Pelvic and hindlimb musculature of Tyrannosaurus rex (Dinosauria: Theropoda)

In this article, we develop a new reconstruction of the pelvic and hindlimb muscles of the large theropod dinosaur Tyrannosaurus rex. Our new reconstruction relies primarily on direct examination of both extant and fossil turtles, lepidosaurs, and archosaurs. These observations are placed into a phylogenetic context and data from extant taxa are used to constrain inferences concerning the soft‐tissue structures in T. rex. Using this extant phylogenetic bracket, we are able to offer well‐supported inferences concerning most of the hindlimb musculature in this taxon. We also refrain from making any inferences for certain muscles where the resulting optimizations are ambiguous. This reconstruction differs from several previous attempts and we evaluate these discrepancies. In addition to providing a new and more detailed understanding of the hindlimb morphology of T. rex—the largest known terrestrial biped—this reconstruction also helps to clarify the sequence of character‐state change along the line to extant birds. J. Morphol. 253:207–228, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

[1]  C. Mcgowan.  The hind limb musculature of the brown kiwi, Apteryx australis mantelli , 1979, Journal of morphology.

[2]  Fernando E. Novas.  La evolución de los Dinosaurios carnívoros , 1992 .

[3]  Michael Williams,et al.  Nanotyrannus, a new genus of pygmy tyrannosaur, from the Latest Cretaceous of Montana , 1988 .

[4]  D. Maddison,et al.  MacClade 4: analysis of phy-logeny and character evolution , 2003 .

[5]  M. Carrano.  Homoplasy and the evolution of dinosaur locomotion , 2000, Paleobiology.

[6]  C. Mcgowan.  The wing musculature of the Brown kiwi Apteryx australis mantelli and its bearing on ratite affinities , 1982 .

[7]  A. Romer.  THE PELVIC MUSCULATURE OF ORNITHISCHIAN DINOSAURS , 1927 .

[8]  Kathryn W. Tosney,et al.  Spatial and temporal patterns of muscle cleavage in the chick thigh and their value as criteria for homology. , 1991, The American journal of anatomy.

[9]  A. Romer.  The development of the thigh musculature of the chick twelve figures , 1927 .

[10]  H. Bryant,et al.  Observations and comments on the reliability of muscle reconstruction in fossil vertebrates , 1990, Journal of morphology.

[11]  D. Russell.  Ostrich Dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous of Western Canada , 1972 .

[12]  John R. Hutchinson,et al.  Adductors, abductors, and the evolution of archosaur locomotion , 2000, Paleobiology.

[13]  Sheila J. Jones,et al.  The organization and gross mineralization patterns of the collagen fibres in sharpey fibre bone , 1974, Cell and Tissue Research.

[14]  T. Rowe.  A new species of the theropod dinosaur Syntarsus from the Early Jurassic Kayenta Formation of Arizona , 1989 .

[15]  Unwin.  Pterosaurs: back to the traditional model? , 1999, Trends in ecology & evolution.

[16]  Harold N. Bryant,et al.  The occurrence of clavicles within Dinosauria: Implications for the homology of the avian furcula and the utility of negative evidence , 1993 .

[17]  Stephen M. Gatesy,et al.  Caudofemoral musculature and the evolution of theropod locomotion , 1990, Paleobiology.

[18]  Kevin Padian,et al.  The origin and early evolution of birds , 1998 .

[19]  E J Evans,et al.  The histology of tendon attachments to bone in man. , 1986, Journal of anatomy.

[20]  M. C. Mckitrick.  On Homology and the Ontological Relationship of Parts , 1994 .

[21]  D. Dilkes,et al.  Appendicular myology of the hadrosaurian dinosaur Maiasaura peeblesorum from the Late Cretaceous (Campanian) of Montana , 1999, Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh: Earth Sciences.

[22]  A. Romer.  The development of tetrapod limb musculature — The thigh of Lacerta , 1942 .

[23]  A. Biewener,et al.  Experimental alteration of limb posture in the chicken (Gallus gallus) and its bearing on the use of birds as analogs for dinosaur locomotion , 1999, Journal of morphology.

[24]  T. Rowe.  Homology and evolution of the deep dorsal thigh musculature in birds and other reptilia , 1986, Journal of morphology.

[25]  M. Carrano,et al.  Locomotion in non-avian dinosaurs: integrating data from hindlimb kinematics, in vivo strains, and bone morphology , 1998, Paleobiology.

[26]  H. Gadow.  Zur vergleichenden Anatomie : der Muskulatur des Beckens und der hinteren Gliedmasse der Ratiten / von Hans Gadow. , 1880 .

[27]  John R. Hutchinson,et al.  The evolution of femoral osteology and soft tissues on the line to extant birds (Neornithes) , 2001 .