Re: sauropod lung collapse

[Mike Taylor <mike@miketaylor.org.uk>]

> Date: Tue, 10 Jan 2006 18:44:22 -0800 (PST)
> From: don ohmes <d_ohmes@yahoo.com>
> 
> [Sauropods'] ability to store and conserve O2 may have allowed them
> to deflate their lungs prior to submerging, reducing bouyancy to the
> point that walking on the bottom was practical.

I very much doubt it.  Even if the lungs and soft-tissue air-sacs
could be deflated, most sauropods would still have had large volumes
of air in non-collapsible spaces within the vertebrae, and would
therefore remain bouyant.

By the way, is sauropods had avian-style lungs, as seems likely from
the existence of an avian-style air-sac system, isn't it the case that
collapsing them would render them unable to reinflate due to capillary
action?  If so, and if the surrounding soft-tissue was not rigid
enough to prevent such collapse, then entering deep water would have
meant death to sauropods!  :-)

 _/|_    ___________________________________________________________________
/o ) \/  Mike Taylor  <mike@miketaylor.org.uk>  http://www.miketaylor.org.uk
)_v__/\  "I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days
         attack me at once" -- Ashleigh Brilliant.