Both these groups seem to have been more or less biped, rearing
themselves on large and powerful hind limbs, and (in some cases, at
least) probably using their small front limbs to hold or grasp their
food. The first group was carnivorous, the second herbivorous; and, as
the reptiles of the first group had four or five toes on each foot,
they are known as the Theropods (or "beast-footed" ), while those of
the second order, which had three toes, are called the Ornithopods (or
"bird-footed"). Each of them then gave birth to an order of quadrupeds.
In the spreading waters and rich swamps of the later Triassic some of
the Theropods were attracted to return to an amphibious life, and became
the vast, sprawling, ponderous Sauropods, the giants in a world of
giants. On the other hand, a branch of the vegetarian Ornithopods
developed heavy armour, for defence against the carnivores, and
became, under the burden of its weight, the quadrupedal and monstrous
Stegosauria and Ceratopsia. Taking this instructive general view of the
spread of the Deinosaurs as the best interpretation of the material we
have, we may now glance at each of the orders in succession.
The Theropods varied considerably in size and agility. The Compsognathus
was a small, active, rabbit-like creature, standing about two feet high
on its hind limbs, while the Megalosaurs stretched to a length of
thirty feet, and had huge jaws armed with rows of formidable teeth. The
Ceratosaur, a seventeen-foot-long reptile, had hollow bones, and we find
this combination of lightness and strength in several members of the
group. In many respects the group points more or less significantly
toward the birds. The brain is relatively large, the neck long, and
the fore limbs might be used for grasping, but had apparently ceased to
serve as legs. Many of the Theropods were evidently leaping reptiles,
like colossal kangaroos, twenty or more feet in length when they were
erect. It is the general belief that the bird began its career as a
leaping reptile, and the feathers, or expanded scales, on the front
limbs helped at first to increase the leap. Some recent authorities
hold, however, that the ancestor of the bird was an arboreal reptile.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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