the dianisors are really coool to learn about peace my gggggsss
from krystle d, age 13, lemoore, california, usa; August 31, 2000

GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I LIKE GOD ZILLA AND KING KONG.
from TYLER, age 12, ALBERT LEA, MINNESOTA, U.S.A.; August 30, 2000

DINOS ARE BAD
from Willie L, age 11, Chicago, Illonois, UNITED STATES; August 30, 2000

I would help you John (my mom has started giving away my JP stuff anyway, so I guess I could spare a dino), but since excanging e-mails here is strictly forbidden, I can't. You could go to internet auctions and try to bid on one, or just wait for Jurassic Park 3, which will be next summer. (Although I can't gaurantee there will be a T. rex in JP3, its been replaced in the logo by a spinosaur.)
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 30, 2000

I am looking for Jurrassic Park toys for my 6-year old son. In particular, any T-Rex toys that were produced from the first and second movies. I hope you can help. Thanks!
from John W, age Old, Okeechobee, Florida, USA; August 30, 2000

I wonder where Bryan's art gallery came from? Or did he draw that himself? (In which case I envy your talent, Bryan) Those are pretty good pictures, although the animal labled as 'Protoceratops' look like a juvenile Triceratops. The cheekless Kritosaurus is very interesting, since it is not the main line of thought at the moment.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 29, 2000

I don't know, Samuel. According to my Mesozoic map of the US, there are a few Late Cretaceous exposures in the southwest part of your state. Perhaps they are marine though, or are not the right kind of rock to preserve dinosaur bones. I also come from a dinosaur-deprived region of a dinosaur-rich country. I am quite successful in finding fossil shells and crinoids though, maybe you could do that to (and don't give up hope on one day finding a mosasaur!)
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 29, 2000

How come no dinos have been found in Georgia?
from Samuel C., age 9, Columbus, Georgia, U.S.A.; August 29, 2000

Bryan, that's not your stuff, I've seen most of it on other pages. Impressive layout though.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 29, 2000
Yes, I recognize a lot of it as my own writing - he copied it verbatim (except for the copyright notices, which he removed) and didn't even give me credit! Jeananda.

Hello. I am a big dinosaur fan, I've been studying them for a while. I even have my own dinosaur website. My favorite dinosaur is the Velociraptor, I'll tell you some stuff about it: Velociraptor "Swift robber" from Early Cretaceous, it was a Theropod which means it ate meat...it was 6ft (1.8m) If you would like to know more about dinosaurs please visit my site the address is: [deleted since the material was mostly stolen]
from Bryan, age 11, Willow Grove, PA, USA; August 29, 2000

Has anyone heard Bob Bakker's statements that (one of the actual Megalosaurus's)Megalosaurus was actually bigger than Gigantosaurus according to its rib shaft. Yall gotta hear that. Its awesome.
from Mr.Rogers, age 17, Ha-in youz face even, IL, USA; August 28, 2000

No, I've never heard that. Where id you read it, Mr. Rogers? Its a very interesting theory, and I'd like ot belive it if you could tell me your source.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 29, 2000

To Brad in Ontario: Thanks for the message. I've been looking for that book. I hope that I can find it and that it is as good as you say it is. See ya!
from josh p., age 11, Blossvale, New York, America; August 28, 2000

I enjoyed Raptor Red too, Josh. You should also read the Dinosaur Heresies, which isn't a story but has a lot more palaeontology.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 28, 2000

Robert Bakker is one of the foremost paleontologists in the field. His publication, Raptor Red,is an amazing story. Raptor Red draws you into the dinosaur's world. This book introduced me to my favorite dinosaur, the utahraptor. Bakker introduces you to the complex social structure of the utahraptor, and you feel like you are actually a part of her pack. The she I am talking about is raptor red. At the end of the book, Bakker tells of his paleontological prowess. That's all there is to say.
from josh p., age 11, Blossvale, New York, U.S.A.; August 28, 2000

Why are all dinosaurs dead?
from FG, age 13, Jamaica, NY, ?; August 26, 2000

Because they died.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 26, 2000

No dinosaur of the week this time? Maybe its up to us to choose. I nominate Hypacrosaurus. Who would you pick? These are the dinosaurs that have alreadly had that title- Polacanthus (the first, to my knowledge), Alxasaurus, Tyrannosaurus, Rhamphorynchus (the "Non-Dinosaur of the Week"), Chasmosaurus, Allosaurus, Fabrosaurus, Megaraptor, Mussaurus, Megalosaurus, Barosaurus, Procompsognathus, Triceratops, Stegoceras, Plateosaurus, Janenschia, Postosuchus (another "Non-Dinosaur of the Week"), Alamosaurus, Nqwebasaurus, the Paleocene hadrosaurid, Protoceratops, and Maiasaura. Wow, I never knew the newsletter had been around for so long! There has also occasionally been Dinosaur News of the Week, and featured prehistoric animals that aren't dinosaurs of the week but are there anyway.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 24, 2000

Why and how did dinosaurs die?
from weston, age 10, ?, cjhicks, conyers; August 24, 2000

There were probably many different ways that dinosaurs died, Weston. Some died because other dinosaurs ate them. Some died of hunger or thirst. Sometimes dinosaurs got diseases. Some dinosaurs were killed in floods. One Seismosaurus may have died because is choked on a large stone. If you're asking about the big extinction at the end of the Cretaceous that killed the entire class/subclass/superorder/taxon of (non-avian) dinosaurs, I don't know or care. I'd much rather theorize about what dinosaurs were doing when they were alive.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 24, 2000

Here's something interesting I came across in my reading today. In The Science of Jurassic Park and The Lost World, a book by Rob DeSalle and David Lindley explaining how one may go about cloning and raising dinosaurs, there is a chart that shows hypothetical dinosaur DNA sequences. Applying it to a recent news story, Triceratops is quite far from a turkey. The DNA sequence for a basal dinosaur is supposedly AAAAAAT. In theropods with a grasping forefoot, the sequence is AAAAGT. Why it went from 6 to 7 letters, I don't know. Maybe a mistake. Tyrannosaurus, with a modified skull, was AAAATGT (Hmm, back to 7). Feathred dinos, here taken to exclude T. rex, were AAATAGT. Mononykus, here not considered an Avian, had this sequence. Avians are AACTAGT. Notice how a letter changes each time a character appears in the animals evolution. Okay, let's go back. Ornithischian dinosaurs, characterized by a pelvis shift, were supposedly AAAAACT. (Remember that in theropods, the C is a G) The armoured stegosaurs were AAAATCT, the Cerapods (Ceratopians + Ornithopods, including Triceratops), were AAAACCT. Hypotheticly, of course. But it still shows that Triceratops and a turkey had very diferent DNA- compare the sequences of AACTAGT and AAAACCT, and you see that they are not that close. Yes, its a hypothetical chart based on Jurassic Park, but it shows that Triceratops was no turkey.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 23, 2000

