folded lungs in the same general way, but there were exceptions, and recent discoveries have changed our understanding not only of the nature of early reptiles, but also of their fate during the Permian mass extinction.

Folded lungs are not elastic, and therefore do not automatically contract after some time after inspiration. Lung ventilation also differs from group to group. Lizards and snakes use the movement of their ribs to draw in air, but as we have seen, locomotion prevents the lizard from fully expanding its lung cavity, and therefore these animals cannot breathe while locomotion.

Various modifications of folded lungs create a greater variety of this type. respiratory system than in the case of alveolar lungs. For example, crocodiles have both folded lungs and a diaphragm, but snakes, lizards, and birds do not have this last organ. However, the diaphragm of crocodiles does not look like a similar organ of mammals: in crocodiles it consists of connective tissue, is attached to the liver, the movements of such a “liver” diaphragm are similar to the operation of a valve or pump, and the pelvic muscles help it. In mammals (and humans), the diaphragm presses on the liver in the same mode as in crocodiles, a kind of visceral pump is created, but the process of this mechanics is noticeably different.

Until recently, the folded lungs of crocodiles and alligators were considered relatively primitive and therefore ineffective. But then we had to reconsider our ideas about the respiratory capabilities of modern organisms, as well as form a completely new vision of the evolution of reptiles during the Permian mass extinction and further - during the Triassic.

The most inefficient way of breathing is in mammals, they (we) inhale and exhale through the same channel. The inefficiency is due to the collision of gas molecules at the end of exhalation and the beginning of inhalation. With any acceleration of breathing, a chaotic collision of the exhaled air on its way out with the air flow beginning to flow in occurs, and some of the exhaled air - with a higher concentration of CO 2 and a lower concentration of O 2 - again rushes into the lungs. It has long been believed that crocodiles experience the same difficulty. However, in 2010, it was discovered that crocodiles actually use a separate one-way air passage, similar to that of birds and dinosaurs. The new evidence also shows that the ancient Permian and Triassic reptile ancestors that eventually gave rise to modern birds and crocodiles, as well as extinct dinosaurs, had far more efficient respiratory organs than their therapsid contemporaries (mammalian progenitors). Those ancient ancestors modern reptiles and birds passed through the crucible of the Permian extinction thanks to two major advantages: they were cold-blooded and able to extract more oxygen from the air than mammals (than the reptiles that later gave birth to mammals). We mammals have been set up! We have never had much of a chance of winning the fight for survival during extinctions, let alone ecological dominance. Mesozoic mammals were not more rats, and they were really scared - there were only dinosaurs around!

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History of dinosaurs holds a lot of mysteries that we don't seem to be able to unravel. It is known that dinosaurs existed on the planet for more than 160 million years, between the Triassic and Cretaceous periods. From their bones, we can guess how they looked, what they ate, and what, in general, the life of these giants was like. But scientists today cannot come to a consensus on one of the most important questions in the history of dinosaurs, namely: how did they die? Perhaps the reason for the extinction of dinosaurs will be more understandable if we study their history better.

Origin of the word "dinosaur"

First, let's talk about what dinosaurs are. Translated from Greek the word "dinosaur"- means "terrible lizard." So today they call reptiles that lived on our planet in the Mesozoic era. The name was proposed by the British archaeologist Richard Owen, the founder of paleontology, in the 19th century. He wanted to emphasize the huge size of the discovered fossils in this way.

As you probably know, the whole history is conditionally divided into eras. Now Cenozoic era, and dinosaurs lived during the Mesozoic era, which was subdivided into the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. The history of dinosaurs began at the time Triassic period, approximately 225 million years ago.

Dinosaurs were not the first reptiles. Before them, the planet was dominated by lizards, more familiar to our eyes, whose paws were located on the sides. But after global warming, which occurred about 300 million years ago, new, larger species of reptiles began to arise. One of them was the archosaurus, which is the direct ancestor of all dinosaurs. Presumably, he was one of the first lizards, whose paws were located below the body.

