Ok folks. First time out of the Zelda-related pen. Because I want to talk about dinosaurs. I love them as much as I love the Zelda games but I don't get the chance to talk about them as much in normal conversation. So I'm going to try to incite you to do it.
I guess we can start this off by going around and getting some favorites out of people. I have a couple species that I'm fond of for different reasons.
Tyrannosaurus Rex: I'll get him out of the way first because he's just that gorram awesome. He's one of my favorites and always has been. 'Ryannosaurus Rex' is the second oldest nickname I have, and it's only second to 'Ry-guy', which I practically got from birth so it's not even a fair contest. There is nothing to hate about it, and I staunchly disagree with the "T-Rex as scavenger only" theories.
Acrocanthosaurus: This guy doesn't seem to be well known outside of people who've read Raptor Red, but it's a shame because he's got a marvelous adaptation that has some paleontologists debating. The elongated dorsal vertebrae from which it derives its name may well have worked to support weight like a suspension bridge, allowing Acro to wholly lift carcasses that even many other massive theropods may not have been able to lift. It could have stowed kills in trees, much like a leopard, as a means of saving them or keeping it out of the reach of other thieves, or at least been able to drag a kill away so other animals couldn't contend for it as easily. Hot debate for a cool adaptation.
Allosaurus: There's tons of skeletons for these guys lying about, so we've got a lot of information on them. This is a recent favorite, to be sure, but these guys were like the Apache knife-fighters of the dinosaur world… but they knife-fight with their faces. Boom! Total badass. Seriously, thanks to the structure of their jaws they likely didn't have much actual biting power (modern crocs, other theropods, and even lions and leopards outdid them handily in the 'bite force' department), but popular theories with lots of evidence to back them suggest a very interesting method of attack. They were likely ambushers, who were able to open their mouths extremely wide in order to use their upper row of teeth as a slashing weapon instead of a piercing weapon. It's also suggested that they may have been 'flesh grazers' capable of only eating chunks off of prey without having to waste lots of energy killing it, thereby leaving it for later. It's like meat farming.
So yeah there's my introduction to the thread. Talk about dinosaurs and whatnot.
I guess we can start this off by going around and getting some favorites out of people. I have a couple species that I'm fond of for different reasons.
Tyrannosaurus Rex: I'll get him out of the way first because he's just that gorram awesome. He's one of my favorites and always has been. 'Ryannosaurus Rex' is the second oldest nickname I have, and it's only second to 'Ry-guy', which I practically got from birth so it's not even a fair contest. There is nothing to hate about it, and I staunchly disagree with the "T-Rex as scavenger only" theories.
Acrocanthosaurus: This guy doesn't seem to be well known outside of people who've read Raptor Red, but it's a shame because he's got a marvelous adaptation that has some paleontologists debating. The elongated dorsal vertebrae from which it derives its name may well have worked to support weight like a suspension bridge, allowing Acro to wholly lift carcasses that even many other massive theropods may not have been able to lift. It could have stowed kills in trees, much like a leopard, as a means of saving them or keeping it out of the reach of other thieves, or at least been able to drag a kill away so other animals couldn't contend for it as easily. Hot debate for a cool adaptation.
Allosaurus: There's tons of skeletons for these guys lying about, so we've got a lot of information on them. This is a recent favorite, to be sure, but these guys were like the Apache knife-fighters of the dinosaur world… but they knife-fight with their faces. Boom! Total badass. Seriously, thanks to the structure of their jaws they likely didn't have much actual biting power (modern crocs, other theropods, and even lions and leopards outdid them handily in the 'bite force' department), but popular theories with lots of evidence to back them suggest a very interesting method of attack. They were likely ambushers, who were able to open their mouths extremely wide in order to use their upper row of teeth as a slashing weapon instead of a piercing weapon. It's also suggested that they may have been 'flesh grazers' capable of only eating chunks off of prey without having to waste lots of energy killing it, thereby leaving it for later. It's like meat farming.
So yeah there's my introduction to the thread. Talk about dinosaurs and whatnot.