Candy, why wouldn't a huge-bodied Triceratops have strong legs? Strong legs were needed to support the dinosaur's weight, which was in the range of about 6 tons or more. Triceratops' legs were so strong that it could also have been a powerful runner, chargng at its enemies. A Triceratops with a huge body and weak legs would have been a good meal for a tyrannosaur, so there is a good reason for strong legs in Triceratops.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 22, 2000

Sorry Lesley, there aren't any English tyrannosaurs. Many dinosaurs are known from England, including Thecodontosaurus from the Late Triassic, Cetiosaurus and Megalosaurus from the Jurassic, and Iguanodon, Hypsilophodon and Baryonyx from the Early Cretaceous, just to name a few. But I'm not aware of any Late Cretaceous finds, which means no ceratopsids, hadrosaurids, or T. rex.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 22, 2000

No, Hog, that's just a myth (if it's even a myth at all, I've never heard that before). There is really nothing to suggest that dinosaurs could breath fire, and it seems very unlikely. I'll admit that the internal organs of dinosaurs aren't completely known, but it probably just didn't happen. If you want fire-breathing saurians, find a site about dragons.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 22, 2000

Why did triceratops have legs that were strong when the body was huge.
from Candy, age 11, Celeste, TX, Kingston; August 21, 2000

Hi I was just wondering if T.Rex skeletons have been found in England please give me some info!
from Lesley S, age 18, Newcastle, Tyne and Wear, England; August 21, 2000

anyone know of any fire breathing dinosaurs ....is it a myth.....or was there such a thing?>?
from Hog, age 25, ?, ?, ?; August 20, 2000

According to my new Zoomdinosaurs newsletter, Maiasaura was the first dinosaur in space, when a bone fragment and an eggshell flew or Spacelab 2 in 1985. But according to the Dinosauricon, dinosaurs did't reach space until 1998 when a Coelophysis skull that travelled on the Endeavor Space Shuttle. And according to me, dinosaurs were building their own space ships and cruising around the universe in the Late Cretaceous, setting up colonies and waiting to return to earth...
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 18, 2000
That's what I used to have listed as the first dinosaur in space (not the bit about the late Cretaceous cruising, though), but I got e-mail from the researcher Larry Wiss, who had contacted the astronaut Loren W. Acton, who confirmed that he had carried a Maiasaura specimen up in Spacelab 2 in 1985; it's now in the Museum of the Rockies, Bozeman, MT. Jeananda

Deinocheirus- terrible hand. A still mysterious creature from Mongolia known only from its arms. Often explained as a mega Ornithomimosaur, or a mega Deinonychosaur, I will now put forward a new thoery. One of the treasures currently on diplay in Sudbury's Science North is a pair of huge theropod eggs. A caption reads that they were previously thought to be from a Tyrannosaurid or Therizinosaur, but an embryo found inside has shown them to be Oviraptoran. A giant Oviraptoran actually, supposedly unknown from a hatched animal. Hmmm... Deinocheirus a mega Oviraptorosaur? They're both long-armed theropods of Late Cretaceous Mongolia, so it seems like a good argument. Deinocheirus has three fingers of about the same length, with curved claws. And so does Oviraptor. Ornithomimids lack the curved claws, Dromaeosaurids have a first digit that is too short. Deinocheirus looks like Oviraptor in the hands. So far, so good. But now I come to a problem. The study of theropod hand structure has had some important developments since the description of Deinocheirus. The Maniraptora has bird-like wrists, and includes Deinonychosaurs, Oviraptorans, and some other dinos. Ornithomimosaurs were not maniraptors. Was Deinocheirus. I don't know. Help. I think I might have a good theory here, but I'm not sure. Jeananda, please reply.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 18, 2000
Sounds interesting - you might want to present it to the Dino list to get a lot of opinions (be prepared for flames, however). Jeananda

I don't think the Loch Ness monster is a dinosaur. I don't even think it exists, but if it did I would have to say that it is an amphibian of some sort, like a monster salamander. There are a few reasons I can think of to go against the dinosaur theory- 1) No aquatic dinosaurs are known from the fossil record, 2) All dinosaurs laid eggs on land, but nobody has ever found Loch Ness Monster eggs, 3) no known dinosaur remotely resembles a Loch Ness Monster (though the elasmosaurids did) or seems likely to have been ancestral to it, 4) the 65 million year gap between them, with no fossils.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 18, 2000

Any one else here think the Loc NAS Monster is a species of dinosaur ?
from joe r, age 13, rochester, new york, usa; August 18, 2000

Lots of dinoaurs, Gitta- fellow theropods Giganotosaurus and Carcharodontosaurus, plant-eating sauropods Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Seismosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Argentinosaurus and many more, perhaps Triceratops, depending on how heavy it was (I've seen everywhere from 5 to 12 tons for this one), big duckbills like Shantungosaurus, and some new dinosaurs from South America that still need names.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 17, 2000

Who knows what's bigger than a T/rex?
from Gitta, age 16, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; August 16, 2000

Hi, Christine. First of all, this isn't the Ask Brad page, but I do try to help as much as I can. I was unable to respond to your first question simply becasue I didn't know the answer. I can tell you however that Albertosaurus was faster than Tyrannosaurus. Since the speed of Tyrannosaurus is still a highly controversial topic, I can't tell you how much faster Albertosaurus or Gorgosaurus may have been. It had longer legs and a lighter body than other Tyrannosaurids. Albertosaurus and Gorgosaurus probably aren't the same thing after all, Gorgosaurus applies to the Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta) tyrannosaurids and I think Albertosaurus is from the Drumheller region. They were closely related though, but still distinct.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 16, 2000

IH I,M MR.DNA.
from MR.DNA, age 112, ???????????????????, ??????????????, ????????????/; August 16, 2000

