| Tyrannosauridae Temporal range: Late Cretaceous | |
|---|---|
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| Tyrannosaurus rex | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Sauropsida |
| Superorder: | Dinosauria |
| Order: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | Theropoda |
| Subsection: | Tyrannoraptora |
| Superfamily: | †Tyrannosauroidea |
| Family: | †Tyrannosauridae Osborn, 1906 |
| Type species | |
| †Tyrannosaurus rex Osborn, 1905 | |
| Subgroups | |
Tyrannosauridae (or tyrannosaurids, meaning "tyrant lizards") was a family of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaurs which comprises two subfamilies containing up to six genera, including the eponymous Tyrannosaurus. The exact number of genera is controversial, with some experts recognizing as few as three. All of these animals lived near the end of the Cretaceous Period and their fossils have been found only in North America and Asia. Although descended from smaller ancestors, tyrannosaurids were almost always the largest predators in their respective ecosystems, putting them at the apex of the food chain. The largest species was Tyrannosaurus rex, the largest known land predator, which measured up to 12.4 metres in length[citation needed] and up to 11 tons in weight. Tyrannosaurids were bipedal carnivores with massive skulls filled with large teeth. Despite their large size, their legs were long and proportioned for fast movement. In contrast, their arms were very small, bearing only two functional digits. Unlike most other groups of dinosaurs, very complete remains have been discovered for most known tyrannosaurids. This has allowed a variety of research into their biology. Scientific studies have focused on their ontogeny, biomechanics and ecology, among other subjects. Soft tissue, both fossilized and intact, has been reported from one specimen of Tyrannosaurus rex. There are track ways showing evidence of pack behaivor, which has been suspected by some paleontologists such as Phillip Currie, but there was no fossil evidence until recently.
Phylogeny[]
The phylogeny is from the analysis by Stephen L. Brusatte & Thomas D. Carr (2016).
| Tyrannosauridae |
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