Dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures

[DoomRulz]

Vultures do hunt as well, only they don't go for healthy animals. They will attack sick or injured ones though.

[Effectz]

Vultures do hunt as well, only they don't go for healthy animals. They will attack sick or injured ones though.

http://wildtracks.wordpress.com/2009/05/06/bone-bustin-birds/

[P.Funkei]

Fascinating hypothesis regarding the putative lifestyle of Spinosaurus aegyptiacus vis-à-vis the new reconstruction on the nat geo site, posited here. Although of course, it is always prudent to wait for the paper before speculating wildly.

On the subject of papers, from what I could glean from my perusal of the last twenty or so pages of this thread, it seems that none of you have the means to circumvent the all-too-prevalent paywalls. The Hell Creek paleontology forums are an excellent resource to do just that. All you have to do is make an account and ask for the paper you require in the Paper Exchange forum. The forums themselves aren't all that active, since the forum members Skype most of the time, but it's not a ghost town.

Ask A Biologist is another excellent resource which allows you to ask actual biologists, including paleontologists, questions such as why sauropods were able to grow so quickly, despite seemingly receiving no parental care.

Oh, btw, this was where I found the link to the aforementioned post on Spinosaurus.

[DoomRulz]

A new dino fanatic to add to the mix! Welcome and thank you for the links.

[P.Funkei]

Thanks for the welcome and you're welcome for the links.

Speaking of links, I've got another one; seems the recent reconstructions of S. aegyptiacus we've been seeing may be inaccurate after all, if what Darren Naish has said is any indication.

[Vertigo]

Howdey Funkei!

Naish never followed up that tweet on Spinosaurus, did he? I wonder if we might be in for one of his blog marathons on the subject. Not sure how long it takes him to write those things, but looking forward to it.

Great theory about spinosaurid forelimbs being used to help them clamber over muddy riverbanks. I'd always wondered why their arms were so ridiculously robust despite having much shorter reach than their more obviously piscivorous snouts. Makes you wonder if the long hand claws might have been for clambering as much as fish gutting.

[DoomRulz]

Fascinating hypothesis regarding the putative lifestyle of Spinosaurus aegyptiacus vis-à-vis the new reconstruction on the nat geo site, posited here. Although of course, it is always prudent to wait for the paper before speculating wildly.

If there turns out to be any truth to this, Jurassic Park 3 will become that much dumber of a movie, good Christ.

[DoomRulz]

Vertigo, Funkei, check it.

http://dinosours.wordpress.com/2014/07/16/museums-and-the-triceratops-posture-problem-part-1/
http://dinosours.wordpress.com/2014/08/19/museums-and-the-triceratops-posture-problem-part-2/

[Vertigo]

Good article. It's worth pointing out that the upright-hindlimb, sprawling-forelimb posture isn't without precedent. Most Mesozoic mammals had this arrangement, and only evolved a fully-non-sprawling stance in the therean line (the ancestors of marsupials and placentals which tended to be fairly rare throughout the Mesozoic; probably appearing around 164 Ma but we only have evidence of upright limbs from 125 Ma).

However, a semi-sprawling gait would very likely impact their respiration ability as in modern reptiles, which is a trait dinosaurs had specifically evolved out of. Bakker, Paul etc.'s reconstructions may be more likely.

[DoomRulz]

It's amazing how much Bakker gets right, but the paleo community always shuns him for it.

[P.Funkei]

Howdey Funkei!

Naish never followed up that tweet on Spinosaurus, did he? I wonder if we might be in for one of his blog marathons on the subject. Not sure how long it takes him to write those things, but looking forward to it.

Great theory about spinosaurid forelimbs being used to help them clamber over muddy riverbanks. I'd always wondered why their arms were so ridiculously robust despite having much shorter reach than their more obviously piscivorous snouts. Makes you wonder if the long hand claws might have been for clambering as much as fish gutting.

Thanks for the greeting 
I interpreted said tweet as implying that something new regarding Spinosaurus was coming in the scientific literature. After all, Naish is on the "inside", as it were. I doubt Naish would be able to blog about the new material though, since it is still unpublished. There are usually embargoes on inside information being leaked before publication, in order to prevent unruly competition between scientists.

