United States
£ GBP
If you were asked to name a dinosaur, the chances are you would give a foreign example, such as Tyrannosaurus rex, despite the term 'dinosaur' having been conceived by a British palaeontologist for fossils found in England. In fact, the British Isles have their own tyrannosaurs! The very first descriptions of dinosaurs in the early-mid 1800s were all based upon remains discovered in England. Since their initial discovery, dinosaur fossils have been documented at numerous locations across the British Isles, in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Indeed, the Isle of Wight is often referred to as the dinosaur capital of Europe. British dinosaur diversity is rather high, with theropods, sauropods, ornithopods and thyreophorans (stegosaurs and ankylosaurs) all represented. Remains found across the British Isles represent fragments to complete individuals, comprising unique examples.
Following a foreword by the leading British dinosaur scientist Dr Paul Barrett (Natural History Museum, London), the authors summarise what is known about the history of every dinosaur species discovered within the British Isles. They include photographs of hundreds of fossils, many of which are usually hidden from view behind the scenes in various museum collections. These are supplemented by scientifically accurate skeletal reconstructions and vivid life reconstructions of how some of the animals most probably appeared when alive.
Dinosaurs of the British Isles is truly unique, providing the first comprehensive account on the dinosaurs of the entire British Isles. It will be of interest to a broad audience, from academics to those with a general interest in fossils. It will no doubt form, in part, the early inspiration for some readers to consider palaeontology as a future career.
Foreword by Dr Paul M. Barrett
Foreword by the authors
Museum and institutional acknowledgements
Introduction: An age-old interest
What is a dinosaur?
The age of dinosaurs
Taxonomy: The naming of species
Dinosaur classification
Saurischian dinosaurs
Ornithischian dinosaurs
Heterodontosauridae
Dinosaur discoveries: A brief introduction
Modern palaeontology
Dinosaur bones: The fossilisation process and the science of palaeontology
Dinosaur trace fossils
Dinosaur contemporaries
A geological history of dinosaurs from the British Isles
Late Triassic
Early Jurassic
Middle Jurassic
Late Jurassic
Early Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous
Collections of British dinosaurs and the role of museums
Dinosaur hotspots and the fossil collecting code
Glossary
Picture credits
Further reading
Index
"Not sure what to buy a budding palaeontologist for Christmas, well, Everything Dinosaur recommends Dinosaurs of the British Isles by Dean Lomax and Nobumichi Tamura (Siri Scientific Press). This book provides a comprehensive guide to the dinosaur discoveries that have been made in the United Kingdom and it takes the reader from the Triassic through to the Late Cretaceous, cataloguing all the various dinosaurs in geochronological order. [...] The full colour photographs are very informative and support the text extremely effectively. This is a rare example of a book that will appeal to serious academics as well as to the general reader. Dinosaurs of the British Isles provides a fascinating introduction to the Dinosauria, before moving on to describe every dinosaur species represented by the known fossil record from this part of the world in great detail. Highly recommended."
– Everything Dinosaur blog, 19-11-2014
"Dinosaurs of the British Isles is easily the single best reference on British dinosaurs that has ever been produced. [...] What really sets the book apart are the illustrations. These include over 400 figures, among them hundreds of photos of the most important British dinosaur fossils, reconstructions of what many of these creatures would have looked like in life, geological maps showing where to find dinosaurs in Great Britain today, palaeogeographic maps depicting the position of Britain throughout the Age of Dinosaurs, and photos of field sites. [...] As somebody who studies British dinosaurs, I am certain that this book will be one of the rare volumes that I actually take down from my bookshelf to use. It is a one-stop resource for whatever you want to know about those dinosaurs that once called Britain home [...] The only major shortcoming is that it is not extensively referenced. Relevant papers are not cited in the text and the ‘further reading’ section at the back of the book is far from exhaustive. It may be difficult, therefore, for readers without specialist knowledge of British dinosaurs to use this book as a stepping-stone to the scientific literature.[...]"
– Steve Brusatte, The Palaeontological Association Newsletter 87, pp 65-66
" [...] Back in the 1990s Salamander Books published Peter Wellnhofer's Encyclopedia of Pterosaurs. [...] The book was (still is) a treasure trove of flying reptiles and its sister volume on dinosaurs was almost an equal. Wellnhofer's book was accessible to a very wide range of readers from school age to nerdy academic. Fitting in to the latter category, I have worn out two copies of Wellnhofer's book. I know I am going to do the same with Lomax and Nobomuchi's offering on Dinosaurs of the British Isles. [...] Dinosaurs of the British Isles is a super book. [...] For each species covered, the authors provide photographs of an excellent quality; they give museum accession numbers and provide historical background and scientific context. It is absolutely up to date on the taxomony of the material, with all the new names recently introduced for British ornithischians included. [...] British dinosaurs are there. This is a thorough, scholarly work presented in a format accessible to everyone. Every dinosaur worker in the world should have a copy. [...]"
– David M. Martill, Proceedings of the Geologists' Association, 2014
