Little Dinosaur or Big Dinosaur? Investigating intraspecific variation in the earliest known non-avian dinosaurs

Introduction. Intraspecific variation refers to the morphological or behavioral differences observed among individuals of the same species, determined by various factors such as ontogenetic changes, sexual dimorphism, individual variation, and pathological conditions caused by diseases or injuries....

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Borsekowsky, Alana, Damke , Lísie Vitoria Soares, Silva, Maurício Garcia da, Da-Rosa, Átila Augusto Stock
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:Brasil
Institución:Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP)
Repositorio:Revista Terrae didatica (Online)
Idioma:portugués
OAI Identifier:oai:ojs.periodicos.sbu.unicamp.br:article/8678935
Acceso en línea:https://periodicos.sbu.unicamp.br/ojs/index.php/td/article/view/8678935
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Sexual Dimorphism
Morphology
Ontogeny
Dimorfismo Sexual
Morfologia
Ontogenia
Morfología
Ontogenía
Descripción
Sumario:Introduction. Intraspecific variation refers to the morphological or behavioral differences observed among individuals of the same species, determined by various factors such as ontogenetic changes, sexual dimorphism, individual variation, and pathological conditions caused by diseases or injuries. Objective. This study briefly presents the main factors that generate intraspecific variation in early dinosaurs, as well as the methods used to analyze it (e.g., investigation of external morphology, morphometrics, histology). Methodology. The investigation involved a systematic review of the specialized literature. Results. In the field of Paleontology, studies indicate that the failure to recognize this type of intraspecific variation may be a factor responsible for instability in phylogenetic inferences related to dinosaurs. Conclusion. It is emphasized that detailing intraspecific variation in dinosaurs requires an adequate number of individuals with variability in size, shape, and bone deposition. However, there is a promising outlook for this field of study, as different research groups have been making efforts toward the discovery of new materials.