FIRST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO SAY HOWDY, TO ALL OF YOU DINO FANS OUT THERE. I'M GOING TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL SOME INFORMATION I'VE RESEARCHED ON DINOSAURS AND THERE RELATIONS TO HUMANS. NOW DO'NT YOU FIND IT STRANGE THAT OUT OF ALL DINOSAURS THE DEMETRODON OF THE EARLY TRIASIC PERIOD HAS MORE OF A SIMILARITY TO HUMANS AND OTHER MAMMALS,THEN ANY OTHER DINOSAURS, NAMLY IT'S SPINAL COLUMB AND IT'S ARANGEMENT OF TEETH IS SIMULAR TO THAT OF MAMMALS, COULD IT BE THAT HUMAN BEINGS ARE NOTHING MORE THEN ANOTHER SPECIASE OF REPTLES AND JUST DON'T KNOW IT YET?
from TOPPER.T, age 18, ATHENS, GORGIA, UNITED STATES; August 15, 2000

FIRST OF ALL I WOULD LIKE TO SAY HOWDY, TO ALL OF YOU DINO FANS OUT THERE. I'M GOING TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL SOME INFORMATION I'VE RESEARCHED ON DINOSAURS AND THERE RELATIONS TO HUMANS. NOW DO'NT YOU FIND IT STRANGE THAT OUT OF ALL DINOSAURS THE DEMETRODON OF THE EARLY TRIASIC PERIOD HAS MORE OF A SIMILARITY TO HUMANS AND OTHER MAMMALS,THEN ANY OTHER DINOSAURS, NAMLY IT'S SPINAL COLUMB AND IT'S ARANGEMENT OF TEETH IS SIMULAR TO THAT OF MAMMALS, COULD IT BE THAT HUMAN BEINGS ARE NOTHING MORE THEN ANOTHER SPECIASE OF REPTLES AND JUST DON'T KNOW IT YET?
from TOPPER.T, age 18, ATHENS, GORGIA, UNITED STATES; August 15, 2000

TYRANNOSAURUS REX IS ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS OF ALL THE DINOSAURS. THE STORY OF THE DEATH, FOSSILIZED, AND DISCOVERY OF ONE TYRANNOSAURUS REX SPANS MORE THAN 65 MILLION YEARS. LIKE MANY DINOSAUR DISCOVERRIES, THE TYRANNOSAURUS REX SPECIMEN OF 1908 WAS FOUND IN DESOLATE, OPEN COUNTRY, FAR AWAY FROM THE NEAREST SETTEMENT. THE TYRANNOSAURUS REX SKELETON FOUND BY BARNUM BROWN WAS PUT ON DISPLAY AT THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY IN 1915, SEVEN YEARS ARTER ITS DISCOVERY. TYRANNOSAURUS REX NEEDED POWERFUL MUSCLES TO OPERATE ITS ENORMOUS BODY. TYRANNOSAURUS REX WAS A FEROCIOUS HUNTER OF DINOSAURS AND OTHER ANIMALS. TYRANNOSAURUS REX HAD ONE OF THE BIGGEST AND STRONGEST HEADS OF ALL THE DINOSAURS. TYRANNOSAURUS REX WAS AN ANIMAL WELL ADAPTED FOR HUNTING. TYRANNOSAURUS REX WAS THE TOP PREDATOR LIVING IN NORTH AMERICA IN THE LATE CRETACEOUS PERIOD.
from TYLER, age 12, ALBERT LEA, MINNESOTA, U.S.A.; August 15, 2000

dear t rex how old are you ?
from abbie t, age 12, bunbury, western australia, australia; August 14, 2000

DINOSAURS OF JURASSIC PARK. VELOCIRAPTOR, TRICERATOPS, TYRANNOSAURUS REX, DILOHOSAURUS, BRACHIOSAURUS, AND GALLIMIMUS.
from TYLER, age 12, ABERT LEA, MINNESOTA, U.S.A.; August 14, 2000

IF YOU LOOK AT VELOCIRAPTOR LIKE 6 FOOT TRKEY. IF LOOK AT HIM HE WILL LOOK AT YOU AND THATS WHEN HE WILL YOU. NOT MIDDLE BUT FROM THE SIDE. YOU SEE VELOCIRAPTOR PACK HAUTERS. HE HAS A 6IN CALW HE USE IT ACREASS THE BLEY THE PROBLEM IS YOU ARE ALIVE WHEN THEY START TO EAT YOU.
from TYLER, age 12, Albert Lea, Minnesota, U.S.A.; August 14, 2000

Dear brad, The question that i asked was wrong what i ment was is Albertosaurs the meat eater also known as[ Gorgosaurs] faster then t-rex if he is how much faster is he.thank you for readind this question from christine.
from christine.H., age 12, Adelaide, south Australia, Australia; August 13, 2000

I think it its great that you want ot be accurate, Kristina. If you want plesiosaurs, here is the site to go to- (begin link) http://www.kheper.auz.com/gaia/biosphere/vertebrates/sauropterygia/Plesiosauria.html (end link) There are no exclamations marks in this adress, but its a common glitch in CoolDinos for them to pop up where we don't put them. If this link doesn't work, tell me and I'll give you the correct version. This page pretty much has it all, including information on individual Plesiosaur families, and links. If you want ot hear what the Nessie-like Elasmosaurus is thought to sound like, you can find that here (begin link) http://www.discovery.com/exp/fossilzone/zooms/sound3.html (end link) Again, tell me if it doesn't work, and be sure to check out the other dinosaur sounds while you are there. Good luck!
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 13, 2000

I wish that here more stuff on dinosaurs. But is there way to get more stuff on dinosuar.
from E.J, age 13, MONTROSE, COLOARDO, USA; August 13, 2000

I'm doing a story project involving the Plesiosaur (aka Loch Ness Monster). I've downloaded and researched all the information that I can find but I still feel that I don't have enough to use in my project. Does anybody know where I can go or who can I speak to about getting assistance on the project so I can be as accurate as I can possibly be?
from Kristina J., age 19, Reseda, CA, USA; August 12, 2000

The Velociraptor is green and black! I will do the hands and feet white though, when the green and blakc dry. I'm not sure about the eyes yet.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 12, 2000

