Episode 218 is all about Mononykus, an Alvarezsaurid with tiny arms however massive claws that lived within the Late Cretaceous in what’s now Mongolia.
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On this episode, we focus on:
Information:
- Eubrontes tracks might have been made by a sauropodomorph as an alternative of a predator supply
- UV imaginative and prescient might have helped dinosaurs see their approach by dense forests supply
- There might have been a rise in asteroid impacts close to the start of the Mesozoic supply
- The lawsuit concerning Bears Ears monument standing will probably be heard in Washington D.C. supply
- Paris the Parasaurolophus sculpture has “laid an egg” (actually grown a mushroom) supply
- The Japanese manga sequence One Piece has a narrative arc with a bunch of dinosaur pirates supply
- The cellular sport Dino Individuals helps you to construct a quite simple dinosaur civilization supply
The dinosaur of the day: Mononykus
- Alvarezsaurid that lived within the Late Cretaceous in what’s now Mongolia (Nemegt Formation)
- Small, about 3.3 ft (1 m) lengthy
- Had lengthy, skinny legs
- Bipedal, might most likely run quick
- Lived in open flood plains
- Had giant eyes, might have hunted at night time (much less dangerous, and in addition cooler outdoors)
- Had a small cranium and small, pointed tooth
- Had stubby forearms and one lengthy claw on every arm (about 3 in, 7.5 cm lengthy)
- Not clear why its arms have been this manner, potential it used the claws to interrupt open termite mounds or get to ants
- In all probability ate bugs and small animals (lizards and mammals)
- Might have used to dig burrows or dig into nests or catch prey
- Phil Senter in 2005 discovered that Mononykus couldn’t have used its forelimbs to know prey or dig burrows, however used for “scratch-digging or hook-and-pull actions reminiscent of are utilized by extant anteaters and pangolins to open powerful insect nests. Mononykus seemingly occupied a distinct segment equal to that of an anteater or pangolin, an uncommon area of interest for a dinosaur.”
- Named in 1993 by Perle, Norell, Chiappe, and Clark
- Initially named Mononychus, in 1993, renamed later in 1993 to Mononykus as a result of the title Mononychus was already the title of a beetle
- Kind species is Mononykus olecranus
- Title means “one claw”
- Species title means “elbow head”
- Solely identified from the holotype, which incorporates a part of the cranium, verebrae, all 4 limbs, thoracic girdle (connects the arms on either side), and components of the ilium and pubis
- Holotype discovered within the 1987 Soviet-Mongolian Paleontological Expedition, by Namsarai B., a preparator on the Mongolian Museum of Pure Historical past
- Initially Mononykus was regarded as a primitive chook (had a ridge that ran down its sternum, like in trendy birds) that couldn’t fly
- Had fused wrist bones, like trendy birds
- Different specimens have been referred to Mononykus (ones with partial tails, and full skulls), however these have been later discovered to be Shuvuuia (many Mononykus reconstructions are based mostly on Shuvuuia)
- Within the authentic description of Mononykus, a specimen that had been discovered throughout one in every of Roy Chapman Andrews expeditions (housed on the AMNH) was thought to even be Mononykus. However based mostly on different specimens being referred to Shuvuuia, and the truth that Monoykus got here from the Nemegt Formation and this specimen got here from an older formation, Djadochta Formation, it’s most likely not Mononykus
- Usually depicted as having feathers (feathers have been discovered on Shuvuuia)
- Can see Mononykus in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (within the Lockwood property museum)
- Additionally in Jurassic Park III: Park Builder (although it’s referred to as it’s authentic title Mononychus)
Enjoyable Reality:
Dinosaurs fashioned of their eggs in a really comparable approach to how people type of their womb
Sponsors:
This episode is dropped at you partly by Indiana College Press. Their Lifetime of the Previous sequence is lavishly illustrated and meticulously documented to showcase the newest findings and most compelling interpretations within the ever-changing discipline of paleontology. Discover their books at iupress.indiana.edu