Re: attack on dinosaur--horrific video

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

Graydon writes: 

> On Sun, Nov 25, 2007 at 11:45:36AM -0500, john bois scripsit:
> > ----- Original Message ----- From: "David Marjanovic"
> > <david.marjanovic@gmx.at>
> > > ...reliance on nest defense does nowhere near guarantee extinction.
> >
> > Why has it not re-evolved in your view?  I mean, crocs are it, right?
> > So, what is the probablity that nest defence strategy in terrestrial
> > biomes has been eliminated by chance alone?  If it's a viable
> > strategy, how come no one outside of crocs employs it?
>
> But many birds *do* employ it; pretty much any raptorial bird or corvid. 
>
> There are eyewitness accounts of woodpeckers killing squirrels bent on
> nest-raiding, come to that.

I watched a DVD about nile crocs last night (by National Geographic) which 
showed that certain ground-nesting birds nest along side the croc nest. Both 
animals benefitted from each other's nest defense strategies - in fact, it 
was often the highly aggressive birds that drove away nile monitors rather 
than the croc (since she had to return to the water for extended periods 
during the hottest parts of the day). 

___________________________________________________________________
Dann Pigdon
GIS / Archaeologist              geo cities.com/dannsdinosaurs
Melbourne, Australia             heretichides.soffiles.com
___________________________________________________________________