陕西是中国恐龙足迹化石研究的发源地,1929年杨钟健和德日进报道了发现于陕西神木的恐龙足迹化石,这是中国关于恐龙足迹的最早报道.近些年在铜川、神木、商洛、子洲、中鸡陆续又有恐龙足迹发现的报道,此外横县、子洲还发现有鱼类游泳迹,及蜥蜴类爬行动物爬迹.陕西仅在商洛地区发现过少量恐龙骨骼化石,因此恐龙足迹学作为恐龙研究的分支可以弥补恐龙骨骼化石不足,在恢复陕西中生代古地理、古环境以及研究恐龙种群分布方面有重要意义.陕西含恐龙足迹地层的地质时代研究薄弱且有争议,是下一步工作的重点.

在山东郯城县清泉寺附近发现一个以蜥脚类恐龙足迹为主的大型化石点.化石分布在4层连续层面上,足迹数量达200多个,但较清晰的主要分布在第2层面上,有71个,多呈椭圆形,其中最大的103 cm,最小的13 cm.尽管足迹总体较为杂乱,大小差别很大,风化剥蚀严重,但仍可识别出至少6条行迹.推测这6条形迹中的5条为蜥脚类,另一条为鸟脚类.中间的3条(Tw3～5)大致平行、行迹方向相似(NNE),足迹大小相似(长度平均值分别为75、74、71 cm),行迹较为紧密(行迹中线间距离最宽处约1.7 m),应为同时、并排行进的3个成年个体形成.特别令人瞩目的是,在行迹Tw4的中间,夹杂分布着至少12个小型椭圆形足迹,长轴直径13～21 cm,有的足迹踩在大足迹之上,推测至少为2个跟随父母行进的幼年个体的行迹.边缘的3务行迹(Tw1、Tw2和Tw6)方向相反,应为随后的恐龙所遗留.通过恐龙行迹特征的研究,提供了蜥脚类恐龙群居的新证据.传统认为,该足迹点的产出层位为早白垩世大盛群最顶部的孟疃组,但根据足迹化石的产出特征及组合特点,结合含恐龙足迹层位的区域对比,认为清泉寺地区产恐龙足迹的这套地层应属于大盛群田家楼组.

令人称奇的杨德氏神木足迹 陕西省神木县栏杆堡镇邱井沟村一带是典型的黄土高原地貌,山势陡峭,有很多雨水冲刷而成的冲沟.黄土下面出露有侏罗纪早期和中期的地层.岩层基本水平,主要是砂岩和泥岩互层(即二者间隔反复出现),层理清晰,层与层之间很容易剥离.岩石崩塌以后,上面堆积的黄土也随之滑落,形成很陡的溜坡.当地村民经常用这里的石板盖房、垒墙或做盖板儿等.

“河南大恐龙”就是巨型汝阳龙,属于蜥脚类恐龙.蜥脚类恐龙是四足行走的植食性动物,它们体型庞大,具有桶状的身体、长长的脖子和尾巴,以及粗壮的四肢,头与身躯比起来显得很小.蜥脚类是地球上生存过的最大的陆生脊椎动物,其中很多体长超过30米、体重近百吨.除了蜥脚类,地球上还没有体长超过20米的陆生动物呢!

中国是世界上发现恐龙化石最多的国家之一,发现历史长达110年.可是,北京地区的中生代地层并不缺乏,恐龙时代的植物化石也相当丰富,却一直没有恐龙化石的相关报道.随着北京周边的河北省赤城、滦平和承德等地恐龙骨骼及脚印化石的多次发现,人们越来越期待能在北京地区发现恐龙化石.终于,2012年第1期《科学通报》上报道了北京延庆地区发现恐龙足迹化石的消息,这是北京地区第一次有关恐龙化石的科学报道,填补了北京地区恐龙化石发现的空白.

Four Jurassic dinosaur tracksites have been reported from Chongqing Municipality. These include the Lower Jurassic Dazu site in the Zhenzhuchong Formation, which yields the oldest sauropod trackway known from China. Two of the remaining three sites (Nan’an, and Jinji sites), variously regarded as Middle and Upper Jurassic, are here described in detail for the first time and regarded as Upper Jurassic, both from the Shangshaximiao Formation. The fourth site (Chengyu), so far not accessible to the present authors, is not described. The Nan’an site, and type locality of Chongqingpus nananensis, has yielded a large sample of theropod tracks from the heart of Chongqing Municipality, at a site that has been lost in the urban development. Fortunately the sample is preserved at Chongqing Museum of Natural History and has been studied independently on two occasions to produce the results presented here. C. nananensis is a medium-sized track (mean track length ~29 cm) that may best be accommodated in ichngenus Kayentapus, and may in some cases preserve ill-defined hallux traces. Associated tracks are attributed to cf. Anomoepus. Other smaller ichnospecies from other localities outside Chongqing municipality, and from older middle Middle Jurassic formations, were previously assigned to ichnogenus Grallator. The Jinji site has yielded a single long theropod trackway of a robust form tentatively labeled cf. Therangospodus. This Jinji trackway also provides intermittent evidence of a hallux. Although theropod tracks are becoming increasingly well-known in the Jurassic sections of Chongqing Municipality, the Sichuan Basin and the broader region, determining their precise age and assigning them to valid ichnotaxa remain challenging. This is because Jurassic theropod tracks, despite being abundant, show a continuous range of morphological, and preservational variation that is difficult to define and differentiate in space and time.

