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....
| Autores: | , , , |
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| Tipo de documento: | artigo |
| Estado: | Versão publicada |
| Data de publicação: | 2025 |
| País: | Brasil |
| Recursos: | Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) |
| Repositório: | Revista Terrae didatica (Online) |
| Idioma: | português |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:ojs.periodicos.sbu.unicamp.br:article/8678935 |
| Acesso em linha: | https://periodicos.sbu.unicamp.br/ojs/index.php/td/article/view/8678935 |
| Access Level: | Acceso aberto |
| Palavra-chave: | Sexual Dimorphism Morphology Ontogeny Dimorfismo Sexual Morfologia Ontogenia Morfología Ontogenía |
| Resumo: | 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. |
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