I've assembled my Velociraptor model kit. I made a few modifications to it- adding the small first toe they forgot, repositioning the hands into the correct maniraptor pose (palms in, rather than down), and making a custom head entirely out of brisol board, paper towels, and glue. I actually lost the head for this model kit, as its been lying around for a few years, but mine is more accurate anyway. Mine is very fragile, of course. But it looks pretty cool. I've tried to make this Velociraptor, and not the 'Jurassoparkoraptor'. But now I am forced with the exact same problem I have every time I do dinosaur art- "WHAT COLOUR SHOULD I MAKE THIS?" Velociraptor is hard because most everything has been tried. I might try using green and brown. I know those colours are for some reason not in fashion anymore, probably because they remind us of lizards, and we try to get away from that. A wildcat pattern, like tiger or leopard, is usually the norm ! for small meat-eaters, but that has been done to death recently and I need to be different! I'll head over to the dinosauricon and look at the raptor pics there for inspiration (although I won't be including feathers, which most pictures there seem to have) I've already painted the entire model brown as a base colour, I'm waiting for that to dry now.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 12, 2000

hi there u talk back i talk to u back but my frend is names is bob so i talk to u towrrrow so u talk to me back i talk to u but my names is robert
from robert, age 12, sydney, it a good, austarlia; August 11, 2000

You're mostly right Neil, although Rahonavis, the bird-raptor, was a non-avian (although it was avialain) dinosaur with evidence for big feathered wings- these guys were at least doing some serious gliding. There is a great picture of it on the Dinosauricon in a leaping/flying pose. As for dinosaurs going extinct being ridiculous, remember that most groups did die out at the end of the Cretaceous- all the Ornithischians, all sauropods, and most theropods (including Enantiornithine birds). I'd say that something happened.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 11, 2000

Brad, dinosaurs probably could not fly (If you use the old-fashioned idea of dinosaurs that went extinct 65 million years ago). However, dinosaurs evolved into birds in the Jurassic, therefore, they could fly. In the dinosaur myths section, they mean the pterosaurs. And as to swimming, they definitely could swim. Also, you didn't mention the ridiculous idea that dinosaurs went extinct. Granted, you don't see many reptiles that stand erect today, but, dinosaurs evolved into birds, so, dinosaurs are alive today.
from Neil M., age 10, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; August 11, 2000

is t-rex the strongest dino???
from dd, age 8, carmel, N.Y., U.S.A.; August 11, 2000

I was going over the day's dinosaur theories last night, and further developed the alternate spitter theory (see one of my previous messages). The only time the name Dilophosaurus is officially used is on the tour, when the animal cannot be seen. I haven't watched the movie recently, but I don't remember Nedry ever calling his attacker a Dilophosaurus, and even if he did, they are confusable and he's no dinosaur expert. The tour does mention that Dilophosaurus is poisonous, but since Dilophosaurus and Syntarsus are both in the same family it is possible that if one was poisonous, so was the other. So, the full species count for Isla Nublar could be- Brachiosaurus altithorax (or possibly Giraffatitan brancai), Parasaurolophus walkeri, Velociraptor mongoliensis (hatchling only), Dilophosaurus sp. (not seen), Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops horridus, Stegosaurus sp. (not seen), Metricanthosaurus sp. (not seen), Syntarsus kayentakate, Gallimimus bull! atus, and large 'raptor' cf Utahraptor ostrommaysorum (adults). I'll have to watch the Lost World again to tell you what species are in that.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 11, 2000

how fast was the dinosaur gorgarsaurs please.
from christine c.hrissy, age 12, adelaide, south australia, australia; August 10, 2000

Okay. Bakker's famous classification to revive the Dinosauria, like the one illustrated in The Dinosaur Heresies, (I've never had access to his magazine articles, he should put those in a book too) does include the pterosaurs, so perhaps Bakker's 'Class Dinosauria' is really the Ornithodira (or perhaps I'm letting that book have to big of an influence on me!). Actually, I think his redefined Dinosauria might have priority, but something is probably there to keep things the way they are. But seeing now that pterosaurs didn't evolve from early theropods, there should probably also be a clade comprised of Theropoda and Phytodinosauria.. Okay, Okay! Saurischia and Ornithischia!, which is what the Dinosauria is. You're right, I probably would be upset if this site said that pterosaurs were dinosaurs. I wasn't aware of their sprawling legs though. (In The Complete Dinosaur, coloured plate 5 shows a very straight-legged standing Pterodactylus by Greg! ory Paul, which is about how I thought they should look- incorrect?)
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 10, 2000
There's a good reconstruction at: http://home.stlnet.com/~azero/anatfeet.html that shows their unusual leg structure and stance. Jeananda

Is the spitter in Jurassic Park too small? Many people would say yes. I say no! It is correct to say that Dilophosaurus was 20 feet long, much bigger than the spitter in JP. But that is assuming that the JP spitter is an adult. As we can see in the tour of the lab, Jurassic Park is still very much a work in progress. New dinosaurs are being born. And, I assume, the DNA of new species keeps being discovered too. (Remember, I'm talking about Jurassic Park now, not real life). Perhaps spitter DNA was not found until shortly before the story takes place, and the spitters just didn't have enough time to reach their full size. It would seem odd if all of the dinosaurs were fully grown, putting in a juvenile spitter makes the movie more realistic in my view. There is notihng scientificly incorrect about potraying a dinosaur that isn't fully grown. If you don't like that, I have an alternate theory that hasn't been suggested yet- what if the spitt! er isn't Dilophosaurus? Jurassic Park labels lie, those big 'raptors definatley aren't Velociraptor (interesting side not here: Only the hatchling raptor is officially referred to (by Henry Wu) as a Velociraptor mongoliensis, and it does appear to be a different species- it is orange, while the big guys are brown. The big raptors are only called Velociraptor by Tim, who makes his identification while he and Lex are being hunted by them. He could have easily said the wrong name in that situation, and probably didn't go out of his way to carefully examine the 'raptors anyway.). If not Dilophosaurus, what is the spitter? An undiscovered genus is always a good guess, but I think that the spitter is perhaps a dinosaur named Syntarsus kayentakate. S. kayentakate was a close relative of Dilophosaurus. It was a double-crested meat-eater too, although its crests were a bit smaller and not quite identical. The impotant thing is that Syntarsus was much smaller than Dilophosaurus-! only 6-10 feet long. Why would the JP staff mistake Syntarsus kayentakate for Dilophosaurus? Both are found from the Lower Jurassic Arizona. And most importantly, S. kayentakate wasn't named until 1989- the year Jurassic Park (the novel, anyway) is set. Like Utahraptor, it appears that they just missed a new discovery and went with the nearest dinosaur known at the time. Either way, the spitter could be the right size.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 10, 2000

