Zephyrosaurus
Name:
Zephyrosaurus
(Westward wind lizard).
Phonetic: Zef-e-ir-sore-us.
Named By: Hans-Dieter Sues - 1980.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Dinosuria,
Ornithischia, Ornithopoda.
Species: Z. schaffi (type).
Diet: Herbivore.
Size: 1.8 meters long.
Known locations: USA, Montana, Carbon County-
Cloverly Formation. Possibly elsewhere in the US.
Time period: Albian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Based upon a partial skull
and post cranial skeleton, including vertebrae and ribs. Further
individuals have now been identified and described.
Zephyrosaurus is considered to be closely related to Orodromeus and possibly also Oryctodromeus based upon the boss-like growths of the cheeks. Zephyrosaurus like these dinosaurs has been speculated to have possibly been a burrowing dinosaur, digging out retreats to which it could hide from the eyes of predators of the time such as Deinonychus. Zephyrosaurus would have been a relatively small ornithopod dinosaur that would have browsed upon low growing vegetation for food. When out foraging Zephyrosaurus would have relied upon speed and agility to try and stay out of the mouths of predators.
Further reading
- Anatomy and relationships of a new hypsilophodontid dinosaur from
the Lower Cretaceous of North America, Hans-Dieter Sues - 1980.
- New material of Zephyrosaurus schaffi
(Dinosauria:Ornithischia)
from the Cloverly Formation (Aptian-Albian) of Montana, Martha
Kutter - 2003.
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