Abstract:Sauropsids, unlike mammals, possess an intramandibular joint (IMJ) separating the dentary and postdentary bones, with different lineages either rigidifying (turtles & crocodilians) or maintaining compliance (lepidosaurs & birds) about the joint. IMJ construction and its role on mandibular performance is unclear, impeding our understanding of its function in extinct animals with extreme feeding behaviors like Tyrannosaurus rex. Sauropsids like T. rex pose a particular biomechanical paradox; feeding traces, copr… Show more
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