Dinosaurs in the Triassic Period

The beginning of the Triassic period is characterized by the appearance a large number new species of reptiles, many of which moved on two hind legs. Archaeological evidence tells us that one of the oldest dinosaur species in history was the Staurikosaurus, which lived 230 million years ago in what is now Brazil. In addition to him, then there were cynodonts, oritoskhids, ethosaurs and many other species. They turned out to be more adapted to life than other animal species, and by the end of the Triassic period, giant reptiles began to dominate the world.

Jurassic Dinosaurs

Having become the masters of the Earth, dinosaurs settled all over the planet, populating mountains, swamps, forests and sea ​​depths. Soon winged lizards appeared, mastering the sky. This time in dinosaur history is characterized by great diversity among dinosaur species. The types of dinosaurs were so outwardly different that it is hard to believe in them. family ties. Among them were giants like diplodocus, and small lizards like compsognathus.

Dinosaurs in the Cretaceous

During the Cretaceous period, dinosaurs reached their peak, as the number of species increased significantly. There are many more herbivores, as many new plants have appeared on Earth. Naturally, the number of predators also increased. It was during the Cretaceous period that the famous tyrannosaurus rex. His fame is well deserved, because he was the largest predatory dinosaur: with a growth of up to 12 meters, his weight could be equal to eight tons, that is, he was much larger than the mass of an elephant. In addition to him, other famous species lived at this time, such as Triceratops and Orcheopteryx.

The mystery of the death of dinosaurs

At the end of the Cretaceous period, approximately 65 million years ago, the dinosaurs mysteriously perished. In addition to them, other lizards and some species of marine life died out. The event that led to this is still one of the most difficult riddles in dinosaur history. It is not even known whether this happened instantly or the extinction lasted hundreds of years. There are many hypotheses, but each of them has its own weak spots. According to one of them, the death of dinosaurs was the result of a meteorite fall. After that, ash and dust rose into the air, blocking the sun and thus causing the effect of "nuclear winter". But this hypothesis does not explain the death of marine life, which the cold snap should have touched last. Others say that a star exploded nearby, irradiating the Earth with deadly radiation. Still others argue that a cold snap occurred on earth, which killed the dinosaurs. Someone generally believes that dinosaurs were exterminated by ancient mammals, eating their eggs. In any case, they are no more. Perhaps science will someday be able to understand how this happened. After all, we began to study this issue only in the 19th century.

History of dinosaur science

People have repeatedly found dinosaur bones before, but mistook them for something else. For example, the ancient Greeks believed that these were the remains of soldiers who died during the siege of Troy. And with the advent of Christianity, the remains of reptiles were mistaken for the bones of the giants who died during the great flood.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Richard Owen laid the foundation for our knowledge of dinosaurs, identifying their main features and highlighting them as a separate subtype of animals. His followers over the centuries have been accumulating knowledge about these animals and discovering new varieties of them. Science does not stand still, so today we know much more about the life of these giants. In our time, there are about a thousand species of these creatures, and work in this area continues.

Dinosaur footprint in human culture

Although these majestic animals died a long time ago, and no one living today could see them, these giant reptiles left a huge mark on our culture. There are a huge number of books, movies and other works dedicated to dinosaurs. First, The Lost World by Conan Doyle, on the basis of which films were later created many times. Later there was "Jurassic Park", based on the work of Crichton, and many other tapes. Coloring books, toys and cartoons about giant lizards are produced for children.

Although they died millions of years ago, the history of dinosaurs and their mysterious extinction is still of great concern to the minds of not only scientists, but also ordinary people. Perhaps we are afraid to repeat their fate? After all, as they once did, we dominate the Earth. But it is likely that the extinction of the dinosaurs will forever remain one of the many mysteries in the history of our planet that mankind will not be able to solve.

This section of the site is entirely devoted to these giant animals. History of dinosaurs, as well as a description different eras and er are systematized and divided into separate lectures And lecture courses.

Even though I'm a girl, the topic of dinosaurs has always been interesting to me. It all started with children's cartoons in which these huge creatures. Sometimes they were good, sometimes evil, however, over the years my interest in these animals only grew. Recently, I had the unique opportunity to go to dinosaur museum in America (my summer rest). This place was distinguished by its scale, and the guide who conducted the tour told everything in the smallest detail.

