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| Archosaurs translated in greek means, ruling lizards. They are a group of [[diapsid]] that are believed to be the first evolved from [[Archosauriform]s during the lower [[triassic]] period. They are set apart by socketed teeth and having the most traits similiar to modern birds and crocodiles.
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| ==The Beginning==
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| The earliest dinosaur were carnivorous, they had narrow teeth with serrations designed for tearing meat. They had a reptilian like metabolism which allowed them to easily overcome the more mammal like [[therapsids]]. There are two major groups under the archosaur group’ the [[Ornithodira]] that had a small part during the middle [[triassic]] era, but in the later eras ruled as the [[dinosaurs]], [[pterosaurs]], and the [[crurotarsi]] which were the dominant group at this time. Including strictly [[triassic]] groups; the [[rauisuchians]], the [[phytosaurs]] and [[aetosaurs]] along with the earliest ancestors of the [[crocodilian]]s.
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| ==Domination==
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| Most of the large [[crurotarsi]] archosaurs are known as [[thecodont]]s, fell into extincting about 195 million years ago, leaving the [[pterosaurs]] as the survivors of this earliest group along with the [[ornithdodira]]s, the first [[sphenosuchia]]s, and [[protosuchia]s as their descendents among the [[crocodilia]] to flourish in the [[jurassic]] and [[cretaceous]] periods. They were so dominating in the [[mesozoic]] period that it’s lightly referred to as “The Age of the Archosaurs.”
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| ==The Ending==
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| Most of the archosaurs perished around 65 million years ago, in the middle of the [[cretaceous]] period. The only archosaurs that were able to survive through the extinction were, present day birds and modern [[crocodylia]], including aligators.
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| ==External Links==
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| *[http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/diapsids/archosauria.html lineage]
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| *[http://www.hmnh.org/archives/2006/04/16/triassic-archosaur-was-an-ancient-mariner/ HMNH]
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| *[http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://genesispanthesis.tripod.com/fossils/cynognathus.jpg&imgrefurl=http://genesispanthesis.tripod.com/fossils/rept_mam.html&h=210&w=550&sz=23&hl=en&start=54&tbnid=B-ord-XjbUCnPM:&tbnh=51&tbnw=133&prev=/images%3Fq%3Darchosaur%26start%3D36%26ndsp%3D18%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26sa%3DN evolution of archosaurs with pictures]
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| [[Category:Dinosaurs]]
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