Re: Sauropods Then and Now

[MariusRomanus@aol.com]

In a message dated 7/17/2005 8:58:17 PM Alaskan Standard Time, 
MarkSabercat@aol.com writes:

> Whenever someone brings up the scenario of sauropods crowding the shoreline 
foraging for water weeds, it reminds me of the frustration of an onshore lake 
fishing experience I had years ago, where I and about 30 other anglers were 
attempting to cast and reel in the same limited area. Aside from the obvious 
problem of competion for browsing space along the shore, for a diplodocid doing 
 
the "horizontal sweep" feeding technique on a shallow stratum of aquatic 
vegetation, I think 2 -- 3 foraging passes of about 170 degrees starting from 
point A to B would probably deplete most of the material in  this radius 
available 
from the position from which the animal was standing, requiring it to move 
forward to reach more; this would put it in competition  with the species 
having 
the next longest neck. This wouldn't be a problem in  arboreal browsing, 
where the mass of available vegetation would be deeper and  could be harvested 
on 
a vertical as well as a horizontal plane. <

Mark makes a point here that I think can only be truly understood if you've 
experienced it yourself... If you ever come to Alaska in June/July and are want 
to see exactly what it is Mark is talking about, I would suggest trying 
something called "Combat Fishing"... No lie... They call it "Combat Fishing"... 
because that is exactly what it is... You and about 100+ other anglers, all 
lined 
up on a river bank, standing shoulder to shoulder, casting away like mad men 
trying to catch salmon. And if you really think about it, the casting/sweeping 
motion of the rod/line is a pretty good comparison to the sweeping motion of 
necks.

It is a living hell that I will never, ever try again.

Kris
http://hometown.aol.com/saurierlagen/Paleo-Photography.html