Observing the Cheek Bones of Panoplosaurus mirus

This is the case for Panoplosaurus mirus, in which not only do the dental rows seem strongly inset (they are not) but lateral expansion of the nasopharyngeal sinuses (forming extreme loops; Witmer & Ridgely, 2008) causes the lateral margins of the skull to expand beyond the lateral extend of the mandible at the same part. This has led to a subjective impression that there was a distinctive, broad cheeky overhang. The main culprit is the presence of thin, vertically oriented bones in the “buccal cavity” of the skull, in this species and in others. If there was no “cheek,” what is this thing doing in the skull? What is it attached to? And precisely, what is its relation to extra-oral tissues surrounding the jaw? Interestingly, these ossicles support a full buccal tissue that expands from the skull to the mandible. This homologue tissue exists in mammals and a few (very few) birds, namely parrots (which have a unique muscle, m.pseudomasseter).

Archaeopteryx - Bird or Reptile?

Archaeopteryx has been claimed to have more in common with reptilian dinosaurs than it does with modern birds, thus being depicted in some drawings with a reptilian face. These are some of its features, according to scientists: jaws with sharp teeth, three fingers with claws, a long bony tail, hyper-extensible second toes (“killing claw”), and feathers.

From left to right, top to bottom: Sulcavis geeorum, a small bird with its toothed beak; Pelagornis chilensis with a tooth-like beak; Hoatzin (Stinkbird) chick of the Amazon, with its clawed wings; Archaeopteryx; skeletal structure of a monkey showing a bony tail; Volaticotherium, a flying mammal pre-dating the Archaeopteryx; the killing claws of a predatory falcon.

We see that today's birds mostly lack teeth, but tooth-like serrations can be found in geese and other bird species. However, we see that there are other ancient birds (i.e. Sulcavis geeorum and Pelagornis chilensis) that also had teeth which were designed perfectly for their diet. Does that make them reptiles?

Regarding claws on wings, we can find one type of bird today, the Hoatzin (Stinkbird), in which the young chicks also have claws, being able to grasp onto branches before learning how to fly. The Jeholornis is another ancient bird that had claws on its wings, and also a long-boned tail. Does this make them reptiles? Killing claws are used by many carnivorous predatory birds, but that doesn't make them reptilian either. There are also many mammals which have long bony tails. One such newer fossil remains of a furry squirrel-sized mammal (Volaticotherium) dug in Inner Mongolia (China) suggests that mammals were gliding in ancient forests at least 125 millions ago (130-165 millions years ago). In that case, it would surpass the earliest known flying bird, Archaeopteryx, dated about 150 million years ago [Source].

Jeholornis is a long-tailed Avialian from China. It was 2.5 ft (70cm) and weighed about 20 lbs. One of the most completely known long-tailed Avialian birds. Known to eat both seeds and fish.

Finally, putting aside the controversy of feather forgeries, the feathers on the Archaeopteryx seem to hint that it was a bird. Can you think of any reptiles today that have feathers? Interestingly, we can find Pangolins that are mammals with scale-like structures. We can also find two mammals, such as Platypus and Echidna that lay eggs. Does this make them reptiles? Are they strange, or simply just designed for their environment? With all these varying features, we must consider that perhaps these diverse animals are designed according to their environment. And we must re-question the theory that birds emerged from reptiles--perhaps it was the other way around, or simply just a figment of the imagination, sparked by early religious evolutionists with their Darwinian beliefs.

Triceratops - Mammal or Reptile?

We must rethink what we think we know: mammal or reptile? Researchers think the Triceratops had forelimbs with a more mammal-like posture resembling that shown in the top images, versus the more reptile-like forelimb posture shown below. The three-horned animal, Triceratops, may have had a more upright, athletic posture than thought, new anatomical evidence suggests. Researchers say Triceratops' forelimbs may have resembled those of a large mammal, kept closer to its body than the forelimbs of reptiles and amphibians that typically have a lower, more sprawling posture.

The key is in the elbow, according to the researchers, Shin-ichi Fujiwara from the University of Tokyo and John Hutchinson from the Royal Veterinary College of the University of London. [LiveScience]

Furthermore, a study with extant mammals refutes the hypothesis on which the assumption that dinosaurs were reptilian ectotherms. This study analyzes the lines of arrested growth (LAG) in the bones of around a hundred ruminants, representative of the specific and ecological diversity of that group of mammals. The results show that the presence of these lines is not an indicator of an ectothermic physiology (does not generate internal heat), as had previously been thought, since all warm-blooded mammals have them. The study therefore dismantles the key argument of the hypothesis that dinosaurs could have been cold-blooded reptiles. More can be read about this here.