Re: T. rex the predator

[Chris Campbell <sankarah@ou.edu>]

Colette H. Adams wrote:
> 
> Jonathan, I don't know if you've seen Predatory Dinosaurs of the World by
> Greg Paul, but Greg rightly points out that "true" scavenging is quite rare
> among terrestrial vertebrates.  There are just not enough carcasses.
> Vultures get away with it (more or less, they do kill on occasion) because
> they use soaring to cover considerable distances at low energy cost.  

Just wanted to point out that this only applies to old-world and South
American vultures; California Condors and the North American vultures
have never, to my knowledge, been observed making a kill, even when
perfect, easy, and risk-free opportunities arise (such as a gopher snake
just sitting there in the middle of the road).
I'm not disagreeing with your point, just pointing out that there are
some obligate, totally dedicated vertebrate scavengers out there.
 
Chris