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Gigantism and comparative life-history parameters of tyrannosaurid dinosaurs

Nature volume 430, pages 772–775 (2004)Cite this article

A Corrigendum to this article was published on 16 December 2015

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Abstract

How evolutionary changes in body size are brought about by variance in developmental timing and/or growth rates (also known as heterochrony) is a topic of considerable interest in evolutionary biology1. In particular, extreme size change leading to gigantism occurred within the dinosaurs on multiple occasions2. Whether this change was brought about by accelerated growth, delayed maturity or a combination of both processes is unknown. A better understanding of relationships between non-avian dinosaur groups and the newfound capacity to reconstruct their growth curves make it possible to address these questions quantitatively3. Here we study growth patterns within the Tyrannosauridae, the best known group of large carnivorous dinosaurs, and determine the developmental means by which Tyrannosaurus rex, weighing 5,000 kg and more, grew to be one of the most enormous terrestrial carnivorous animals ever. T. rex had a maximal growth rate of 2.1 kg d-1, reached skeletal maturity in two decades and lived for up to 28 years. T. rex's great stature was primarily attained by accelerating growth rates beyond that of its closest relatives.

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Figure 1: Growth-line counts in tyrannosaurids and reptiles of known ages.
Figure 2: Logistic growth curves for Tyrannosaurus and three related tyrannosaurids.

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Acknowledgements

We thank O. Rieppel and B. Simpson (The Field Museum), L. Chiappe (Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History), P. Larson and N. Larson (Black Hills Institute), B. Stein and M. Triebold (Triebold Paleontology), D. Evans (Indianapolis Children's Museum), C. Mehling (American Museum of Natural History), S. Williams, M. Henderson and L. Cranford (Burpee Museum of Natural History), J. Gardner, D. Tanke and D. Brinkman (Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology), T. Carr (University of Toronto), F. W. King and K. Krysco (Florida Museum of Natural History), K. Womble (Florida State University), M. Bayless (Berkeley, California) and A. Woodward (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission) for assistance with this research. The NSF and the College of Arts and Sciences of Florida State University generously funded this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Science, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida, 32306-1100, USA

    Gregory M. Erickson

  2. Division of Paleontology, American Museum of Natural History, Central Park West at 79th Street, New York, New York, 10024-5192, USA

    Gregory M. Erickson & Mark A. Norell

  3. Department of Geology, The Field Museum, 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois, 60605, USA

    Peter J. Makovicky

  4. Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, Drumheller, Alberta, T0J 0Y0, Canada

    Philip J. Currie

  5. Department of Biomechanical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California, 94305, USA

    Scott A. Yerby

  6. Department of Geoscience, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242, USA

    Christopher A. Brochu

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Correspondence to Gregory M. Erickson.

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Supplementary information

Supplementary Information

Contains (1) the number of substantial finds of Tyrannosaurus rex; and (2) body mass estimation in non-avian dinosaurs. (DOC 21 kb)

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Erickson, G., Makovicky, P., Currie, P. et al. Gigantism and comparative life-history parameters of tyrannosaurid dinosaurs. Nature 430, 772–775 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02699

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