Category Archives: Biomechanics

Are Scansoriopterygids Oviraptorosaurs?

Posted on March 4, 2013 by

Scansoriopterygidae represent one of those bizarre groups of animals that seem to defy simplistic evaluation; there’s always something about them that says “You should compare with that that other group” whenever you look at a part. It doesn’t help that … Continue reading →

Posted in Morphometrics, Paleontology | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

Oviraptorid Jaw Muscles Described, Part 4

Posted on February 22, 2013 by

Wait, you thought we were done? This is a short post, following parts one, two and three. The above image attempts to describe lines of action for major jaw muscles and directions of force (arrows). Jaw protraction and retraction does … Continue reading →

Posted in Biomechanics, Morphometrics, Paleontology, Reconstruction | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Oviraptorid Jaw Muscles Described, Part 3

Posted on February 4, 2013 by

In the previous two posts (part 1 here, part 2 here), I discussed the shapes and sizes of the muscles and their origins and insertions of the oviraptorid skull. I deigned to provide the basis of the muscles mapped to … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Paleontology | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Oviraptorid Jaw Muscles Described, Part 2

Posted on January 28, 2013 by

In the last post, I discussed the one jaw to cranium muscle that isn’t a depressor that bears on its mechanics (m. depressor mandibular, or mDM) and the palatal and psuedotemporal groups of muscles (m. pterygoideus and m. psuedotemporalis, respectively). … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Biomechanics, Paleontology | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Oviraptorid Jaw Muscles Described, Part 1

Posted on January 15, 2013 by

Here follows a small, basic and minor depiction of the jaw muscles of an oviraptorid, largely specifically based on landmarks provided by the extant phylogenetic bracket (EPB) but also informed by examining for cranial landmarks in which these muscles typically … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biological Comparison, Biology, Biomechanics, Paleontology, Reconstruction | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Cheeky Commentary on Ornithischians

Posted on September 10, 2012 by

In my last post on the issue of recovering the probable structure of extra-oral tissues in dinosaurs, bracketed as they are between crocs and birds, but with lacertilians and other reptiles outside of that grouping, I suggested that one important … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Reconstruction | Tagged , , | 8 Comments

Oviraptorids and Cranial Morphometrics 2: Reloaded

Posted on July 14, 2012 by

Hot on the heels of my post on how cranial morphometric analyses of theropods end up excluding oviraptorids from them, a new paper ups the ante. (Of course, I do not mean that these papers actively exclude oviraptorids, but rather … Continue reading →

Posted in Morphometrics, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Science Reporting | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Oviraptorids and Cranial Morphometrics

Posted on July 12, 2012 by

I’ve been lax in feeding the biomechanics demon [n1] with tasty brain food, and extremely lax in talking about a paper that was published quite some time ago, but is still quite interesting. A new paper from the author (on … Continue reading →

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Making Things Look Funny — Again

Posted on October 23, 2011 by

Discussing body posture and its artistic expression has had me going back and revising my reconstructions. It has led to something of an exploration in the artistic presentation in what we see based on our expectations.

Posted in Art, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Reconstruction | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Walking Sledgehammers

Posted on October 19, 2011 by

Scott Persons and Phil Currie made waves late last year with a study that showed everyone’s reconstructions of dinosaur tail anatomy was wrong. We, they said, had incorrectly measured the mass of the m. caudofemoralis longus, the muscle that runs … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Reconstruction, Science Reporting | Tagged | 15 Comments