RE: Large man-sized KT dromies

["Thomas R. Holtz, Jr." <tholtz@geol.umd.edu>]

> From: owner-dinosaur@usc.edu [mailto:owner-dinosaur@usc.edu]On Behalf Of
> John Conway
>
> On Monday, May 20, 2002, at 10:58  PM, Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. wrote:
>
> > You are not missing anything.  There are as yet no large dromaeosaurs
> > known
> > from Lancian (Hell Creek, Lance, Scollard, etc.) formations.  They were
> > pure
> > fantasy.
>
> Apart from T.rex, were there any predators from Lancian formations
> capable of bringing down large prey?
>

If _Nanotyrannus_ is a valid taxon, it could.  Of course, most of Horner's
objections to _T. rex_ predation would actually apply to all tyrannosaurids,
so the point is moot.

If the bigass oviraptorosaur was a predator, it might concievably taken down
at least mid-sized prey (young ceratopsids, thescelosaurs, etc.).

Otherwise, any large non-_T. rex_ terrestrial predator in Lancian sediments
has slipped under our taphonomic radar, at least so far.

                Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
                Vertebrate Paleontologist
Department of Geology           Director, Earth, Life & Time Program
University of Maryland          College Park Scholars
                College Park, MD  20742
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~tholtz/tholtz.htm
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~jmerck/eltsite
Phone:  301-405-4084    Email:  tholtz@geol.umd.edu
Fax (Geol):  301-314-9661       Fax (CPS-ELT): 301-405-0796