Anatomy and relationships of the basal sauropodomorph dinosaur Plateosaurus from the Norian of Frick, Jura Mountains, Switzerland
Final Report Abstract
The project has implications for a central aspect of dinosaur biology, i.e. the evolution of a high metabolic rate, i.e., endothermy. Based on bone histology, Plateosaurus life history was highly plastic and it was hypothesized that this reflects an early stage in the evolution of endothermy. Crucial to this hypothesis is the question whether the Plateosaurus remains from Frick (Switzerland) and Trossingen (Germany) represent a single species because otherwise the observed variability in life history could be interspecific. The Frick Plateosaurus had never been studied in detail, but new material is constantly being discovered, so that this sample is best suited to address the issue. The work was planned to consist of preparation, detailed description, and comparison with Plateosaurus from other localities. While the preparation part was carried out successfully, the research only partially could be concluded.
Publications
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2010. Developmental palaeontology of Reptilia as revealed by histological studies. Seminars in Cell and Developmental Biology 21(3):462-470
Scheyer, T. M., N. Klein, and P. M. Sander
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2011. Sauropod bone histology and implications for sauropod biology. Pp. 276-302. In N. Klein, K. Remes, C. T. Gee, and P. M. Sander, eds. Biology of the Sauropod Dinosaurs. Understanding the Life of Giants. Indiana University Press, Bloomington
Sander, P. M., N. Klein, K. Stein, and O. Wings
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2011. Timescales and mechanisms of REE and Hf uptake in fossil bones. Geochemica et Cosmochemica Acta 75(1):82-105
Herwartz, D., T. Tütken, C. Münker, K. P. Jochum, B. Stoll, and P. M. Sander
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2013. Rare earth element systematics of fossil bone revealed by LA-ICPMS analysis. Geochemica et Cosmochemica Acta 103:161– 183
Herwartz, D., T. Tütken, K. P. Jochum, and P. M. Sander
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2014. Constraints on the lamina density of laminar bone architecture of large-bodied dinosaurs and mammals. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 59(2): 287–294
Hofmann, R., K. Stein, and P. M. Sander
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2014. The first juvenile specimens of Plateosaurus engelhardti from Frick, Switzerland: isolated neural arches and their implications for developmental plasticity in a basal sauropodomorph. PeerJ 2:e458, 1-40
Hofmann, R., and P. M. Sander
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2014. Unique bone histology in partial, large bone shafts from Aust Cliff (England, Upper Triassic): An early independent experiment in gigantism. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 59(3):607-615
Redelstorff, R., P. M. Sander, and P. M. Galton
