How is a Parasaurolophus like an Allosaurus?

Question

Parasaurolophus is a plant eatter and the Allosaurus is a meat eatter. Both are 30 to 36 feet long. Any thoughts? This is my sons homework assignment. Thats all his books says.
Please help

Answer 1

*Yawns and thinks back to his degree*


I'd just be repeating what others had said most likely... but here goes.

They're both bipedal, if they so choose to be. O'course while the allosaur was bipedal most of the time and likely had very little to do with its fore-limbs at all, the parasaurolophus would often have moved about quadropedally and got up on its hind legs to get a better view around or to display. It could do both, pretty much.

There are far more differences between the two than there are similarities:
Allosaurs were carnivorous; Parasaurolophus herbivorous.
Allosaurs lived in the late Jurassic; Parasaurolophus the late Cretaceous.
Allosaurs were of order Saurischia (lizard-hipped); Parasaurolophus of order Ornithischia (bird-hipped... ironically).
Allosaurs probably hunted either individually or in small groups at best (its difficult to say), whereas Parasaurolophus were probably herders.


All in all, the two have very little to do with each other.... besides perhaps the fact that they may have been similarly sized... a product of the "evolutionary arms race" that took place throughout the Mesozoic era, gradually resulting in bigger and bigger dinosaurs as the time progressed, that neither predator nor prey would have the greater advantage overall.


I'd have to say its a pretty silly question for your son to be asked. The best answer is: "They're not" ... or possibly: "They're both dinosaurs, and thats about it." ... They're only related as far back as the SuperOrder level, which pretty much includes ALL dinosaurs.
For the record, the allosaurs were more closely related to sauropods ('long-necks' to use the slang term) than to the hadrosaurs ('duck-billed'), being part of the same order.

Answer 2

Parasaurlophus lived in the Cretaceous, Allosaurus lived in the late Jurassic... so no to the first. Indeed, they are both extinct though... lol.

They are in the same kingdonm, phylum, and class.
(Animalia, Chordata, Archosauria).

They were of similar size. Allosaurus was just slightly larger.
Allosaurus could weigh almost twice as much, though.

Both dinosaurs were able to stand on the two hind legs and move. Allosaurus did it primarily, while Parasaurlophus probably used its front legs and walked four-legged some of the time.

Both have front limbs significantly smaller than the back limbs.

Also, some scientists suggest that Allosaurs hunted in packs. Parasaurlophus may have migrated or also traveled in groups of some sort.

Both dinosaurs had mid to high intelligence amongst other dinosaurs.

Hopefully this helps a little.

Answer 3

Both Parasaurolophus and Allosaurus are dinosaurs, and more or less bipedal, but those are only superficial resemblances.

Allosaurs were theropod dinosaurs in the Saurischian order, that were common large predators in North America in the Jurassic, between 155 and 144 million years ago.

Parasaurolophus was a hadrosaur, sometimes called duck-billed dinosaurs, in a totally different order, the Ornithischia, and lived in the late Cretaceous about 75 million years ago.

So they weren't terribly closely related biologically, and chronologically, they lived 70 million years or more apart - a longer period of time than there is between dinosaur extinction and now.

I'd say that your son's teacher is out to lunch, or is looking for something superficially similar, but biologically insignificant, like the bipedal stance. It's like saying that chihuahuas and guinea pigs are similar because they're both tasty.

Sorry I couldn't be more help.

Answer 4

Hi. I think they are from the same geologic time period. The Cretaceous : http://www.answers.com/topic/cretaceous

http://www.answers.com/main/ntquery?s=Parasaurolophus&gwp=16

http://www.answers.com/main/ntquery?s=Allosaurus&gwp=16

Answer 5

They're both extinct.