Scientists assess how large dinosaurs could really get

[Still Waters]

A new study by Dr. Jordan Mallon of the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, Canada and Dr. David Hone of Queen Mary University of London, U.K., looks at the maximum possible sizes of dinosaurs. It is  published in the journal Ecology and Evolution.

The huge sizes attained by many dinosaurs make them a source of endless fascination—how did animals evolve to be so big? There are perennial claims and counter-claims about which dinosaur species was the largest of its group or even the largest ever.

But most dinosaur species are known from only one or a handful of specimens, so it's extraordinarily unlikely that they will include the largest individuals that ever existed. The question remains: how big were the largest individuals, and are we likely to find them?

https://phys.org/news/2024-07-scientists-large-dinosaurs.html

[Cho Jinn]

Alligators are a strange choice in model for a therapod.

[Bendy Demon]

I suppose planetary conditions on earth were a bit different which allowed for such a massive creature; one article I read said that some T-Rex were up to 33,000 lbs which is roughly 32-33 tonnes.

Also, though maybe I am niggling here, but many animals I think were actually larger that what the skeletons in museums depict as you had to make accommodations for things like cartilage, bursa sacs (that fluid filled sac in between joints).

Makes me wonder how such a massive creature could even walk let alone run or dash after prey or rivals. Was the gravitational fields a little less intense? Maybe teh atmosphere contained more oxygen to allow for greater growth? I don't know.

Still..having a 15+tonne beast with teeth the length of a Chevy Nomad on your tail is unnerving enough..good thing we don't have THAT to worry about anymore.

Interesting read. Thanks

[qxcontinuum]

1 hour ago, Bendy Demon said:

I suppose planetary conditions on earth were a bit different which allowed for such a massive creature; one article I read said that some T-Rex were up to 33,000 lbs which is roughly 32-33 tonnes.

Also, though maybe I am niggling here, but many animals I think were actually larger that what the skeletons in museums depict as you had to make accommodations for things like cartilage, bursa sacs (that fluid filled sac in between joints).

Makes me wonder how such a massive creature could even walk let alone run or dash after prey or rivals. Was the gravitational fields a little less intense? Maybe teh atmosphere contained more oxygen to allow for greater growth? I don't know.

Still..having a 15+tonne beast with teeth the length of a Chevy Nomad on your tail is unnerving enough..good thing we don't have THAT to worry about anymore.

Interesting read. Thanks

All these large animals were "conveniently exterminated" for humanity to strat its journey. Conveniently by God, alien, previous inhabitants remains a mystery. 

I can't believe however how pristine and healthy our planet was back then, obviously larger quantities of oxygen and plainly or carbon were mainly the reason everything was huge .

[Bendy Demon]

30 minutes ago, qxcontinuum said:

All these large animals were "conveniently exterminated" for humanity to strat its journey. Conveniently by God, alien, previous inhabitants remains a mystery.

Ummm....what?

I honestly can't tell if you are being facetious or not.

[qxcontinuum]

41 minutes ago, Bendy Demon said:

Ummm....what?

I honestly can't tell if you are being facetious or not.

Neither do I 😞

[Bendy Demon]

1 hour ago, qxcontinuum said:

Neither do I 😞

Let me ask this, are you implying that large prehistoric animals may have been killed off by outside forces i.e non-natural forces? (aliens, Staypufft Marshmallow Man, Elmer Fudd, etc)

Because I still cannot figure out if you were joking or not but I am sure you know if you were or were not.

[qxcontinuum]

2 hours ago, Bendy Demon said:

Let me ask this, are you implying that large prehistoric animals may have been killed off by outside forces i.e non-natural forces? (aliens, Staypufft Marshmallow Man, Elmer Fudd, etc)

Because I still cannot figure out if you were joking or not but I am sure you know if you were or were not.

It's a theory out there yes , one I don't necessarily believe to be true but can't dismiss it either as it can be plausible.