RE: [Part 2: Terramegathermy]

["R. Irmis" <rbi@dana.ucc.nau.edu>]

<<...Sauropods were many times larger than the largest leatherback and they
never dealt with temperatures as extreme as those the leatherback faces. If
they did have the same proportion of bodyfat that _D.coriacea_ has then I'm
sure they would overheat, but we're talking about huge animals in the
tropics...>>

Gotta disagree with you here.  Sauropod material has been found in
Australia, where it most certainly was not "tropical" during much of the
year.  Six months of almost total darkness tends to cool things down a bit.
Definitely not the temperature that the Leatherback constantly faces, but
chilly enough.  The climate has no real bearing on whether dinosaurs were
endothermic or not, but thats another story...

Regards,
Randy Irmis