I checked out the Dino Myths page at the bottom of this page, and I am worried about the increasingly popular and widespread myth that there were not swimming or flying dinosaurs. First of all, most sources confuse 'swimming' with taking up an entirely aquatic existance. People can swim, but we are not aquatic mammals like whales. If its simply swimming we're talking about, most animals do swim. I think dinosaurs probably did too, simply to cross rivers, catch a fish, or cool themselves on a hot day. I've seen tigers swim to pick up pieces of meat that have been thrown into the water, and theropods would have done the same if an animal died in the water. Dinosaurs didn't live in the water, but could probably swim as well as most modern non-aquatic mammals. And if birds are dinosaurs, what are ducks and penguins doing spending so much time swimming? Icthyosaurs have nothing to do with it. Okay, now that that's out of the way, the flying issu! e seems even more absurd. Pterosaurs may be so closely related to dinosaurs that they are sister groups (or Pterosaurs may be prolacertiformes, but let's use the traditional classification for now) unitied in the clade Ornithodira. Does it really matter if our 'dinosaurs' are the Ornithodira and not the Dinosauria? I don't think so. And why are we still using the old paraphyletic Dinosauria that excludes birds? Sinornithosaurus, the feathered raptor, has more flight features than the more derived dromaeosaur Velociraptor, suggesting that Velociraptor and its relatives may be secondarily flightless- flight arose in the Jurassic when birds and dinosaurs were still very much the same. This may disturb some people, but the coelurosaur Tyrannosaurus rex is more closely related to birds than it is to Allosaurus. Birds are flying dinosaurs, and nothing can change that! (Except a new alternative bird origin theory, which I'd like to see.)
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 10, 2000
Fine, but I get e-mail every day telling me that Plesiosaurs were dinosaurs, and they're not even closely related. If I had said that Pterosaurs were dinosaurs, you'd be writing me right now, chastising me! Just because Pterosaurs were closely related to dinosaurs (but look at the sprawling legs) doesn't mean you can just add them into Dinosauria. Don't get me started with the "dinosaurs include the birds" discussion. In everyday usage (which is what ZoomDinosaurs is all about, explaining science in simple-to-understand terms), the term dinosaurs refers to an extinct variety of reptile (let's not go into the definition of reptile, either) that lived during the Mesozoic Era. Yes, I certainly think that birds evolved from dinosaurs (or perhaps other archosaurs), but in common usage, the term dinosaur does not include the birds (although I try to introduce the readers to the beauty of cladistics). If this were purely a technical site (geared only toward grad students and beyond), I would have said that there were no non-avian flying dinosaurs; this, however, would confuse the uninitiated. As it is, I need to present the fact there were no predominantly marine dinosaurs and that the Plesiosaurs were not dinosaurs. Jeananda

Protoceratops is the Dinosaur of the Week. In the newsletter it says that eggs are known from it- haven't those eggs been considered to belong to Oviraptor for quite a few years now? Or only some of them?
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 10, 2000
Large bonebeds of Protoceratops have been found in Mongolia, exhibiting all stages of development from unhatched eggs to adults. I think the eggs you're referring to are the eggs that gave Oviraptor its name and were originally found with an Oviraptor fossil; as you know, they were mistakenly thought to being those of Protoceratops, but were actually those of Oviraptor. JC

Wal Mart, you say? Okay, I'll have a look the next time i'm in one. Walmart seems to have a lot of dinosaur stuff these days. I only have one Jurassic Park book, the second one. I used to have the first one, but I read it so many times it fell apart and was completely destroyed. Best book ever. The second one is good, but not nearly as good as the first. There is a Half Price book store near my nearest Wal Mart where I buy some of my dinosaur books (I got The Complete T. Rex for $7), I'll see if they have a few copies of Jurassic Park, and a replacement copy of James Gurney: The World of Dinosaurs (the book about his stamps), which disappeared when my mom cleaned my room! My mom doesn't read romance books, she mostly reads non-fiction books about society and stuff that can be kind of interesting.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 10, 2000

Hi there, I am a teacher of 9 year olds in NZ.We are currently studying dinosaurs and would like the name of a palaeontologist who would be happy to receive mail ( snail mail ) from 26 eager learners who have written letters posing questions re: dinosaurs.The responses can be emailed. Thanks for your time. Sarah
from Sarah T, age ?, Auckland, ?, New Zealand; August 9, 2000

Dear Dino friends and Brad I will not be talking with you for awhile because this is the last day that I can talk with you because schools going to start and Im at primetime and this is the last day that we can go to the computer lab but while im at scool i can so Ill miss you guys your Friend Afton Lind
from Afton, age ?, ?, ?, ?; August 9, 2000

I learned that the T-rex could not see it's prey why they where standing still but it could use its toung to taste its prey and if tasted like meat it would use its toung to drag in its prey in his mouth. And Brad I have another funny part of the lost world there was a boy and the t-rex was in his yard and he looked out the window and the t-rex was drinking from the pool and he told his parents and they didnt believe him and the boy and the parents looked out the window and t-rex was going after the dog Well I've got to go bye.
from Afton, age ?, ?, ?, ?; August 9, 2000

Well the pteradon did have many predators the trex could fly in the air or sit anywhere and it would get eaten by the t-rex.
from Afton, age ?, ?, ?, ?; August 9, 2000

Brad, I got the game from wal*mart. FOR $10.00!!!!!! Can you believe that! Well I've seen the game in the other stores in one store they had it for $47.00 can you believe that!!!!!!!!!!!! Well I'm glad I'm back! I've been to other Dinosaur on line that is not so cool. I just The lost world (Jurassic Park) I like the part when kelly she was a gymnastic person and she said hey you and then she did a flip and hit the raptor right in the face and then he flew out the window. That was funny!!!!! I have 2 jurassic park books and their number 1 and 2 ya Know that your mother reads the romance books that they read there thicker then that and I started on reding it yesterday and I have 2 more chapters to go. and it's diffrent because its the Knew york times. Well gotta go See ya!!!!!!!!
from Afton, age ?, ?, ?, ?; August 9, 2000

The August 2000 issue of National Geographic has an article on the Madagscar mesozoic faunas, includng prosauropods, Majungatholus, cynodonts, plant-eating crocodiles, titanosaurs, and Rahonavis. There really isn't much to it, I think its one of their shortest dinosaur articles. But it is dinosaurs, so try to have a look!
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 8, 2000

Welcome back, Afton! Interestingly, some of the prickly and poisonous plants that exist today really could have evolved their defenses to deal with dinosaurs. Your computer game sounds like a lot of fun. Where did you get it? I wish I had games like that.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 8, 2000

I like triceratops.Because of his horns.
from Daazed, age 9, maple valley, wa, Ravensdale; August 8, 2000

