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Eodromaeus is regarded as one of the earliest members of Theropoda, the group that includes the carnivorous dinosaurs, along with Eoraptor likely representing one of the most basal sauropodomorphs, the group that includes sauropods. Art by Todd Marshall.
Like other ornithomimids, Struthiomimus had a long neck with a small head and large eyes and a toothless jaw, along with long legs and long, three fingered arms. Restoration by @paleofan.
47. I haven’t done an ornithomimosaur in a while for #TheSummerOfTheropods. Here’s #Struthiomimus (“ostrich mimic”), an ornithomimid from the Late Cretaceous Period of North America. Cast from the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center.
The diet of Gigantoraptor is uncertain, but the preserved jaw for Gigantoraptor indicates that the theropod had a shearing bite, possibly for cutting through plants (and potentially meat).
38. For #TheSummerOfTheropods, here’s #Thanos, an abelisaurid that lived in Brazil during the Late Cretaceous Period. Reconstruction of Thanos based on PaleoJoe abelisaur skeletal drawings.
It’s speculated that the vessels provide oxygenated blood to special facial display features allowing Rugops to flush blood for the purpose of a vivid color display. Alternatively Rugops’ face may have had armored covering. Art by PaleoPastori
35. Introducing Arkansas’ State Dinosaur for #TheSummerOfTheropods, #Arkansasarus (“Arkansas lizard”) an ornithomimosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous. Art by @BrianEngh_Art
Even though Ceratosaurus was the underdog of the Late Jurassic, it was a very unique theropod both in behavior and in appearance. In fact you could say that Ceratosaurus in real life resembled a dragon. Art by Paleocolour.
In some instances, Ceratosaurus possibly hunted aquatic prey, as it has been proposed that the tail was so flexible that if it took to the water, the tail would have been a very powerful swimming aid, used in a similar fashion as a crocodile. Art by Jan Selzer