Predatory dinosaurs such as T. rex did not boast huge teeth.
A new study has shaken up depictions of dinosaurs in film and popular culture. According to scientists, predatory species such as Tyrannosaurus rex would have had lizard-like scaly lips that covered and sealed their mouths, rather than showing their «ferocious-looking» teeth.
Study published in the journal Science
The results, published in the journal Science, reveal that dinosaur teeth were no larger, relative to skull size, than those of modern lizards, suggesting that they were not too large to cover with lips.
These dinosaurs had lips similar to those of lizards.
This contradicts the previous belief that theropod dinosaurs, such as velociraptor and birds, had lipless mouths with upper teeth hanging over the lower jaws. Instead, the research team believes that these dinosaurs had lips similar to those of lizards and their relative, the rare tuatara reptile found only in New Zealand.
More similar to lizards
The study was based on the examination of tooth structure, wear patterns, and jaw morphology of groups of lipped and unlipped reptiles. The scientists found that the anatomy and functionality of the theropods’ mouths more closely resembled that of lizards than crocodiles, involving lizard-like oral tissues, including scaly lips covering the teeth.
«Jurassic Park» showed us the T-Rex in the wrong way.
This discovery has significant implications for the popular depiction of dinosaurs, as many of the most iconic representations of these creatures, including the T-Rex from «Jurassic Park,» are incorrect.
Preference for new fierce-looking aesthetics
Although the depiction of lipless dinosaurs became popular in the 1980s, there was no specific study or discovery to support it. Instead, it probably reflected a preference for a new fierce-looking aesthetic rather than a shift in scientific thinking.
