Growing Up T. Rex

  • By Lexi Krock
  • Posted 04.01.05
  • NOVA scienceNOW

How did T. rex become a six-ton behemoth? Did it have an early growth spurt like elephants, or did it grow slowly and steadily, reaching its peak size later in life, like today's reptiles? By studying bones from T. rex specimens, researchers led by Florida State University's Greg Erickson have finally determined T. rex's lifelong growth pattern. Why its gigantism? Find out in this interactive.

Launch Interactive

In this interactive, see how lines on the rib of a T. rex reveal both its age and its appetite.

Credits

Images

(Sue skeleton)
© Field Museum, Chicago
(T. Rex illustration)
© WGBH/NOVA
(rib bone cross section)
© Greg Erickson, Florida State University

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