Tyrannosaurs – Meet the Family learning journey: Secondary

Dinosaurs are a group of land-dwelling reptiles with a set of physical features that distinguish them from all other reptiles. They include the extinct animals we know from fossils and the birds we see today. Reptiles are air-breathing vertebrate animals, lay eggs and have scales for skin. Investigate the main physical features of dinosaurs here.

What key feature distinguishes dinosaurs from other reptiles? Reptiles, such as crocodiles and lizards, have legs that sprawl out to the side. Their thigh bones are almost parallel to the ground. They walk and run with a side-to-side motion. Dinosaurs, on the other hand, stand with their legs positioned directly under their bodies. A hole in the hip socket permits this upright stance.

Fossils are the remains or traces of plants or animals preserved in rocks, soil, ice or amber. Fossilisation is the process of forming a fossil. Fossilisation of a whole plant or animal is very rare. Usually only the hard parts of plants such as seeds and wood and the bones and teeth of animals become fossilised.

Tyrannosaurs are a group of carnivorous theropod dinosaurs with four main features (mostly found in the jaw, skull and hips) that distinguish them from other dinosaurs. We call all the species in the superfamily Tyrannosauroidea ‘tyrannosauroids’ or simply tyrannosaurs. Tyrannosauroidea is divided into at least two families. Proceratosauridae contains several small, early tyrannosaurs, like Guanlong. Most of the larger, later tyrannosaurs were members of Tyrannosauridae, including the well-known Albertosaurus and Tyrannosaurus.

Tyrannosaurs – Meet the Family tells the story of the tyrannosaurs: their evolutionary history, the habitats in which they evolved and their distribution in location and time – in other words, what makes them such fascinating and special creatures. The exhibition is an innovative, multimedia experience showcasing the tyrannosaur family tree. There are over 10 life-sized dinosaur specimens on display, including one of the oldest tyrannosaurs, Guanlong wucaii. Showcasing an array of fossils and casts of tyrannosaur specimens, the exhibition is designed to provide a snapshot of dinosaur life and show how this group became the world’s top predators with their massive skulls, powerful jaws and bone-crunching teeth.

Some key highlights of the exhibition:

• An Australian-first immersive multimedia experience featuring large-scale, projections of dinosaurs running through Sydney streets.
• The tyrannosaur family tree.
• A chance to meet Guanlong wucaii – the newly discovered feathery relative of T. rex.
• Discover and learn how recent scientific findings confirm the links between dinosaurs and birds.
• Use of multi-touch technologies to compare their own arm strength to that of a mighty T. rex.
• Grasp the enormous scale of geological time in the context of human evolution.

Some of the species showcased in the exhibition include:

Albertosaurus; Alioramus; Appalachiosaurus; Bistahieversor; Daspletosaurus; Dilong; Dryptosaurus; Eotyrannus; Gorgosaurus; Guanlong; Juratyrant Kileskus; Nanotyrannus; Proceratosaurus; Raptorex; Sinotyrannus; Stokesosaurus; Tarbosaurus; Teratophoneus; Tyrannosaurus; Xiongguanlong; Yutyrannus; and Zhuchengtyrannus

What are tyrannosaurs?

Some features of other dinosaurs are shared with tyrannosaurs.

• Stood on two legs: All tyrannosaurs stood on two legs but so did many other dinosaurs.
• Tail: All tyrannosaurs had tails but so did every other dinosaur.
• Small arms: Most tyrannosaurs had small arms but so did many other dinosaurs.
• Ribs and torso: All tyrannosaurs had ribs but so did every other dinosaur.

Some features were specific to tyrannosaurs.

• Fused nasal bones in skull: Only tyrannosaurs had fused nasal bones in their skulls. This strengthened their snouts and gave them a stronger bite.
• Teeth: Only tyrannosaurs had D-shaped teeth at the front of their upper jaws. These were good for scraping and pulling, while other teeth could slice, tear and crush.
• Hip features: Only tyrannosaurs had a ridge of bone above the leg socket at the top of their hips, where their strong leg muscles attached.
• Hind limb: Tyrannosaurs had relatively long hind limbs compared to other theropods (meat-eating dinosaurs).

Some might think that all tyrannosaurs had two fingers like T-rex. However, early, more primitive tyrannosaurs had three fingers on each hand. It was only the advanced tyrannosaurs (those in the family Tyrannosauridae) that had two-fingered hands.

Through this learning journey, students will:

• learn some of the features that define dinosaurs and tyrannosaurs.
• learn how some animals, such as tyrannosaurs, are grouped or classified.
• understand what a family tree is relation to tyrannosaurs.

NSW syllabus outcomes: SC4-14LW; SC4-15LW; SC5-12ES; SC5-15LW; BIO11-10; BIO11-11; EES11-9; EES12-12.