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Tyrannosauroidea (meaning 'tyrant lizard forms') is a superfamily (or clade) of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs that includes the family Tyrannosauridae as well as more basal relatives. Tyrannosauroids lived on the Laurasian supercontinent beginning in the Jurassic Period. By the end of the Cretaceous Period, tyrannosauroids were the dominant large predators in the Northern Hemisphere, culminating in the gigantic ''Tyrannosaurus'' itself. Fossils of tyrannosauroids have been recovered on what are now the continents of North America, Europe, Asia, South America and Australia. Tyrannosauroids were bipedal carnivores, as were most theropods, and were characterized by numerous skeletal features, especially of the skull and pelvis. Early in their existence, tyrannosauroids were small predators with long, three-fingered forelimbs. Late Cretaceous genera became much larger, including some of the largest land-based predators ever to exist, but most of these later genera had proportionately small forelimbs with only two digits. Primitive feathers have been identified in fossils of two species, and may have been present in other tyrannosauroids as well. Prominent bony crests in a variety of shapes and sizes on the skulls of many tyrannosauroids may have served display functions. ==Description== Tyrannosauroids varied widely in size, although there was a general trend towards increasing size over time. Early tyrannosauroids were small animals. One specimen of ''Dilong'', almost fully grown, measured 1.6 meters (5.3 ft) in length, and a fully-grown ''Guanlong'' measured 3 meters (10 ft long). Teeth from lower Lower Cretaceous rocks (140 to 136 million years old) of Hyogo, Japan, appear to have come from an approximately long animal, possibly indicating an early size increase in the lineage. An immature ''Eotyrannus'' was over 4 meters (13 ft) in length, and a subadult ''Appalachiosaurus'' was estimated at more than 6 meters (20 ft) long,〔 indicating that both genera reached larger sizes. The Late Cretaceous tyrannosaurids ranged from the 9 meter (30 ft) ''Albertosaurus'' and ''Gorgosaurus'' to ''Tyrannosaurus'', which exceeded 12 meters (40 ft) in length and may have weighed more than 6400 kilograms (7 short tons).〔 A 2010 review of the literature concluded that tyrannosaurs were "small- to mid-sized" for their first 80 million years but were "some of the largest terrestrial carnivores to ever live" in their last 20 million years. Skulls of early tyrannosauroids were long, low and lightly constructed, similar to other coelurosaurs, while later forms had taller and more massive skulls. Despite the differences in form, certain skull features are found in all known tyrannosauroids. The premaxillary bone is very tall, blunting the front of the snout, a feature which evolved convergently in abelisaurids. The nasal bones are characteristically fused together, arched slightly upwards and often very roughly textured on their upper surface. The premaxillary teeth at the front of the upper jaw are shaped differently from the rest of the teeth, smaller in size and with a ''D''-shaped cross section. In the lower jaw, a prominent ridge on the surangular bone extends sideways from just below the jaw joint, except in the basal ''Guanlong''.〔〔〔 Tyrannosauroids had ''S''-shaped necks and long tails, as did most other theropods. Early genera had long forelimbs, about 60% the length of the hindlimb in ''Guanlong'', with the typical three digits of coelurosaurs.〔 The long forelimb persisted at least through the Early Cretaceous ''Eotyrannus'',〔 but is unknown in ''Appalachiosaurus''. Derived tyrannosaurids have forelimbs strongly reduced in size, the most extreme example being ''Tarbosaurus'' from Mongolia, where the humerus was only one-quarter the length of the femur.〔 The third digit of the forelimb was also reduced over time. This digit was unreduced in the basal ''Guanlong'',〔 while in ''Dilong'' it was slender than the other two digits.〔 ''Eotyrannus'' also had three functional digits on each hand.〔 Tyrannosaurids had only two, although the vestigial metacarpal of the third are preserved in some well-preserved specimens.〔 (only )〕 As in most coelurosaurs, the second digit of the hand is the largest, even when the third digit is not present. Characteristic features of the tyrannosauroid pelvis include a concave notch at the upper front end of the ilium, a sharply defined vertical ridge on the outside surface of the ilium, extending upwards from the acetabulum (hip socket), and a huge "boot" on the end of the pubis, more than half as long as the shaft of the pubis itself.〔 These features are found in all known tyrannosauroids, including basal members ''Guanlong''〔 and ''Dilong''.〔 The pubis is not known in ''Aviatyrannis'' or ''Stokesosaurus'' but both show typical tyrannosauroid characters in the ilium. The hindlimbs of all tyrannosauroids, like most theropods, had four toes, although the first toe (the hallux) did not contact the ground. Tyrannosauroid hindlimbs are longer relative to body size than almost any other theropods, and show proportions characteristic of fast-running animals, including elongated tibiae and metatarsals.〔 These proportions persist even in the largest adult ''Tyrannosaurus'', despite its probable inability to run. The third metatarsal of tyrannosaurids was pinched at the top between the second and fourth, forming a structure known as the arctometatarsus.〔 The arctometatarsus was also present in ''Appalachiosaurus''〔 but it is unclear whether it was found in ''Eotyrannus''〔 or ''Dryptosaurus''. This structure was shared by derived ornithomimids, troodontids and caenagnathids, but was not present in basal tyrannosauroids like ''Dilong'', indicating convergent evolution.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tyrannosauroidea」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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