Dinosaurs Revisited
Many childhood perceptions of dinosaurs are due to cinematic representations, not fact.
Although the reality of dinosaur existence may not have been as colorful as the movies suggest, the fact remains that dinosaurs are truly fascinating creatures.
Their incredible size, the extensive duration of their dominance on earth and the eons subsequent to their existence all reinforce that fascination.
The term dinosaur stems from two Greek words meaning terrible, powerful, wondrous lizard.
The most common images of dinosaurs that come to mind are Tyrannosauridae (the largest being Tyrannosaurus rex), Brontosaurus (now identified as Apatosaurus), Stegosaurus and Triceratops.
Dinosaurs existed for almost 160 million years starting around 225 million years ago to approximately 65 million years prior to present, although these four species didn't all coexist.
Apatosaurus and Stegosaurus were extinct almost 80 million years before Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus (T.
rex) roamed the earth.
For those not familiar with these four dinosaurs, some descriptions are in order: 1-Apatosaurus was a huge herbivore.
It had a long neck, relatively small head, large body on four legs and a very long tail which it could whip and make a cracking noise.
The overall length could reach 85 feet, its height over 20 feet and it weighed upwards of 32 tons.
2-Having two rows of triangular shaped bony plates that extended from its head along its back to the tail that had two pairs of long spikes at the tip, Stegosaurus was a much smaller herbivorous quadruped than Apatosaurus.
It grew to 30 feet in length, was 14 feet tall, weighed about 5 tons and had a tiny head that was down-turned toward the ground.
3-Triceratops is a word that actually means face with three horns.
It was also a herbivorous quadruped that approached 30 feet in length, was 10 feet high and weighed up to 13 tons.
Its most recognizable traits were a very large head with a long horn over each eye, a shorter horn on top of its snout and an immense curved cranial plate that extended from the back of its head over the back of the neck like a large inverted bib.
This body armor was obviously designed to help protect the Triceratops from any predators encountered.
4-Lastly is the T.
rex, which is probably more familiar to most individuals.
It had jaws with 6 inch long banana-shaped serrated teeth, a large head with small eyes, very large hind legs on which it stood and moved, small arms and a large tail to act as a balance when walking or running.
As one of the largest carnivores, T.
rex stood about 15 feet high, was 40 feet long and weighed roughly 6 tons.
The knowledge of dinosaurs, as it exists today, has been expounded by individuals who are primarily paleontologists.
The information is developed by studying numerous fossils in their environment and making educated assumptions, using knowledge based on the scrutiny and observation of existing creatures that exhibit traits, presumed to be like those of dinosaurs.
In consideration that most conclusions are based on individual opinions, there is normally some disparity in resulting hypotheses.
Consequently, most accepted theories regarding dinosaurs are through consensus of opinion.
Some areas that are being discussed are: a.
Was T.
rex a predator or scavenger? b.
How fast could T.
rex run? c.
What caused the massive demise of dinosaurs? Was T.
rex a predator or scavenger? One argument is that T.
rex had small eyes, short small arms and huge heavy legs, all of which made predation very difficult, if not impossible.
The contrary opinion is that most large predators scavenge meat when available, but prefer fresh meat.
The indication is that a number of the successful large predators have prevailed over some of the limitations cited.
Unfortunately, because of the extinction of T.
rex and no modern relative to reconstruct its behavior, there is no basis to make a decisive conclusion.
Due to the size of T.
rex and the heaviness of its legs, it is very improbable that T.
rex could run nearly as fast as depicted in movies.
Here again, there is no conclusive evidence to prove or disprove its speed.
There would have to be a series of footprints (called trackways) to determine footfalls and length of stride to estimate speed.
Such trackways have not been discovered to date.
So far, there has been a lot of discussion with no resolution as to the demise of dinosaurs in mass numbers, sometimes called extinction.
To make a semantic clarification, it is important to understand that dinosaurs are not extinct.
A fact of which many people are not aware is that birds are descendants of avian dinosaurs.
Therefore, it is critical to distinguish between non-avian dinosaurs, which are extinct, and avian dinosaurs, which evolved as birds.
Some important factors should be considered when evaluating information about dinosaurs.
Although fossils had been discovered centuries ago, it wasn't until the early 1800's that dinosaurs were recognized as the animal species belonging to the fossilized remains.
In fact, technology did not exist until the past century wherein more exact information became available which identified more than 1,000 species.
With the improvement of technology, the ability to learn much more bodes well.
A couple of facts are irrefutable.
Firstly, non-avian dinosaurs became extinct around 65 million years ago.
Many non-avian dinosaurs were no larger than humans.
Dinosaurs were the dominant vertebrates during their existence.
Fossilized dinosaur remains have been discovered throughout the world.
Dinosaurs have received major media attention, including books and movies, whether or not the representations were legitimate.
Outstanding mounted skeletons are principle attractions at museums around the world for the viewing public.
For dinosaur enthusiasts, excellent replicas of T.
rex and Triceratops skulls are available.
The museum quality skulls are made to scale so that they can easily be displayed in the home and/or office.
