Category Archives: Biological Comparison

Necessary Sacrifices

Posted on April 30, 2016 by

Today I step away from something that has occupied my life for … over two decades now. I have no idea if I will ever return. It saved my life when I needed it to, and stepping away is almost … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biological Comparison, Biology, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Personal, Reconstruction | 22 Comments

Herbivores All the Way Down

Posted on May 12, 2015 by

Back in the 1980s and 1990s, a revolution in the way dinosaurs were conceived to have evolved occurred, in which a basal stock of croc-ish animals (this was during the “thecodont origin of … everything (?)” phase of archosaur relationship … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biological Comparison, Paleoecology, Paleontology, Reconstruction, Science Reporting | Tagged , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Facial Expressions

Posted on April 7, 2015 by

The various and many ways to make a “cheek,” and the various facial tissues for which we have primary (preserved remains) and secondary (inferred) evidence for, in fossil sauropsidans. (These images are CC-BY-ND-NC. Please don’t take them without permission.)

Posted in Art, Biological Comparison, Biology, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Reconstruction | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

A Mystery of Caenagnathidae

Posted on January 15, 2015 by

Some time ago, Michael Mortimer posted on his site the idea that the Dzharakuduk avian Kuszholia mengi might actually be an oviraptorosaur! The similarities in the vertebrae (based mostly on sacrals) were starling. But also convergent. Was it? The Dzharakuduk … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological Comparison, Paleontology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Shell Crushing Pterosaurs and Bad Posture

Posted on December 7, 2014 by

Small post here. This one is going to seem incomplete, the title a tease. It’s a premise for more things. But you’ll see where I’m going with this. This concerns the issues of how we look at pterosaurs when they’re … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biological Comparison, Biology, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Reconstruction | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Toothed Birds

Posted on October 27, 2014 by

It soars over the tossing waves on enormous, outspread wings. With nary a flap, the bird is soaring dynamically high above the ocean, its eyes scanning the sky around it and sea below. It may seem unremarkable to us today: … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological Comparison, Biology, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Paleoecology, Paleontology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

A Short Piece on Piscivores – Not All The Same

Posted on May 20, 2014 by

So you think you know a piscivore if you saw one? Not so fast. Take a look: Piscivores come in a large array of sizes and morphologies. Not all have teeth. Some are slender-snouted, others broad. What mostly defines a … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological Comparison, Biology, Paleoecology, Paleontology, Terminology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments