Re: Insulation does not = "Warm-blooded"

[TomHopp@aol.com]

Tom Holtz wrote:

<< the proposed lifestyles of dinosaurs, such as migrating from Alberta to 
Alaska and back, galloping at 50 km/h, running bipedally at even higher 
speeds, ...>

<EEK!  The Gospel According to Bob! :-)

As pointed out by HP(h.D., soon) Bonnan and others, be VERY cautious about 
most of the above propositions.  Some of these have been accepted as 
certainty in dinosaur-fandom when in fact the data supporting them are less 
substantial. >>

I agree with you, Tom, but point out Ostrom's contention of 1969 (or 
thereabouts) that the obligate bipedality of ancestral dinosaurs implicates 
tachymetabolism (and really, warmbloodedness if they weren't to keel over in 
cool weather). Given warm blood through most of dinosaur time, and ALL 
dinosaur taxa, it is, in my opinion, a reasonable ASSUMPTION that lifestyle 
complexity surpassing mammalia arose among dinosaurs. Therefore, despite the 
sensibility in your warning and the lack of proof that you mention, it is 
nevertheless quite a stretch, again IMHO, to maintain that these behaviors 
didn't exist.
   Counterarguments abound, so I leave it for a fictional character to defend 
this unknowable but probably correct point-of-view. Dr. David Ogilvey, the 
old paleontologist mentor in my science fiction novel Dinosaur Wars says it 
best in this excerpt:

    The view was now hemmed in by dense willows crowding the road from both 
sides.
    "This is a bad idea," Chase muttered under his breath. Meanwhile Ogilvey, 
heedless of anyoneâs anxiety, launched into another dissertation.
    "Ah yes," he crooned. "To see dinosaurs, especially my Pteronychus, in 
the fleshâwhy itâs a paleontologistâs dream come true."
    Ogilveyâs reverent tone irritated Chase. "Itâs a nightmare to everybody 
else!"
    "Yes, of course, but see it from my perspective. Ideas I have propounded 
for years, over my colleaguesâ strenuous resistance, are now quite 
emphatically borne out."
    "Like?"
    "Like refuting the notion of dinosaurs as stupid overgrown lizards. My 
most beleaguered theory proves correct after all. I call it behavioral 
maximizationâthe concept that extinct animal behavior should be modeled not 
on primitive creatures like lizards, but on the most advanced living 
examples. We should never start with the assumption that extinct animals were 
less capable than their modern counterparts."
    "But," Chase said, while keeping a wary eye on the road, "they look 
primitive. Theyâve got lizard tails, crocodile teethâ"
    "Thatâs just it, my boy. They may be built on an older body plan, but one 
should assume they have optimized the use of that plan along the way. 
Remember, dinosaurs had 180 million years of evolution to perfect their forms 
and behaviors, while modern mammals have had only 65 million years. 
Therefore, it is best to assume that a predator like T-rex was at least as 
sophisticated as, say, a modern lion or bear. All that extra evolutionary 
time must count for something."
    Ogilvey raised the pedagogical finger again and was about to continue his 
lecture when suddenly he clutched the wheel with both hands and slammed on 
the brakes.
* * * End quote. * * *

Admittedly, the role of the paleontologist is to keep an eye on PROVEN data, 
but interpretation has its place. Maybe that's the role of your so called 
"dinosaur-fandom," since poor unfortunate scientists (except Drs. Ogilvey and 
Bakker) are constrained to data, some of which will always be lacking. Unless 
we miraculously find a continuous trackway from Prudhoe Bay to Corpus 
Christi, your doubts about migration will always remain -- but what is the 
truth?

Thomas P. Hopp
Author of DINOSAUR WARS, a science fiction novel published by iUniverse
Now Humans are the Endangered Species!  http://members.aol.com/dinosaurwars