This early dietary diversity was fundamental
in the rise of dinosaurs to ecological dominance. >https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abq5201
Open access article:
Dental form and function in the early feeding diversification of
dinosaurs
Abstract
Dinosaurs evolved a remarkable diversity of dietary adaptations
throughout the Mesozoic, but the origins of different feeding modes
are uncertain, especially the multiple origins of herbivory. Feeding
habits of early dinosaurs have mostly been inferred from qualitative comparisons of dental morphology with extant analogs. Here, we use biomechanical and morphometric methods to investigate the dental morphofunctional diversity of early dinosaurs in comparison with
extant squamates and crocodylians and predict their diets using
machine learning classification models. Early saurischians/theropods
are consistently classified as carnivores. Sauropodomorphs underwent a dietary shift from faunivory to herbivory, experimenting with diverse
diets during the Triassic and Early Jurassic, and early ornithischians
were likely omnivores. Obligate herbivory was a late evolutionary
innovation in both clades. Carnivory is the most plausible ancestral
diet of dinosaurs, but omnivory is equally likely under certain
phylogenetic scenarios. This early dietary diversity was fundamental
in the rise of dinosaurs to ecological dominance. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abq5201
On 12/17/22 5:01 AM, Pandora wrote:
Open access article:
Dental form and function in the early feeding diversification of
dinosaurs
Abstract
Dinosaurs evolved a remarkable diversity of dietary adaptations
throughout the Mesozoic, but the origins of different feeding modes
are uncertain, especially the multiple origins of herbivory. Feeding
habits of early dinosaurs have mostly been inferred from qualitative
comparisons of dental morphology with extant analogs. Here, we use
biomechanical and morphometric methods to investigate the dental
morphofunctional diversity of early dinosaurs in comparison with
extant squamates and crocodylians and predict their diets using
machine learning classification models. Early saurischians/theropods
are consistently classified as carnivores. Sauropodomorphs underwent a
dietary shift from faunivory to herbivory, experimenting with diverse
diets during the Triassic and Early Jurassic, and early ornithischians
were likely omnivores. Obligate herbivory was a late evolutionary
innovation in both clades. Carnivory is the most plausible ancestral
diet of dinosaurs, but omnivory is equally likely under certain
phylogenetic scenarios. This early dietary diversity was fundamental
in the rise of dinosaurs to ecological dominance.
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.abq5201
So basic questions. In modern herbivorous mammals there
are fore gut fermenters that break down cellulose through
the use of bacteria prior to the bacteria being attacked by
hydrochloric acid in a regular stomach or an abomasum. Some
of them use a rumen and some a pseudorumen.
There are also hind gut fermenters that break down cellulose
using bacteria in the intestine after passing through the
acid stomach.
Modern birds have no teeth but there are fossil teeth for
herbivorous dinosaurs.
Many modern birds have a crop - a modified esophagus for
storing food, a proventriculus - an acid stomach, and
then a gizzard - a grinding organ often with gizzard
stones after the acid stomach.
Were there a lot of dinosaurs that were fore gut fermenters,
breaking down cellulose in the crop prior to something like
a proventriculus, or were most hind gut fermenters, generally
using gizzards for fine grinding with cellulose being broken
down likely by bacteria in the intestine or cecum?
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