Hi guys, I'm back I know that I've been gone a long time but i've learned and got lots of stuff. I learned that if any of the plant eating dinosaurs ate a plant or a type of berries they woold die or their mouth would hurt and they would stand very still. And Brad I'm sorry I havent talked to you in a while but I have a lot of news for you I got a computer game called dinosaur hunter (its not the one that you kill dinosaurs but theres one like that) My dinosaur hunter is like you find and learn about dinosaurs and you dig up dinosaurs and they come alive. And rome around in the mueseum its really cool. Well see ya later alligater bye!!!!!!!!
from Afton, age ?, ?, ?, ?; August 8, 2000

I think I can answer most of your questions, Ryan. It is assumed that Pteranodon did lay eggs, although I don't think that it has been fully proven. I don't think Pteranodon had many predators. Although it lived at the same time as many meat-eating dinosaurs like Albertosaurus, they couldn't catch it when it was in the air. I've seen illustrations showing Pteraodon swooping dangerously close to a Mosasaurus as it attempts to grab a fish, so maybe Mosasaurus would have occasionally been able to catch it. Since it was pretty safe from meat-eaters, Pteranodon probably had a long life span. In the novel Raptor Red, Robert Bakker writes about an exceptionally old pterosaur that was about sixty years old, so there are some people who belive that pterosaurs could live long for an animal. Mating habits are usually poorly known in extinct animals. Pteranodon had a big crest on the back of its skull, which may have been used to attract a mate. In th! e recent miniseries Walking with Dinosaurs, a relative of Pteranodon is shown travelling from his home in South America to the breeding ground in Europe, where all of his species meets. This is based on the discovery of similar pterosaurs in both continents, although most of Walking with Dinosaurs is speculation. Pteranodon's best defense was flight. Carnivores couldn't attack it if they couldn't reach it. If it was attacked on the ground by a meat-eating dinosaur, it did have a long, sharp beak that may have served as a weapon.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 8, 2000

DEAR ADAM TRICEROTOPS LIVE AND NAVIGATED IN HERDS JUST LIKE BISONS OF TODAY.THEY HAD FLAT TEETH FOR EATING PLANTS.THEY FOUGHT WITH THEIR HORNS AND A POWERFUL TAIL.THEY HAD A BONY SHIELD AROUND THEIR NECK THAT PROTECTED THEM FROM PREDATOR'S BITE.THEY WERE THE OF TWO MODERN ELEPHANTS.
from Etezaz B, age 9, DAMMAM, EASTERN, SAUDI ARABIA; August 8, 2000

Did the Pteranodon lay eggs? Did it have many predators? How long did it live? What were its mating habits, did they have to go to certain place to mate? Did it have any defense to predators?
from Ryan, age 11, Adelaide, S.A, Australia; August 8, 2000

DEAR ADAM TRICEROTOPS LIVED IN HERDS AND NAVIGATED IN HERDS LIKE BISONS OF TODAY.THEY HAD FLAT TEETH FOR EATING PLANTS.THEY WERE THE SIZE OF A MODERN ELEPHANT.THEY FOUGHT WITH THERE HORNS AND A POWERFUL TAIL.THEY HAD A BONY CREST AROUND THERE NECK THAT PROTECTED THEM FROM A PREDATOR'S BITE.
from Etezaz B., age 9, DAMMAM, EASTERN, SAUDI ARABIA; August 7, 2000

My favorite dinosaur is T-rex. I like how it hunts its prey.And his jaws are big.
from sarmad, age 8, queens, new york city, pakistan; August 7, 2000

Triceratops might have eaten cycadeoids, a type of tough but nutritious plant that it shredded with its sharp beak and powerful scisor-like teeth. Triceratops' main fighting weapons were its horns- they were about a metre long and were very dangerous.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 7, 2000

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW THE TRICERATOPS LIVED. WHAT THEY ATE,HOW THEY FAUTH.THANK YOU
from adam A, age 8, DENVER,,CO, COLORADO, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA; August 6, 2000

I just bought my Smilodon in late June. I agree with the retirements of Dimetrodon and Smilodon, they seemed out of place and none of the other animals from their time period were being made. I believe Smilodon has been recently remade in a slightly larger scale for an Ice Age toy collection by Safari. They also have a current Dimetrodon in a dinosaur boxed set. The Euoplocephalus retirement makes less sense, now there aren't any ankylosaurs. The Protoceratops, which is fused to a nest, is another bad model that should be discontinued for its outdatedness and poor play value. I think the Maiasaura fused to its nest was pretty much replaced by Maiasaura beside its nest, but it should be listed as retired too. The 1996 pamphlet I have (which I got less than two months ago) has Australopithecines in it, they are out of place and might be retired, as they are so rare. I think the current Pteranodon will be next to go, it will probably be replaced! with a brighter one that has narrower wings. I also question if the original green tyrannosaur will last. Or is the new 'Special Edition' one retired now? It is very rare, I had to call the store to get it. It is wonderful though, the most accurate T. rex I have ever seen.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 6, 2000

I set all of my dinosaur replicas up on the table and made my Lego people come to see them- the scale is pretty close. The dinosaurs were displayed in the groups they are classified in, making it an educational show for the mini-figures. Hey, why is there a Lego skeleton under the Yangchuanosaurus?
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 6, 2000

Frequently asked questions at Brad's Dinosaur Zoo- Visitor: "Why is that dinosaur wearing pink shoes?" Guide: "They match her lipstick!" Visitor: "How did Dimetrodon go extinct?" Guide: "With a Going out of Business Sail!" Visitor: "Where did dinosaurs buy coffee and donuts?" Guide: "Timimus Hortons, of course!" Visitor: "Why are those sauropods submerged in water?" Guide: "They musn't be reading the current news!" Visitor: "Why don't the pliosaurs tear each other apart?" Guide "We have a sign- no open saurs in the pool!" - more later
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000

