New Study Sheds glow- Dinosaur Size

Dinosaurs were not only the biggest animals to wander the Earth -- they also had a better number of bigger species compared to all other back-boned animals.

The researchers, from Queen Mary, University of London, compared the dimension of the femur bone of 329 dissimilar dinosaur species from fossil records. The length and weight of the femur bone is a documented method in paleontology for estimating a dinosaur's body mass.

They found that dinosaurs pursue the reverse model of body size distribution as seen in other vertebrate species. For example, within living mammals there tends to be little better species, such as elephants, compared to lesser animals, such as mice, which have many species. The proof from fossil records implies that in difference there were many species of better dinosaurs and few small species.

Our proof supports the hypothesis that youthful dinosaurs busy a dissimilar environmental place to their parents so they weren't in competition for the similar sources of food as they ate smaller plants or preyed on lesser size animals. In fact, we see modern crocodiles following this model baby crocodiles begin by feeding off insects and tadpoles before graduating on to fish and then bigger mammals.

New Dinosaur had memorable Smile

A new dinosaur unearthed in Wyoming had such great teeth that its jaws continually looked to be smiling an enormous grin.

Kaatedocus had a set of pencil-like teeth in the face part of the gag," Mateus explained. "They were modified for eating plant life. As for many sauropods, because those teeth were not modified for chewing, Kaatedocus possibly ingested gastroliths or gizzard stones."

Kaatedocus lived 150 million years ago, throughout the Late Jurassic era. A comparative of Diplodocus, this dinosaur lived earlier and was slighter. The huge bulk of species from this dinosaur family come from the Jurassic Morrison Formation of the Western United States. In contrast, this new dinosaur was found extra north, signifying that consequent generations gradually moved southward over time.

Mateus and a worldwide team studied the well-preserved relics of Kaatedocus. Often quite a tad of creative allows is necessary during reconstructions, but in this case, even the skull makes clear the dinosaurs "smiling" look.

In terms of the new Wyoming discovery, Mateus said, "This class is lesser and slightly older than other dinosaurs of the equal family, it is significant for understanding the development of all Diplodocus-like dinosaurs."

Spinosaurus: the biggest dinosaur Carnivorous

Spinosaurus was the largest of all the carnivorous dinosaurs, bigger than Tyrannosaurus and Giganotosaurus. It lived during the center of the Cretaceous Period about 112 million to 97 million years ago, roaming the swamps of North Africa.

Two Spinosaurus species have been named based on the region where they were discovered: Spinosaurus aegyptiacus and Spinosaurus maroccanus.

Spinosaurus means "spine lizard," and suitable descriptor, as the dinosaur had very long spines rising on its back to form what is referred to as a "sail." The spines were more than 10 times the length of the vertebrae structures from which they comprehensive and were slightly longer front to back at the base than higher up.

The distinctive spines were about 5.4 feet long and were likely to have been linked by skin. Because the spines were connected by tissue, the structure may also have been more of a huge bulge than a sail, according to German paleontologist Ernst Stromer.

There has been much technical dispute concerning the evolution and purpose of the Spinosaurus' sail. It is probable that the sail served several purposes, including regulating body temperature by fascinating heat, and attracting mates.

Because of its size, the Spinosaurus did not have many predators, but the sail could have been used to ward off enemies, as the dinosaur appeared to be twice its bulk when the sail was entirely extended. Paleontologists theorize that the sails were brightly colored, much like the fins of some latter-day reptiles.

The only straight substantiation that Spinosaurus ate fish was a juvenile exposed with fish scales and bones in its stomach. There is also proof that it preyed on other small herbivore dinosaurs and scavenged.

Discover some amazing dinosaur remains

From tiny trilobites to immense dinosaurs, a wonderful array of creatures has lived on Earth over the past 4 billion years. Deep in the earth around you are the sealed remains of past life. Paleontologists work to show these fossils, which can be many different shapes, sizes, and colors. Usually, fossils are the teeth, bones, or shells of olden animals, but sometimes we find out something even rarer, like fossilized poop.

Fossilized feces are called coprolites, meaning “dung stones.” Coprolites frequently seize clues to an animal’s meal, the atmosphere in which the animal lived, and more. Dino poop — along with coprolites from other dead animals — can tell notable stories about creatures that lived millions of years ago.

 By investigative fossil feces, along with teeth, bones, and sealed stomach contents, scientists can part together how dinosaur carnivores, omnivores, and herbivores ate and digested their meals.

Did Dinosaurs Poop? Is a brand new hands-on exhibition for children opening Sept. 14 at the Museum of the Earth? Considered mainly for families with children ages 4 to 10 but fun for all ages, the exhibition presents a fun and multicolored approach to knowledge about fossils and dinosaur diets.

The museum will celebrate Family Day from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sept. 15 with fun practical activities and two showings at 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. of WSKG’s “Dinosaur coach: Every fossil Poops” event.

110 Success Stories for Endangered Species Day 2012

Critics of the Endangered Species Act contend it is a failure because only 1 percent of the species under its protection have recovered and been delisted. The critique, however, is undermined by its failure to explain how many species should have recovered by now. It is a ship without an anchor.

To objectively test whether the Endangered Species Act is recovering species at a sufficient rate, we compared the actual recovery rate of 110 species with the projected recovery rate in their federal recovery plans. The species range over all 50 states, include all major taxonomic groups, and have a diversity of listing lengths.

We found that the Endangered Species Act has a remarkably successful recovery rate: 90 percent of species are recovering at the rate specified by their federal recovery plan.

You can read a copy of the report, “On Time, On Target: How the Endangered Species Act Is Saving America’s Wildlife” here. Click here to see a regional map of species recovering around the country.

On average, species recovered in 25 years, while their recovery plan predicted 23 years — a 91 percent timeliness accomplishment.

We confirmed the conclusion of scientists and auditors who assert that the great majority of species have not been listed long enough to warrant an expectation of recovery: 80 percent of species have not yet reached their expected recovery year. On average, these species have been listed for just 32 years, while their recovery plans required 46 years of listing.

The study’s findings are similar to a 2006 analysis of all federally protected species in the Northeast, which found 93 percent were stabilized or improving since being put on the endangered species list and 82 percent were on pace to meet recovery goals.

When judged in the light of meeting recovery plan timelines for recovery, the Endangered Species Act is remarkably successful. Few laws of any kind can boast a 90 percent success rate.

Loss of rare species can harm ecosystems

Bracken and Brown University student Natalie Low conducted several experiments that analyzed the impact of removing seaweed and sessile animals, such as mussels and barnacles, from the rocky shores of Northeastern’s Marine Science Center in Nahant, Mass. The experiments were designed to mimic naturally occurring changes in biodiversity on rocky shores.

The findings were startling. “We have shown that the loss of these extremely rare species — which collectively represent less than 10 percent of the seaweed and animal biomass at the base of the food web — causes major declines in the abundance and diversity of animals, such as snails, crabs and other mobile animals,” Bracken said. Prior research on the extirpation of rare species from a particular ecosystem focused on how the loss of top predators — often referred to as “keystone” species — affects plants and animals at the bottom of the food chain. Bracken and Low, on the other hand, have shown that the loss of rare species from the base of the food chain, which they call “cornerstone” species, can also reshape marine systems. A pattern of decline emerged after only three weeks of experiments and persisted for the remainder of the five–week study. “Previous work on the effects of rare predator removals took months to years to show strong effects,” Bracken said. “We found strong effects of rare seaweed removals after only a few weeks.”