Dino Population Sizes

[Ralph Chapman <MNHAD002@SIVM.SI.EDU>]

Actually we can at times do much better than just relative numbers. We
can get some idea of the general number and distribution of beasts that
are killed en masse by certain events (e.g., massive ash dumps) and
provide us with snapshot death assemblages rather than the bone rain
deposits I talked about recently. The Nebraska Tertiary mammal/bird
wonderfulness for one does it for paleo-Mammals and even includes neat
things - as I recall - such as predators running out onto the ash fall
too early, starting to scavenge and then keeling over. I think the
bone beds that seem to have caught huge chunks of herds through
river flooding - the ceratopsian beds in Dino Prov Park - or Jack's
Maiasaura bone bed which seems to be an ashfall horizon provide us with
an indication of very large herds or populations in one area at one time,
as may the egg nesting sites in Montana and other areas as well. So,
exact numbers no but some idea of a minimum size for the standing population,
yeah.

Ralph Chapman, NMNH