They are educational, great conversation pieces and a nice way to fulfill a childhood fascination.
Although the reality of dinosaur existence may not have been as colorful as the movies suggest, the fact remains that dinosaurs are truly fascinating creatures.
Their incredible size, the extensive duration of their dominance on earth and the eons subsequent to their existence all reinforce that fascination.
The term dinosaur stems from two Greek words meaning terrible, powerful, wondrous lizard.
The most common images of dinosaurs that come to mind are Tyrannosauridae (the largest being Tyrannosaurus rex), Brontosaurus (now identified as Apatosaurus), Stegosaurus and Triceratops.
Dinosaurs existed for almost 160 million years starting around 225 million years ago to approximately 65 million years prior to present, although these four species didn't all coexist.
Apatosaurus and Stegosaurus were extinct almost 80 million years before Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus (T.
rex) roamed the earth.
For those not familiar with these four dinosaurs, some descriptions are in order: 1-Apatosaurus was a huge herbivore.
It had a long neck, relatively small head, large body on four legs and a very long tail which it could whip and make a cracking noise.
The overall length could reach 85 feet, its height over 20 feet and it weighed upwards of 32 tons.
2-Having two rows of triangular shaped bony plates that extended from its head along its back to the tail that had two pairs of long spikes at the tip, Stegosaurus was a much smaller herbivorous quadruped than Apatosaurus.
It grew to 30 feet in length, was 14 feet tall, weighed about 5 tons and had a tiny head that was down-turned toward the ground.
3-Triceratops is a word that actually means face with three horns.
It was also a herbivorous quadruped that approached 30 feet in length, was 10 feet high and weighed up to 13 tons.
Its most recognizable traits were a very large head with a long horn over each eye, a shorter horn on top of its snout and an immense curved cranial plate that extended from the back of its head over the back of the neck like a large inverted bib.
This body armor was obviously designed to help protect the Triceratops from any predators encountered.
4-Lastly is the T.
rex, which is probably more familiar to most individuals.
It had jaws with 6 inch long banana-shaped serrated teeth, a large head with small eyes, very large hind legs on which it stood and moved, small arms and a large tail to act as a balance when walking or running.
As one of the largest carnivores, T.
rex stood about 15 feet high, was 40 feet long and weighed roughly 6 tons.
The knowledge of dinosaurs, as it exists today, has been expounded by individuals who are primarily paleontologists.
The information is developed by studying numerous fossils in their environment and making educated assumptions, using knowledge based on the scrutiny and observation of existing creatures that exhibit traits, presumed to be like those of dinosaurs.
In consideration that most conclusions are based on individual opinions, there is normally some disparity in resulting hypotheses.
Consequently, most accepted theories regarding dinosaurs are through consensus of opinion.
Some areas that are being discussed are: a.
Was T.
rex a predator or scavenger? b.
How fast could T.
rex run? c.
What caused the massive demise of dinosaurs? Was T.
rex a predator or scavenger? One argument is that T.
rex had small eyes, short small arms and huge heavy legs, all of which made predation very difficult, if not impossible.
The contrary opinion is that most large predators scavenge meat when available, but prefer fresh meat.
The indication is that a number of the successful large predators have prevailed over some of the limitations cited.
Unfortunately, because of the extinction of T.
rex and no modern relative to reconstruct its behavior, there is no basis to make a decisive conclusion.
Due to the size of T.
rex and the heaviness of its legs, it is very improbable that T.
rex could run nearly as fast as depicted in movies.
Here again, there is no conclusive evidence to prove or disprove its speed.
There would have to be a series of footprints (called trackways) to determine footfalls and length of stride to estimate speed.
Such trackways have not been discovered to date.
So far, there has been a lot of discussion with no resolution as to the demise of dinosaurs in mass numbers, sometimes called extinction.
To make a semantic clarification, it is important to understand that dinosaurs are not extinct.
A fact of which many people are not aware is that birds are descendants of avian dinosaurs.
Therefore, it is critical to distinguish between non-avian dinosaurs, which are extinct, and avian dinosaurs, which evolved as birds.
Some important factors should be considered when evaluating information about dinosaurs.
Although fossils had been discovered centuries ago, it wasn't until the early 1800's that dinosaurs were recognized as the animal species belonging to the fossilized remains.
In fact, technology did not exist until the past century wherein more exact information became available which identified more than 1,000 species.
With the improvement of technology, the ability to learn much more bodes well.
A couple of facts are irrefutable.
Firstly, non-avian dinosaurs became extinct around 65 million years ago.
Many non-avian dinosaurs were no larger than humans.
Dinosaurs were the dominant vertebrates during their existence.
Fossilized dinosaur remains have been discovered throughout the world.
Dinosaurs have received major media attention, including books and movies, whether or not the representations were legitimate.
Outstanding mounted skeletons are principle attractions at museums around the world for the viewing public.
For dinosaur enthusiasts, excellent replicas of T.
rex and Triceratops skulls are available.
The museum quality skulls are made to scale so that they can easily be displayed in the home and/or office.
They are educational, great conversation pieces and a nice way to fulfill a childhood fascination.
