Protoceratops andrewsi

Pronunciation: Pro-toe-sara-tops an-drews-eye
Meaning: Andrew’s before-horned-face
Period: Late Cretaceous
Length: 2m
Weight: 50Kg
Fossil discoveries: Mongolia, China
Diet: Plants

Protoceratops is commonly known as the ancient arch-enemy of Velociraptor. In one particular fossil discovery, the skeletons of Velociraptor and a Protoceratops are entangled in a deathly embrace; the former has a toe-claw stuck into the latter’s neck, and an arm caught in the parrot-like beak. (see below)
Protoceratops was the largest of the horn-faced dinosaurs to be found in Asia, and is often seen as an intermediate form between the smaller Bagaceratops and the larger, North American Ceratopsoideans.

Coelophysis bauri

Pronunciation: See-low-fie-sis bow-er-eye
Meaning: hollow form
Period: Late Triassic
Length: 3 m
Weight: 35 kg
Fossil discoveries: Southwestern USA
Diet: small animals

Not only was Coelophysis one of the first dinosaurs to walk the earth, but also it was the first dinosaur to travel into outer-space; in 1998 a fossil skull was taken aboard the space shuttle Endeavor and transferred to Mir space station where it circled the globe for over 6 million kilometers before returning to earth.

Coelophysis was likely an agile, fast predator of small animals and larger insects. Like many theropods, and most birds today, it had pneumatic (hollow) bones, making it lightweight. It is also one of the best known dinosaurs, having had thousands of fossils recovered from one site in New Mexico representing hundreds of individual dinosaurs. Some of these specimens contained the bones of smaller, immature Coelophysis in their abdominal cavities, suggesting that cannibalism was not uncommon.

What is Paleontology?

Paleontology is the study of ancient life on Earth, as reflected in the fossil record. Fossils are more than just dinosaur bones. They may also be remains or traces of other organisms including other animals, plants, or even bacteria. A fossil may be defined as any trace of a past life form preserved in some way.

Paleontologists are scientists who study these fossils to learn about the history of our earth. They often find these fossils by digging into layers of sedimentary rock. A paleontologist then uses scientific methods to find out more about the organism that made the fossil.

Paleontologists use many tools. When they are looking for fossils, they use picks, chisels, drills, shovels, and brushes. They may use a magnifying glass to get a closer look at their fossils. They also use computers to analyze their findings and compare what they have learned to information already known.

Paleontology can be broken down into many specialties, including:

Vertebrate Paleontology - the study of fossils of animals with backbones
Invertebrate Paleontology - the study of fossils of animals without backbones
Micropaleontology - the study of fossils of single-celled organisms
Paleobotany - the study of plant fossils
Taphonomy - the study of how fossils form and are preserved
Biostratigraphy - the study of the vertical distribution of fossils in rocks
Paleoecology - the study of ancient ecosystems and how they developed
Palynology - the study of microfossils, especially pollens and spores.

The study of paleontology often overlaps with other fields of science like, geology, botany, biology, zoology, and ecology.