Re: Guts-Eating Spinosaurs

["Jordan Mallon" <j_mallon@hotmail.com>]

> From: "Fam Jansma" <fam.jansma@worldonline.nl>

> The skull in at least Suchomimus is very narrow, as is the lower jaw >of 
> the holotype of Spinosaurus aegyptacus. When something is narrow, >it is 
> easily breakable and when you are dealing with struggling fish >with it's 
> body moving all around, the tail could snap the skull.

This reminds me: hasn't it been shown that the snout kink seen in 
coelophysoids actually served to somehow reinforce the skull (ref?)?  If so, 
then does the same apply to the spinosaurids?

> Baryonyx was a relatively basal creature, so it is logical it is more 
> >sturdy in the jaw area, but the Spinosaurus maroccanus had a very 
> >slender jaw.

Well, firstly, that's assuming the position of _Baryonyx_ within the 
Spinosauridae is well understood, which I don't believe it is.  And 
secondly, I just want to point out that _Herrerasaurus_ is more basal than 
_T. rex_, and yet the latter has much "sturdier" jaws.  I'm not so sure that 
being basal correlates at all with being "sturdy."

> Taken to the extreme in the 7ft skull. Bye the way, does anyone have a 
> >picture of this skull that I could possibly have?

Of what?  _Spinosaurus moroccanus_?  There hasn't yet been an entire skull 
described.

Jordan Mallon

http://www.geocities.com/paleoportfolio/

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