Dinosaurs: The Textbook

by Spencer G. Lucas

Geared toward a broad variety of students, The Textbook offers a concise and lucid presentation of the core biological and geological concepts of dinosaur science. Revised throughout to reflect recent fossil discoveries and the current scientific consensus, this seventh edition details the evolution, phylogeny, and classification of various dinosaur species while modeling the best approach for navigating new and existing research.

Spencer G. Lucas takes readers through the major taxonomic groups, including theropods, sauropodomorphs, ornithopods, ceratopsians, pachycephalosaurs, stegosaurs, and ankylosaurs. He also examines the behavior and extinction of the dinosaurs, their biological relationship to birds, and their representation (or misrepresentation) in art, literature, film, and other forms of popular culture.

This seventh edition of the leading text for introductory courses on dinosaurs incorporates comprehensive updates based on the latest research. Lucas highlights how dinosaur science is rapidly evolving, exploring how new discoveries, methods, and ideas are expanding the frontiers of knowledge. The book features cutting-edge and scientifically rigorous illustrations by leading paleoartists. It also includes extensive and reader-friendly end-of-chapter summary tools, review questions, a detailed glossary, a dinosaur dictionary, and a comprehensive index.

Genres: Palaeontology

392 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 1993

Reviews

[Monique Crowley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has great information about dinosaurs and the world they lived in. I deducted a star due to the american/eurocentric view of the book, other country's discoveries are mentioned in passing but not as well as I'd like. It also fails to recognize the controversy of removing fossils from countries without their permission as well as the effect colonialism had on these discoveries. Another star deducted for not including any of the contributions of women to this field.

[Garrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very technical and at times complicated, but it's a textbook, so what do you expect?