Good article. It's worth pointing out that the upright-hindlimb, sprawling-forelimb posture isn't without precedent. Most Mesozoic mammals had this arrangement, and only evolved a fully-non-sprawling stance in the therean line (the ancestors of marsupials and placentals which tended to be fairly rare throughout the Mesozoic; probably appearing around 164 Ma but we only have evidence of upright limbs from 125 Ma).

However, a semi-sprawling gait would very likely impact their respiration ability as in modern reptiles, which is a trait dinosaurs had specifically evolved out of. Bakker, Paul etc.'s reconstructions may be more likely.

Agreed on the quality of the articles. I actually didn't know that about Mesozoic mammals, though tbh I don't know much about extinct non-dinosaurs anyway.
Vis-à-vis ceratopsid posture though, couldn't there have been a partial evolutionary reversal to a semi-sprawling gait? Not that I believe this hypothesis however, because the putative influence of direct fossil evidence on the LACM and HMNS mounts satisfies me pending further publication on the subject.

It's amazing how much Bakker gets right, but the paleo community always shuns him for it.

I kinda doubt Bakker is still being shunned, since he is a curator for the HMNS. It's not some sort of private creation museum or anything.

[Vertigo]

Good article. It's worth pointing out that the upright-hindlimb, sprawling-forelimb posture isn't without precedent. Most Mesozoic mammals had this arrangement, and only evolved a fully-non-sprawling stance in the therean line (the ancestors of marsupials and placentals which tended to be fairly rare throughout the Mesozoic; probably appearing around 164 Ma but we only have evidence of upright limbs from 125 Ma).

However, a semi-sprawling gait would very likely impact their respiration ability as in modern reptiles, which is a trait dinosaurs had specifically evolved out of. Bakker, Paul etc.'s reconstructions may be more likely.

Agreed on the quality of the articles. I actually didn't know that about Mesozoic mammals, though tbh I don't know much about extinct non-dinosaurs anyway.
Vis-à-vis ceratopsid posture though, couldn't there have been a partial evolutionary reversal to a semi-sprawling gait? Not that I believe this hypothesis however, because the putative influence of direct fossil evidence on the LACM and HMNS mounts satisfies me pending further publication on the subject.

It's certainly possible, neoceratopsians evolved quadrupedalism independently of other dinosaurs so they may have had a different method of locomotion. It's just that, if the gait impacted their aerobic capacity, it'd be a much less efficient form than every other group.

[DoomRulz]

Good article. It's worth pointing out that the upright-hindlimb, sprawling-forelimb posture isn't without precedent. Most Mesozoic mammals had this arrangement, and only evolved a fully-non-sprawling stance in the therean line (the ancestors of marsupials and placentals which tended to be fairly rare throughout the Mesozoic; probably appearing around 164 Ma but we only have evidence of upright limbs from 125 Ma).

However, a semi-sprawling gait would very likely impact their respiration ability as in modern reptiles, which is a trait dinosaurs had specifically evolved out of. Bakker, Paul etc.'s reconstructions may be more likely.

Agreed on the quality of the articles. I actually didn't know that about Mesozoic mammals, though tbh I don't know much about extinct non-dinosaurs anyway.
Vis-à-vis ceratopsid posture though, couldn't there have been a partial evolutionary reversal to a semi-sprawling gait? Not that I believe this hypothesis however, because the putative influence of direct fossil evidence on the LACM and HMNS mounts satisfies me pending further publication on the subject.

It's certainly possible, neoceratopsians evolved quadrupedalism independently of other dinosaurs so they may have had a different method of locomotion. It's just that, if the gait impacted their aerobic capacity, it'd be a much less efficient form than every other group.

The impression I got from the blog posts I linked is that they were portrayed with a semi-sprawled gait due to outdated information and lackluster skeletal reconstruction practices. I find it hard to imagine a ceratopsian walking around with its belly hanging loose, especially if we accept that they were capable of charging towards opponents with some speed.

[Shasvre]

[DoomRulz]

Necks are off, but the look isn't that bad. I would like to see the full body render! Also, in other news, new Spino illustration based on the new bones.

http://miyess.deviantart.com/art/Spinosaurus-Revised-479151633