Re: Um...Pointless stuff

["Jaime A. Headden" <qilongia@yahoo.com>]

Jessica Wagar (Ha! Ha! Got the name right!) wrote:

<...Allrrrrighty, enough of my goofing off durring
spring break... and back to dinosaurs... (more
questions?...RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!)

Q#1)  What does _Alioramus remotus_ look like? I mean
the skeleton, that is...or is all we have the skull?>

  Fragmentary skeleton, the best preserved of which
are a pes (three metatarsi) and a partial skull, being
a dentary, cheek, upperjaw, nasal, partial braincase,
suspensorian and postorbital. Reconstructions vary,
including Maleev's original (reproduced just about
everywhere) to Greg Paul's in _PDW_. Mostly, Alio
varies from all other tyrannosaurine tyrannosaurids by
having more teeth in the jaws and being longer skulled
than tall than other tyrants, and the pes appears to
be more primitive than *Alectrosaurus'*, whose'
resembles *Albertosaurus*.

<Q#2) What does the skeleton of
Eustreptoreptospondylus look like (Sorry about the
spelling, I'm going from memmory for that name).>

  Who was it that recomended _PDW_? Do it. Excellent
reconstruction. Very short forelimbs, odd [very
partial] skull, with neural spines that are not fused
to the centra, meaning it was not full-grown.

<Q#3) Is there any differences between the sexes
(sexual dimorphism, isn't that the word?) that's been
observed in Alioramus or other meat-eating dinosaurs
of simmilar size?>

  Alioramus has been estimated as being around 20 feet
long, and very few dinosaurs are known for sexual
dimorphism at that size range. Besides, there's only
the type specimen to go by.

<Q#4) If I dropped my copy of _The Dinosauria_
(sofcover) on my foot, could it theoreticly break my
toe?>

  Ouch! I thought I was the only one who had that
happen! I mean ... no ....

<Q#5)Anyone know a quick way of drawing scales on a
dinosaur without drawing tiny tiny circles over and
over and over again until your hand cramps up and you
can't do your homework because you spent the hour
drawing dinosaurs because you thought it'd be more
fun? :)>

  Practice. That's the only way you're gonna get to go
a long time drawing without cramping. Massage your
hands every so often, go back to biz. Scales: I do
this by only drawing an angle or partial circle, being
on the side _away_ from the direction of light. But
this is my bit.

<Q#6) Can anyone reccomend any drawing books to help
me get better at drawing dinosaurs?>

  Been answered. Look at books that do not
specifically look at dinos, but also at "regular"
animals. There are also some references you might look
at to find muscle reconstructions, and they should be
fairly accessible, too:

Borsuk-Bialynika, M. 1977. A new camarasaurid
sauropod, Opsithocoelicaudia skarzynskii, gen. n. sp.
n. from the Upper Cretaceous of Mongolia.
_Paleontologia Polonica_ 37: 5-64.
  [includes muscular reconstructions of fore- and
hindlimbs]

Coombs, W.P.Jr. 1978. Forelimb muscles of the
Ankylosauria (Reptilia, Ornithschia). _Journal of
Paleontology_ 52: 642-658.

_______________ 1979. Osteology and myology of the
hindlimb in Ankylosauria (Reptilia, Ornithschia).
_Journal of Paleontology_ 53: 666-684.
  [what they say]

Norman, D. 1983. _The Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs_
(Salamander Books, Ltd.) pp. 208.
  [jaw and hip musculature largely simplified]

Paul's Predatory Dinosaurs of the World, of course,
and--

Paul, G.S. 1989. The science and art of restoring the
life appearance of dinosaurs and their relatives: A
rigorous how-to guide. p. 4-49 (in Czerkas and Olson,
_Dinosaurs Past and Present_ vol. II [Natural History
Musuem of Los Angeles and University of Washington
Press (Seattle and London)]).
  [excellent tips and examples from one of the
predominant paleo-artists of today]

===
- Greek proverb: "Knowledge is Inherent;
  Stupidity is Learned." -

Jaime A. Headden

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