Re: snarling theropods

[Mark Hallett <marksabercat@yahoo.com>]

Ever woke up to find you'd fallen asleep with your
mouth open? These tissues can dry out quickly,
depending on the amount of humidity. The important
thing isn't whether the teeth were totally covered or
not (obviously this would have been impossible in
machairodontids, most pterosaurs and other
archosaurs), but that the oral flaps would have
covered the the soft epithelial or mucosal tissue,
either preventing or at least reducing dessication
from water transpiration through these areas, as well
as helping to keep out insect parasites.  Otherwise
there's little reason to have structures like this. 

--Mark Hallett
--- GSP1954@aol.com wrote:
> Cliff Green wrote - 
>  
> I seriously doubt that carnosaurs could make facial
> expressions, but
> 
> Mark Hallet made the excellant point that as land
> animals, theropods, unlike
> 
> crocodilians,who are semi-aquatic,  had to be able
> to conserve thier bodily
> 
> fluids. A lipless mouth would dehydrate the sharp
> tooths faster than you
> 
> could say " anatomically incorrect. " I sculpt all
> of my Saurischians with
> 
> lizard lips. Besides, they look cooler that way.
> 
> 
> Seems logical, but lots of pterosaurs were flying
> around with their teeth 
> hanging out and so have other animals, including
> saber tooth felids. So it is 
> not 
> a convincing argument. The anatomical evidence for
> saurischian lips is solid 
> enough to make it the much superior hypothesis. 
> 
> G Paul
> 


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