Dinosaur anatomy

thin-walled expanded portion of the alimentary tract used for the storage of food prior to digestion

weapon of some animals, hornlike growths excluding antlers and ossicones

thumb|250x250px|Gizzard of a chicken

thumb|This stylised bird skeleton highlights the furcula thumb|right|Wishbone of a chicken The ' (Latin for "little fork"; : furculae) or wishbone' is a forked bone found in most birds and some species of non-avian dinosaurs, and is either an interclavicle or formed by the fusion of the two clavicles. In birds, its primary function is in strengthening the thoracic skeleton to withstand the rigors of flight.

thumb|right|Closeup of a Heloderma|helodermatid's skin, revealing the osteoderms thumb|Armadillo skeleton, with shell made of osteoderms (displayed at the Museum of Osteology) Osteoderms are bony deposits forming scales, plates, or other structures based in the dermis. Osteoderms are found in many groups of extant and extinct reptiles and amphibians, including lizards, crocodilians, frogs, temnospondyls (extinct amphibians), various groups of dinosaurs (most notably ankylosaurs and stegosaurians), phytosaurs, aetosaurs, placodonts, and hupehsuchians (marine reptiles with possible ichthyosaur a

thumb|right|Pigeon skeleton with "plowshare"-type pygostyle (number 17) thumb|right|Confuciusornis sanctus with "rod"-type pygostyle and the two central tail feathers Pygostyle (; from Ancient Greek [] 'tail, rump' and [] 'pillar, column') is a skeletal condition in which the final few caudal vertebrae are fused into a single ossification, supporting the tail feathers and musculature. In modern birds, the rectrices attach to these. The pygostyle is the main component of the uropygium, a structure colloquially known as the '''bishop's nose, parson's nose, pope's nose, or sultan's nose'''. This

ring of bone supporting the eye

thumb|Pigeon skeleton. Number 8 indicates both left and right tarsometatarsus The tarsometatarsus (tarsus singular, tarsi plural) is a bone that is only found in the lower leg of birds and some non-avian dinosaurs. It is formed from the fusion of several bird bones found in other types of animals, and homologous to the mammalian tarsus (ankle bones) and metatarsal bones (foot). Despite this, the tarsometatarsus of flying types is often referred to as just the shank, tarsus or metatarsus.

thumb|right|250px|Pigeon skeleton; numbers 10 and 11 indicates the tibiotarsus The tibiotarsus is the large bone between the femur and the tarsometatarsus in the leg of a bird. It is the fusion of the proximal part of the tarsus with the tibia.

anatomical feature

thumb|Thagomizer on a mounted Stegosaurus tail A thagomizer () is the distinctive arrangement of spike-shaped osteoderms on the tails of some stegosaurian dinosaurs. These spikes are believed to have been a defensive measure against predators.

thumb|This stylised bird skeleton highlights the synsacrum thumb|left|Pelvis of a Gull; formed by the Synsacrum (fused vertebrae placed centrally) and the two innominate bones either side The synsacrum is a skeletal structure of birds and other dinosaurs, pterosaurs, as well as xenarthran mammals, in which the sacrum is extended by incorporation of additional fused or partially fused caudal or lumbar vertebrae. Some posterior thoracic vertebrae, the lumbar, sacral and a few anterior caudal vertebrae are fused to form a complex bone called synsacrum. In birds, inate bones are fused with the syn

opening in the skull behind the orbit in some animals

thumb|Tyrannosaurus foot showing the compressed arctometatarsalian condition of the middle [[metatarsal, compared to that of Allosaurus]] An arctometatarsalian organism is one in which the proximal part of the middle metatarsal is pinched between the surrounding metatarsals. The trait appears to be highly homoplastic, common in certain sorts of dinosaurs accustomed to running (among them the tyrannosauroids, ornithomimosaurs, and troodontids), to evenly transmit force to the metatarsals.

thumb|right|Scutes on an alligator foot A scute () or scutum (Latin: scutum; plural: scuta "shield") is a bony external plate or scale overlaid with horn, as on the shell of a turtle, the skin of crocodilians, and the feet of birds. The term is also used to describe the anterior portion of the mesothorax in insects as well as some arachnids (e.g., the family Ixodidae, the scale ticks).

relatively extensive margin seen on the back of the heads of some reptiles

anatomical feature in some tetrapods

distal portion of the fore limb of an animal

oval structure in spinal cord of birds containing glycogen

small dermal bone of eye socket found in few animals

bony mass

right|thumb|300px|Edmontosaurus [[skull with a visible predentary]] A predentary is an ossification situated on the front of the lower jaw, which extended the dentary (the main lower jaw bone). A predentary bone has evolved independently in two groups of teleost fish, Istiophoridae and Saurodontidae, and two dinosaur groups, ornithischians and ornithuromorph birds.

thumb|Skull and neck vertebrae of the abelisaurid [[theropod Carnotaurus with clearly visible epipophyses. In this genus, the epipophyses are greatly enlarged.]]

catalogue of anatomical features in Dinosauria put in alphabetical order