Re: Long-necked stegosaur coming out in Proceedings B

[Dann Pigdon <dannj@alphalink.com.au>]

Quoting Jura <pristichampsus@yahoo.com>:

> Fair enough. I was actually responding to a statement made about
> stegosaurs having to turn their backs on their adversaries.
> Presenting one's broad side to a predator removes the "need" for a
> long neck to see behind. 

Turning into a U-shape would have worked well against only one predator,
but it may have left the outside flank horribly exposed to a second
predator (unless the stegosaur backed up against something). The
advantage of the U-shaped position is that the stegosaur could have had
both eyes on the predator (perhaps improving depth perception), while
having the tail spikes also jutting towards it ready for a precision thrust.

If stegosaurs had eyes that looked sideways like modern mammalian
herbivores, then perhaps they simply turned side-on to attackers without
bending the neck or tail, ready to swipe in either direction if
necessary. In that case they might not have had great depth perception
anyway, which might suggest their defensive strategies involved swinging
the tail wildly without any specific aim.

-- 
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Dann Pigdon
GIS / Archaeologist              http://geo_cities.com/dannsdinosaurs
Melbourne, Australia             http://heretichides.soffiles.com
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