Where did dinosaurs come from

As far as I know, dinosaurs were not the first inhabitants of our planet, because it originated more than three billion years ago. The first living beings on our planet were, of course, bacteria, molluscs And fish. Initially, they all lived in the water. Over time, as a result of evolution, some of the living species started to land. They had legs, lungs, but still had gills. The first amphibious creatures could not leave the water for a long time, since their scales had to constantly remain wet, but evolution has borne fruit, and the surface of the earth began to be populated by various lizards, which later became known as the word known to us "dinosaurs".

If you think that dinosaurs were originally huge, then most likely you are mistaken. According to scientists, initially dinosaurs were small And walked on two legs(many compare them to turkeys). But due to the rule wildlife"survival of the fittest", dinosaurs began increase in size and now, after several millennia, many of them were already the size of a 25-storey building and weighed more than 30 tons.

Dinosaurs: what they really were

Contrary to the popular belief that dinosaurs are extremely vicious and bloodthirsty animals, it turned out that this was not the case (which came as a surprise to me). Our guide told us that most dinosaurs were herbivorous reptiles, and, accordingly, they ate only plant foods, moved very slowly and were completely clumsy. No, of course not, and carnivorous dinosaurs roamed our land , but there were many less than herbivores(and they weren't all that big). As I understood from the whole excursion, horror stories about huge all-devouring dinosaurs are just fairy tales for little children.

Interesting Facts about dinosaurs:

1. Dinosaurs lived on earth about a hundred million years ago.
2. Most large dinosaur- Seismasaurus(according to scientists, this species lived on the territory).
3. dinosaur teeth could be as long as up to 20 centimeters.

How many mysteries are hidden in the ancient The World History. Dinosaurs are one of them. They reigned on Earth for more than 160 million years, from the Triassic period (about 225 million years ago) to the end of the Cretaceous (about 65 million years ago). Today, scientists can recreate the appearance of these animals, their lifestyle and habits, but many questions have not yet been answered. How did dinosaurs appear? Why did they disappear? Although these dinosaurs disappeared from the face of our planet almost 65 million years ago, the history of dinosaurs, their origin, life and sudden death is of undoubted interest to researchers. Let's look at the main stages in the development of reptiles.

origin of name

Dinosaurs are called the only group of reptiles. This name refers only to those of them who lived in the Mesozoic era. When translated from Greek, the term "dinosaur" means "terrifying" or "terrible lizard." This name was introduced by the British explorer Richard Owen in 1842. So he suggested calling the first discovered fossilized remains of ancient lizards to emphasize their unprecedented size and grandeur.

Beginning of the Age of Dinosaurs

As you know, the entire history of the planet is traditionally divided into successive eras. The time in which dinosaurs lived is usually attributed to the Mesozoic. It, in turn, includes three periods: Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous. Mesozoic era began about 225 million years ago, and ended about 70 million years ago. The history of dinosaurs begins during the first period - the Triassic. However most widespread they got in the chalk.

Long before the advent of dinosaurs, reptiles lived on the planet. They looked like the usual modern man lizards in that their paws were on the sides of the body. But when did it start global warming(300 million years ago), among them there was an evolutionary explosion. All groups of reptiles began to actively develop. This is how the archosaur appeared - it differed from its predecessors in that its paws were already located under the body. Presumably, the emergence of dinosaurs belongs to this chronological segment.

Triassic Dinosaurs

Already at the very beginning of the Triassic period, many new species of lizards appeared. It is believed that they already walked on two legs, because their front legs were shorter and much less developed than their hind legs. In this they differed from their predecessors. The history of the emergence of dinosaurs says that one of the first species was staurikosaurus. He lived about 230 million years ago in what is now Brazil.

In the early evolutionary stages, there were a large number of other reptiles: ethosaurs, cynodonts, ornithosuchids and others. Therefore, the dinosaurs had to endure a long rivalry before carving their niche and flourishing. It is generally accepted that they acquired a dominant position over all other inhabitants of the planet at the end of the Triassic period. This is associated with the large-scale extinction of animals that inhabited the Earth at that time.

