Editing Dinosaur (section)

===Soft anatomy===
[[File:Pneumatopores on the left ilium of the theropod Aerosteon riocoloradensis.jpg|thumb|Pneumatopores on the left [[ilium (bone)|ilium]] of ''[[Aerosteon|Aerosteon riocoloradensis]]'']]
Large meat-eating dinosaurs had a complex system of air sacs similar to those found in modern birds, according to a 2005 investigation led by Patrick M. O'Connor. The lungs of theropod dinosaurs (carnivores that walked on two legs and had bird-like feet) likely pumped air into hollow sacs in their skeletons, as is the case in birds. "What was once formally considered unique to birds was present in some form in the ancestors of birds", O'Connor said.<ref name=OConnorClaessens2005/><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=O'Connor |first1=Patrick M. |last2=Claessens |first2=Leon P. A. M. |date=July 2005 |title=Basic avian pulmonary design and flow-through ventilation in non-avian theropod dinosaurs |url=https://www.nature.com/articles/nature03716 |journal=Nature |language=en |volume=436 |issue=7048 |pages=253–256 |doi=10.1038/nature03716 |pmid=16015329 |bibcode=2005Natur.436..253O |issn=0028-0836 |archive-date=December 25, 2024 |access-date=December 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241225213025/https://www.nature.com/articles/nature03716 |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2008, scientists described ''[[Aerosteon|Aerosteon riocoloradensis]]'', the skeleton of which supplies the strongest evidence to date of a dinosaur with a bird-like breathing system. [[CT scan]]ning of ''Aerosteon'''s fossil bones revealed evidence for the existence of air sacs within the animal's body cavity.<ref name=Sereno2008/><ref name=newswise2/>