The Science North gift shop was selling toys of modern animals made by Schleich, a company I know by its cool Replica Saurus line. But, no Replica Saurus! I managed to pick up a Schleich pamphlet, which I assume was free, listing the Replica Saurus line. There are currently 14 replicas to choose from- Parasaurolophus, Stegosaurus, Apatosaurus, Apatosaurus baby (Carnegie copiers!- or were Replica Saurs around first?), Torosaurus, Edmontosaurus, Corythosaurus, Tyrannosarus, Triceratops, Saichania, Ceratosaurus, Plateosaruus, Spinosaurus and Brachiosaurus. I own one of them, Saichania. I liked it because I had never seen a Saichania toy before. Torosaurus and Plateosaurus are new for 2000, I haven't seen them yet. I would like Torosaurus, because it has been neglected in toys too. The more uncommon genera, the better! Schleich has wisely chosen to work in the 1:40 scale standard for dinosaur replicas. Each dinosaur has a card with a 1:40 scale human being inside. Not only are they useful in comparisons of size, but can be used as lost explorers, the documentary crew, lucky palaeontologists, genetic engineers, or whoever else you need when playing with your dinosaurs. So far I know only one out-of-the-way Replica Saurus retailer, so I don't have the opportunity to buy one often (the same store is the only DinoCardz retailer I know too- great store!). But there are plenty of interesting, rarely-made-as-toys dinos to buy, including Edmontosaurus and Ceratosaurus. Plus the Spinosaurus is just so cool- and you can't have just one spinosaur, you need rival spinosaurs! I think their blue guy looks more likely to win than Safari's brown one- maybe Safari's is a female he would try to impress with that sail. Anyway, looks like a promising line of dinosaurs!
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000

Euoplocephalus is retired too? Cool, I have him! And Smilodon, didn't they get rid of him too? I'd really like a complete list, there aren't any info sites for Carnegies, just store sits that don't tell a whole lot. I'm not even trying to get the Deinonychus, I think that having three dinosaurs fused to a single base is a terrible idea! But, that's just me.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000
I agree about Deinonychus. Yes, Smilodon was retired in Dec. 1997. Those are the only four that are marked as retired in the sixth edition of the Carnegie pamphlet (1998). JC

As I said, I was not pleased with the Science north gift shop. We looked up toy stores in the phone book, and found one, Scholar's Choice, that seemed to have potential. Their mascot was a dinosaur! But when I got there, there didn't seem to be any! When we asked for assistance, I was shown some dinosaur skeletons, but no lifelike models. Just as we were about to leave, my mom and I had one last look at the rotating stand of toy animals, and A TAG! A CARNEGIE TAG! I have over 20 Carnegies, so I was happy to see it was one of the few I didn't own- Dimetrodon! I got their last Carnegie- I was so lucky! Possibly discontinued and often just ignored, Dimetrodon is less common- and for some reason he seems to be especially hard to find with his information tag still attached. The sticker said $2.99, but as I was about to pay I was told he was on sale and only cost 99 cents! Cool! I've had many Dimetrodons (some terribly flawed), in fact some of my first palaeotoys were Dimetrodons. But I like having him in normal Carnegie scale (1:40). He's pretty tiny compared with the Mesozoic carnivores in my colllection, but it does make him accurate. Right now he's under the belly of my Carnegie Spinosaurus, where he looks really tiny!
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000
Carnegie &Quot;retired&Quot; Dimetrodon, Deinonychus, and Euoplocephalus in December 1997. JC

Triassic bird in July National Geo?!? I'll go to the library and check it out. But Neil, you're approaching it all wrong- Triassic birds displayed big claws because they were the ancestors of raptors! Ravahonis sounds kinda familiar- I never knew it was Triassic (and I'm still skeptical, I'll go look it up).
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000

Thanks, Lyssi. And I agree, Iguanodon probably did use the thumb-spike against predators too- there isn't much reason why it wouldn't. But seeing how it was secondarily lost in hadrosaurs, I don't think an anti-predator weapon was what is originally evolved for.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000

I just returned from Sudbury! First of all, Dino Safari is great! There are eight models, and I believe all are life sized. There has been too much exaggeration that we don't know a life-sized dinosaur when we see one. I didn't actually measure them, but they looked good. Dinamation likes making theropods- Dilophosaurus, Allosaurus, Baryonyx, Utahraptor, and Tyrannosaurus were on display. No feathers on any of them. The herbivores were Amargasaurus, Pachycephalosaurus, and a wounded Triceratops. The Amargasaurus in Dino Safari represents a fully grown specimen and is not knee-high. All of the dinosaurs could move. There were also another treat to see- display cases full of rare fossils, real and casts, like Archaeopteryx, therizinosaur claws, Oviraptor eggs, and other really cool stuff! The one downside? Really poor light for getting your picture taken (especially near the T. rex). The Dino Safari leads directly into the gift shop, which! was a huge disappointment. There are no museum-quality replicas, and poorer cheap dinos are abundant. I know, I'm really picky when it comes to collecting dinosaurs. If I wasn't, I'd run out of room! Moving on to the IMAX movie, "T. rex; Back to the Cretaceous", it was GREAT! But it wasn't at all what I expected. It's about a paleontologist and his daughter living in the modern age, but there are many mesozoic flashbacks including a very interesting scene showing Charles Knight in the Cretaceous painting live dromaeosaurs. It is a short film, about 45 minutes, but it is very good and you should try to see it. The Dinosaur Simulator is another attraction, but it is not good. Its about a fight between deinonychosaurs and titanosaurs, and the audience is supposed to see it from the dinosaurs' eyes. Unfortunately, it is very confusing! I'm a titanosaur! I'm a deinonychosaur! I'm four dinosaurs at once! The animation is not of great quality, and its kinda like a vide! o game you have no control over. Its weird. Upstairs, you can visit the Palaeo Lab. There are more cool things to look at- a model of Caudipteryx, a cast of Eoraptor fossils (cool!), a moving Baby Amargasaurus (the knee-high amargasaur, this is the correct size for a baby), and even a game where you can guess at identifying dinosaur fossil casts! (There is an answer book too) Overall, it is a great show! If you are anywhere in Ontario, you should really try to go before it closes (Sept. 4). Dinosaurs models to see, dinosaur bones & eggs to see, and a cool movie!
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 5, 2000

which is the largest dinosaurs in the world?
from malavika, age 10, adyar, tamilnadu, india; August 5, 2000

Hey Brad! Very original "thumb-spike theory". :) It's a new perspective with some definite possibility. Although, I don't think your theory replaces the existing one or proves it to have any fallacies. Your theory rather goes along side the "defense theory", I think. Two male Iguanodons duking it out using thumb-spikes as weapons... weapons are used in defense... so, in the end, they are still being used as defense... Just in a totally different situation, basically. LOL I don't think you've presented us with the thumb-spike's true purpose, but rather another important use. :)
from Lyssi, age 14, Victoria, Texas, USA; August 3, 2000

