Category Archives: Biomechanics

Nano Keeps on Slipping, Slipping…

Posted on April 5, 2016 by

So much has been written about Nanotyrannus, a catch-up article is hardly necessary. Indeed, many have been written, some published. The history of the name, and of the specimen that underlies it, is well-known. It behooves us, instead, to look … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Biomechanics, Morphometrics, Paleontology, Science Reporting, Taxonomy | Tagged , , , , , , | 12 Comments

The Best Little Oviraptorid in Mongolia

Posted on August 11, 2015 by

The sweaty summers of the mid 1970s give way to cooler climes indoors, as a block of sandstone pulled from the red-and-orange rocks of the Djadokhta Formation in Mongolia’s southern Gobi Desert finds itself in Ulaanbator, the nation’s capital. Initially … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Biology, Biomechanics, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Reconstruction, Science Reporting, Taphonomy | Tagged , , , , | 5 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

Orpheus Rex

Posted on November 14, 2014 by

Last time I talked about Erlikosaurus andrewsi, it was Stephan Lautenschlager’s paper with Larry Witmer, Perle Altangerel, and Emily Rayfield discussing the biomechanical aspects of toothloss and beak formation in Erlikosaurus andrewsi. That work indicated a far likelier restoration of … Continue reading →

Posted in Biomechanics, Paleontology, Science Reporting | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

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

The Outlaw Spino Saurus

Posted on September 12, 2014 by

There’s been a lot of news now about Thursday’s (Sep. 11, 2014) publication on a new specimen attributed to Spinosaurus aegyptiacus. A lot of hype rose up months back about the release of  a photo of a mount of some … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Biomechanics, Paleontology, Science Reporting, Taxonomy | Tagged , , , , , | 41 Comments

Pterosaur, Inter-Modulated

Posted on March 24, 2014 by

When Helmut Tischlinger and Eberhard “Dino” Frey team up for a paper, you know it’s gonna be good. Almost certainly, there will be UV involved. The pterosaur fossils of the Solnhofen are especially UV reflective, which brings out obscure or … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Biomechanics, Paleontology | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments