saurischian

[ saw-ris-kee-uhn ]

noun

1. any herbivorous or carnivorous dinosaur of the order Saurischia, having a three-pronged pelvis resembling that of a crocodile. Compare ornithischian.

adjective

1. belonging or pertaining to the Saurischia.

saurischian

/ sɔːˈrɪskɪən /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or belonging to the Saurischia , an order of late Triassic to Cretaceous dinosaurs including the theropods and sauropods

noun

1. any dinosaur belonging to the order Saurischia ; a lizard-hipped dinosaur

saurischian

/ sô-rĭs′kē-ən /

1. Any of various dinosaurs belonging to the group Saurischia, one of the two main divisions of dinosaurs. Saurischians had a pelvis similar to that of modern reptiles, in which the pubis pointed forward. Saurischians include all the carnivorous dinosaurs ( theropods ) as well as the herbivorous sauropods, and often grew to great size. Birds are descended from one group of saurischians.
2. Compare ornithischian

Word History and Origins

Origin of saurischian¹

1885–90; < New Latin Saurischi ( a ) name of the order ( Saur ( ia ) ( -saur ) + Latin -ischi ( um ) ischium + -a -a ¹ ) + -an

Word History and Origins

Origin of saurischian¹

C19: from New Latin Saurischia, from saurus + ischium

Example Sentences

These were the ornithischians, which later included Stegosaurus and Triceratops; and the saurischians, which gave rise to huge, long-necked species such as Brachiosaurus, and theropods such as Tyrannosaurus rex and birds.

From Nature

Modifications from that basic setup - perhaps kept conservative in ornithischian dinosaurs and highly modified with air sac systems in saurischians - allowed for the respiratory diversity that paleontologists are now assessing and studying.

From Scientific American

Birds, which do show a similar hip anatomy, are actually saurischian dinosaurs that independently evolved a convergent hip shape.

From Scientific American

A complete skeleton of a Late Triassic saurischian and the early evolution of dinosaurs.

From Nature

The theropods and sauropods make up the saurischian side of the family tree, sharing a closer common ancestor with each other than the ornithischian dinosaurs that make up the other half of the famous family.

From Scientific American