Re: [dinosaur] T. rex hunting Alamosaurus

["John D'Angelo" <assuming.dinosaur@gmail.com>]

Titanosaurs were not armoredâat least, not in a way comparable to, for
example, ankylosaurs. Their osteoderms were clearly very sparse (I
don't think any titanosaur specimen has ever been found with more than
around four osteoderms associated), so they did not provide the kind
of full-body coverage "armor" implies. In some species, the osteoderms
were hollow, decreasing their protective value and suggesting that,
instead, the osteoderms may have acted as a kind of nutrient
reservoir. It is possible that, in female titanosaurs, osteoderms
served a role similar to medullary bone in other dinosaurs. Then there
is, of course, the possibility that they were used for visual
signaling. In some species, such as Ampelosaurus, the osteoderms
supported prominent spikes and perhaps could be compared to the plates
of stegosaurs.

Suffice to say, there is no evidence that titanosaur osteoderms
existed for defensive purposes, so it is perhaps misleading to
describe them as "armored." Some small titanosaurs, such as
Saltasaurus, did have dermal ossicles in addition to the large
osteoderms, and perhaps these were used for a protective purpose, but
in the majority of titanosaurs, there isn't really evidence for it.

On Wed, Jul 3, 2019 at 10:38 AM Anthony <keenir@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> well, that would certainly explain why Alamosaurus had armor...though leaves 
> open the question of why armor wasn't more common among sauropods.
>
> ________________________________
> From: dinosaur-l-request@usc.edu <dinosaur-l-request@usc.edu> on behalf of 
> Gregory Paul <gsp1954@aol.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 3, 2019 12:08 PM
> To: RTravsky@uwyo.edu; dinosaur-l@usc.edu
> Subject: Re: [dinosaur] T. rex hunting Alamosaurus
>
> I proposed the possibility that large theropods dashed in and took off chunks 
> of flesh in the 1998 Modern Geology formation volumes on the Morrison 
> Formation. Especially the relatively modest sized allosaurs relative to the 
> far larger sauropods.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Richard W. Travsky <RTravsky@uwyo.edu>
> To: DML <dinosaur-l@usc.edu>
> Sent: Wed, Jul 3, 2019 1:12 am
> Subject: RE: [dinosaur] T. rex hunting Alamosaurus
>
> Other scenarios:
>
> A kill is not necessarily needed, tearing off chunks not unlike a shark 
> attack.
>
> Could a rex kick? Thinking of ostriches or emus and clawed feet.
>
> Ambush hunting? Though one would think that with the height of the head on a 
> sauropod â any sauropod â an ambush might be hard to arrange.
>
> Given that long, stiff neck, just how agile would that Alamosaurus have to be 
> to deal with an attack, fatal or not? (Giraffe comes to mind)
>
>
> From: dinosaur-l-request@usc.edu [mailto:dinosaur-l-request@usc.edu] On 
> Behalf Of Thomas Richard Holtz
>
>
> What Mike says is true for adults.
>
> But given that most dinosaurs spent most of their life cycle as 
> not-fully-grown, how to kill a younger Alamosaurus? Neck bites would be the 
> quick way, particularly with the bone-crushing strength of a T. rex bite. 
> Also, a disabling bite to the thigh or a massive bite on the abdomen might do 
> the job.