Re: Natural enemies

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

Truett Garner wrote:

<<<Without any doubt, Velociraptor mongoliensis and Protoceratops
andrewsi were natural enemies, as proved by the "fighting dinosaurs"
fossil foun in Mongolia.>>>

Jaime Headden replied:

<<I disagree. More associations between two taxa have been found in
*Oviraptor* and *Protoceratops* than with any dromaeosaur and the
fantastic griffin-sheep of the Gobi; Keilan-Joworowska's find of a
fighting pair of two animals only agrees that one may have killed the
other, and then died by burial (for it cannot be proven that Veloci
was killed by Proto). The proto was probably a threat to _everyone_ in
the Gobi, being a possible egg-eating, nine-foot, fast-running,
demon-with-a-beak herbivore!>>
 
<I totally agree that there are more Oviraptor/Protoceratops
associations, but there is no concrete evidence that the Proto and
Oviraptor were in direct confrontation, much less that the Proto was
an egg-eater. The fossil record does seem to indicate that it's
possible, but we don't have any tangible proof.>

  Agreed.
 
<<And then there is the Two Medicine Formation in Montana, USA, where
*Troodon* was probably the major threat to *Maiasaura* hatchlings, and
*Albertosaurus* the only extant predator _capable_ of bringing down
the hadrosaur.>>

<Troodon was more of a threat to Orodromeus, being that their remains
were found in such close association (see 'Dinosaur Lives' J. Horner ,
1997). Again we have no firm evidence. Varanid lizards could have been
more of a threat in this case.>

  I didn't consider lizards (or even mindless speculation on my part)
when I wrote the post.

  I now avow to resolve to change myself . . . nah. I _do_ agree that
I should not have stated this, though the possibility is stronger in
my mine than the others, and I forgot the comeptiting predators of the
day.

==
Jaime A. Headden

Qilong, the website, at:
http://members.tripod.com/~Qilong/qilong.html
---
All comments and criticisms are welcome!

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