Jurassic Dinosaurs

By the beginning of the Jurassic period, dinosaurs had become the sovereign masters of the planet. They settled over the entire surface of the Earth: in the mountains and plains, swamps and lakes. The history of dinosaurs of this period is marked by the emergence and spread of numerous new species. Examples include Allosaurus, Diplodocus, Stegosaurus.

Moreover, these lizards most radically differed from each other. So, they could be completely different sizes, have a different lifestyle. Some of the dinosaurs were predators, others were completely harmless herbivores. Interestingly, it was during the Jurassic period that the heyday of winged lizards - pterosaurs - fell. Majestic reptiles reigned not only on land and in the sky, but also in the depths of the sea.

Cretaceous Dinosaurs

During the Cretaceous period, the number and diversity of dinosaurs reached their maximum level. On the other hand, some scientists do not share the view of a sudden and significant increase in the number of reptiles. In their opinion, representatives of the Triassic and Jurassic periods are much less studied than the inhabitants of the Cretaceous.

At that time there were a lot of herbivorous reptiles. This is due to the appearance on the planet of a large number of new plant species. However, there were plenty of predators. It is to the Cretaceous period that the appearance of such a well-known species as the Tyrannosaurus Rex belongs. By the way, he turned out to be perhaps one of the most famous dinosaurs. The most massive of all carnivorous reptiles, it weighed up to eight tons, and its height could reach 12 meters. The Cretaceous period also includes the appearance of such known species like Iguanodon and Triceratops.

The mysterious death of dinosaurs

Dinosaurs disappeared approximately 65 million years ago. This event occurred at the very end of the Cretaceous period. Today there are many different theories about how and why this happened. At the same time, scientists still cannot come to a consensus.

In particular, the cause of their death, as well as whether it was slow or fast, raises questions. It is known for certain that it became one of the parts of the "great extinction" of that time. Then not only dinosaurs disappeared from the face of the Earth, but also other reptiles, as well as mollusks and some algae. According to one point of view, the "great extinction" was triggered by the fall of an asteroid.

After that, giant clouds of dust rose into the air, covering the sun for months, which caused the death of all life. Some scientists are of the opinion that a star exploded near the Earth, as a result of which the entire planet was covered with radiation that is deadly for its inhabitants. Another common view is that the dinosaurs died out as a result of a cold snap that began at the end of the Cretaceous. One way or another, the era of reptiles is over. And how this happened, science has yet to find out.

History of the study of dinosaurs

The history of dinosaurs began to interest people relatively recently. Their study began only at the beginning of the 19th century. This is largely due to the fact that people did not perceive the bones found in the Earth as dinosaur footprints. Interestingly, in antiquity it was believed that these were the remains of the heroes of the Trojan War.

In the Middle Ages and until the 19th century - the giants who died in the Flood. Only in 1824 were they first identified as the remains of giant lizards. In 1842, the British scientist Richard Owen, drawing attention to the main features these reptiles, brought them into a separate suborder and gave them the name "dinosaurs". Since then, there has been a constant accumulation of knowledge about them, new species have been discovered. The history of the life of dinosaurs was becoming more and more complete. Now the study of these reptiles continues with even greater zeal. Modern researchers have almost a thousand varieties of dinosaurs.

Dinosaurs in popular culture

World art has given people a huge number of books and films dedicated to these lizards. For example, they appear in Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World, which was subsequently filmed several times. On the basis of the work of Michael Crichton, the famous film "Jurassic Park" was shot. The history of dinosaurs for children is presented with the help of numerous animated films and colorful illustrated books. Of these, the child can get acquainted with these amazing and majestic animals.

Despite the fact that so much time has passed since the last dinosaurs disappeared from the surface of the Earth, the history of the origin of these majestic dinosaurs, their life and the mystery of their disappearance still excite the hearts and minds of people. However, most of their mysteries are likely to remain unanswered.