Brad, I have answers for you. Yes, there are full-sized dinos (two of them), the Tyrannosaurus and the Dilophosaurus (sorry, no Giganotosaurus!). I warn you, Brad, the latter spits! As to the Carnegie dinosaur models, I have no idea. I pretty much agree with your iguanodont theory. Also, in the July 2000 issue of National Geographic, it shows fossils of a Triassic raven-sized predator bird. Apparently, birds are much older than anyone previously thought! Also, this bird (Ravahonis) is possibly a desendant of raptors! It had a very big claw on one of it's toes. And I think that the Pleistocene duckbill dinosaur is garbage. A bone from the Cretaceous got pushed up from where it should be. That is much more likely than a K-T extinction survivor.
from Neil M., age 10, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; August 3, 2000

Brad, I have answers for you. Yes, there are full-sized dinos (two of them), the Tyrannosaurus and the Dilophosaurus (sorry, no Giganotosaurus!). I warn you, Brad, the latter spits! As to the Carnegie dinosaur models, I have no idea. I pretty much agree with your iguanodont theory. Also, in the July 2000 issue of National Geographic, it shows fossils of a Triassic raven-sized predator bird. Apparently, birds are much older than anyone previously thought! Also, this bird (Ravahonis) is possibly a desendant of raptors! It had a very big claw on one of it's toes. And I think that the Pleistocene duckbill dinosaur is garbage. A bone from the Cretaceous got pushed up from where it should be. That is much more likely than a K-T extinction survivor.
from Neil M., age 10, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; August 3, 2000

dinosaurs were big ugly creatures!
from amandac, age 23, new york, manhaton, america; August 2, 2000

What was the biggest dinosaur ever and what was the tallest and what was the most vicios
from Samuel C., age 9, Columbus, Georgia, U.S.; August 2, 2000

Something kept me up last night- Iguanodont thumb-spikes. I was trying to sleep on top of one, I was just wondering- "What are these things for?" The explanation of defensive purposes does not work. Not only do we see the beginning (Camptosaurus) and rise (Iguanodon) of thumb-spikes in the fossil record, we also see the reduction (Ouranosaurus) and complete loss (duckbills)! If thumb-spikes were useful in driving of hungry carnosaurs and raptors, evolution would not favour those who reduced it. A food-gathering purpose is possible, perhaps for scraping bark from a tree. Maybe duckbills lived in a lusher environment and never had to eat bark. But I imagine a social function of the thumb-spike. Early iguanodont ancestors, like the 'hypsilophodonts' and dryosaurs, had generalized ornithopod hands that rivals may have used in boxing competitions, hitting each other. Or maybe they just missed each other, and tried to make the other guy back away! . Now imagine a thumb-spike- wouldn't that be intimidating! With furious swipes of their thumbs, Iguanodon may have been able to push their way to the top of the herd! Or perhaps a test of strength was involved. I do not think this has ever been suggested before, but the sturdy thumb-spike would allow two Iguanodons to lock fore-feet in a tremendous arm-wresting competition! Hey, are you laughing? Waving the thumb-spike was challenging a rival to wrestle, waving it back was agreeing to the challenge. I don't know if Iguanodon as an arm-wrestler will catch on, but its a new idea. Whether they simply displayed the spike or arm-wrestled with it, I don't think rivals would normally hit each other with it. It was a sharp spike, and would be too dangerous. But for some reason, it all stopped. In the animal kingdom, males do most of the same-species fighting. So on male iguanodonts, the thumb-spike was probably larger, if not by the bone than by the horn sheath. It may have! also been coloured for display effect. Females seem to have the spike too- probably so they could break up the males' fighting if they got too rough. Just a thought. Males probably fought for leadership of the herd. But one group of iguanodonts had bigger more powerful females. The two morphs of Parasaurolophus are one with a big body and a small crest, and the other with a smaller body and a bigger crest. In duckbills (or at least Parasaurolophus), the females were bigger and probably in charge. The social structure had changed, and males stopped competing for leadership. They had to attract females some other way. And if you look at Parasaurolophus, he's all display feature- a striking crest at one end and a bilboard tail at the other. The thumb-spike was a waste of energy. Duckbills would rather have an elaborate crest than a horn on the thumb. And any reduction of the thumbspike that would allow the duckbill to put that energy into is display features was hel! pful. The thumb-spike disappeared. Duckbills didn't fight each other, they competed to have the brightest colour (which showed potential mates that they were eating well), or the loudest sound. That is my idea of ornithopod evolution around social displays. If you want ot reply to my theory, i would be really happy. Come on, please?
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 2, 2000

Has anyone seen the new Carnegie Collection dinosaurs from Safari? There is supposed to be a special edition Triceratops, a flexible Tanestropheus, a Utahraptor and a Carcharodontosaurus. I think they usually come out in the summer, at least the new ones last year (Psittacosaurus and special edition Tyrannosaurus) did. I usually buy from Mastermind toy stores, but they don't have the entire series (Carnotaurus, Baryonyx, Saltasaurus etc. are never there) There are awesome Carnegie Collection retailers in Quebec City, and I was able to buy a Baryonyx and a Smilodon. But I spent all my money before discovering a Carnotaurus and a funky patterned Triceratops, so my collection is still not complete. Its getting frustrating. I still need Deinosuchus too, and Kronosaurus, and Dilophosaurus. I hope I still saved the reciepts from my Quebec trip, because one store said that I could order stuff from them. That is cool. I have also been contacted by ! a retailer in Florida who would sell me Carnotaurus (months ago) but I've never got around to acting on that. I wonder what Science North will have in stock (if any). Does anyone else collect these things?
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 1, 2000

I don't know, Krystle. I have yet to read of the food requirements of Triceratops, or any related dinosaur. Triceratops was a big dinosaur, it weighed six tons. It probably ate up to several hundred pounds of vegetation every day.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 1, 2000

How much dose a trysaratops eat a day
from Krystle, age 8, Spanaway, Wa, Tocoma; August 1, 2000

Hi, Neil! I am going to Science North on Friday! I've been waiting for it all summer! I am glad to hear that the models are realistic. How many are there? As much as I would love to see life-sized dinosaurs, they are models and are allowed to be built on a smaller scale. I own a very realistic Amargasaurus that isn't taller than my ankle. Are any of the dinosaurs big? I want to see a full-sized Giganotosaurus! And yes, I definately like dinosaurs more than mammals. While mammalian carnivores like cats are pretty cool, I think that dinosaurs had us beat in the herbivore category. Take the Amargasaurus (blown up to its full size of 10 metres). Now that is a cool vegetarian. I'm curious about what colour it will be potrayed as, probbably something bright and crazy. And Neil, what kind of dinosaur souvineers are they selling up there? I've been saving.
from Brad, age 13, Woodville, ON, Canada; August 1, 2000