和政动物群是指我国甘肃省和政地区发现的新生代古生物化石所代表的动物群.和政县位于兰州市南偏西约100千米处,行政上属于甘肃省临夏回族自治州.在地质学和古生物学上常常把发现在同一地方、同一时代的各种古生物化石组合统称为一个动物群,并经常以发现地或其代表动物命名.比如,著名的热河动物群就是发现于辽宁西部及华北地区白垩纪早期的一个古动物群,其中包括中华龙鸟等带羽毛的恐龙、孔子鸟等中生代鸟类以及哺乳动物和两栖动物等.后来,科学家在该地区的相同地层中还发现了大量植物化石,包括被人们称为第一朵花的“辽宁古果”等被子植物化石,于是科学家将热河动物群更名为热河生物群,即包括动物群和植物群的生物群.另外,三叠纪晚期的关岭生物群和中新世的山旺动物群等也是如此命名的.

夏威夷岛链的形成 人们常用坚如磐石来形容大地的稳定，用海枯石烂来形容海洋和山脉的永恒，但是，近来频频发生的地震使人们开始怀疑脚下的大地是否稳定,遮天蔽日的火山喷发也使人们疑惑雄伟的山脉是否永恒。实际上，随着地球科学的迅速发展，人们逐渐认识到，脚下的大地并不是稳固不变的，而是处在不断的运动之中。科学家提出了板块构造理论，来解释地球上的火山、地震的发生，诠释沧海桑田的变迁。

This paper describes a new fossil named Cathayornis chabuensis discovered in 2008,from Chabu,Otog Qi in Inner Mongolia,which also represents the second Cathayornis found in this area.The specimen preserves a complete sternum and furcula with some other clear skeleton impressions.A comparison of the new material with Eocathayornis walkeri,C.yandica and C.chabuensis shows that except the similarity between C.yandica and C.chabuensis,the later one displays some more advanced characteristics than E.walkeri and C.yandica.Besides,the functional morphological analysis related to flying skills supports that C.chabuensis is not only capable of flapping flight as C.yandica in the Early Cretaceous,but also possesses an advanced flying system indicating a stronger flying capability.

"把大象放进冰箱,总共需要几步?…"需要三步!第一步把冰箱门打开;第二步把大象放进去;第三步把冰箱门关上!"这个经赵本山和宋丹丹的小品演绎之后的笑话,瞬时笑遍了大江南北.但没有人认为真能把大象放进冰箱,这仅仅是一个笑话.笑话之所以可笑,是因为人们认为大象很大,而冰箱很小.可是,近期在北京自然博物馆举办的猛犸象展览中,设计人员却将这个笑话变成了现实!

人类历史中,总有些特殊的日子是值得永远记住的.1809年2月12日就是这样一个特殊的日子.这一天,地球上诞生了两位伟人,他们的丰功伟绩使世界发生了重大改变,因此,他们的头像分别出现在各自国家仍在流通的纸币上.他们中的一位是伟大的政治家,另一位是伟大的生物学家;一位废除了奴隶制、成为美国总统,另一位发现了生物间的进化关系、提出了生物进化理论.

Thousands of footprints have been documented in 8 localities since the first scientific discovery of the dinosaur footprints in the Lower Cretaceous of Chabu(Qab) district in Otog Qi, Ordos city, Inner Mongolia in 1981(Gao Shang-yu et al.,1981). The footprints are widely distributed on more than 500 square kilometers in Chabu area, including theropod, sauropod and bird footprints as well. We did detailed survey on the Chabu area in 2002 and 2004 and found many new localities of dinosaur and bird fooprints, among which a new type of theropod dinosaur footprints Chapus lockleyi ichnogen. et ichnosp. nov has been recognized.

The Jurassic strata in Jingyan of Sichuan containing the Mamenchinsaurus fauna are dealt with and divided in this paper. The Mamenchisaurus fossils contained there are compared in morphological features and stratigraphically with other types of the genus on by one. The comprehensive analysis show that the Mamenchisaurus fauna of Jingyan appeared in the early Late Jurassic and is primitive in morphology. The results of the morphological identification and stratigraphical study agree with each other. Their evolutionary processes in different apoches of the Late Jurassic also made clear.

根据发现于辽宁省西部下白垩统九佛堂组的一小型翼手龙类骨架, 建立一新种:谷氏中国翼龙Sinopterus gui sp. nov..它的吻端直而尖锐, 其下颌发育一明显的脊突.肱骨的三角脊发育, 其末端没有扩展, 呈四边形.翼掌骨的长度稍微短于飞行指第一指节的长度.股骨与胫骨之比率小, 乌喙骨短于肩胛骨, 联合背椎只有椎体相互愈合.虽然它与董氏中国翼龙相似, 但是存在明显区别, 比如个体较小, 而大多数背椎椎体相互愈合等.谷氏中国翼龙是目前在辽西及其周边地区所发现最小的没有牙齿的翼手龙类.