Re: Dino Death Pits in Feb. Palaios

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

David Marjanovic wrote:
>>  There is no evidence that the pits were discrete depressions in the
>>  topography that filled through time. Rather, they appear to have been
>>  highly localized areas of liquefaction caused by large-dinosaur
>>  (possibly sauropod) trampling of saturated sediments.
>
> Does this mean the vibrations from trampling sauropods liquefied nearby
> quicksand...? That would be awesome.
>
> In any case, the paper shows that size does matter. =8-)
>
No, the idea is that the compression and then decompression of the
sediment underneath the sauropod's foot liquified it. Walking around a
beach in the right conditions can do the same.

-- 
Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
Email: tholtz@umd.edu   Phone: 301-405-4084
Office: Centreville 1216
Senior Lecturer, Vertebrate Paleontology
Dept. of Geology, University of Maryland
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~tholtz/
Fax: 301-314-9661

Faculty Director, Earth, Life & Time Program, College Park Scholars
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~jmerck/eltsite/
Faculty Director, Science & Global Change Program, College Park Scholars
http://www.geol.umd.edu/sgc
Fax: 301-314-9843

Mailing Address:        Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
                        Department of Geology
                        Building 237, Room 1117
                        University of Maryland
                        College Park, MD 20742 USA