Iguanodontidae
Extinct family of dinosaurs / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Iguanodontidae is a family of iguanodontians belonging to Styracosterna, a derived clade within Ankylopollexia.
Iguanodontids | |
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Iguanodon bernissartensis mounted in modern quadrupedal posture, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Clade: | Dinosauria |
Clade: | †Ornithischia |
Clade: | †Neornithischia |
Clade: | †Ornithopoda |
Clade: | †Hadrosauriformes |
Family: | †Iguanodontidae Bonaparte, 1850 |
Subgroups | |
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Characterized by their elongated maxillae, they were herbivorous and typically large in size. This family exhibited locomotive dynamism; there exists evidence for both bipedalism and quadrupedalism within iguanodontid species, supporting the idea that individual organisms were capable of both locomoting exclusively with their hind limbs and locomoting quadrupedally.[2] Iguanodontids possess hoof-like second, third, and fourth digits, and in some cases, a specialized thumb spike and an opposable fifth digit.[3] Their skull construction allows for a strong chewing mechanism called a transverse power stroke.[4] This, paired with their bilateral dental occlusion, made them extremely effective as herbivores.[5] Members of Iguanodontidae are thought to have had a diet that consisted of both gymnosperms and angiosperms, the latter of which co-evolved with the iguanodontids in the Cretaceous period.[6]
There is no consensus on the phylogeny of the group. Iguanodontidae is most frequently characterized as paraphyletic with respect to Hadrosauridae,[7][8] although some researchers advocate for a monophyletic view of the family.[9][10]