Living Dinosaurs???

DarkHououmon · **Reply #20 on:** February 04, 2008, 02:42:04 AM

Quote from: landbeforetimelover,Feb 4 2008 on 02:18 AM

The only way a "dinosaur" as we think of them today actually survived is if aliens exist and they took one to another planet that's inhabitable before they all went extinct.

What makes you think so?

landbeforetimelover · **Reply #21 on:** February 04, 2008, 02:56:35 AM

The only way a dino can still exist is if it's adapted over millions of years and is some other creature we know today. I don't think this sort of evolution is possible in such a short amount of time (geologically speaking of course), which leads me to believe that inter-species breeding occurred. Some organisms interbreed with other organisms when their race is dying. It is rare, but sometimes it works. I don't think that huge amount of adaption could have occurred in such a short amount of time, so I think the species that could interbreed did, and created significantly different (but recognizable) offspring and the species that were unable to interbreed died off.

Malte279 · **Reply #22 on:** February 04, 2008, 04:15:53 AM

While at times "living fossils" are being discovered (e.g. Coelacanth) I am quite certain we can take it for granted that there are no dinosaurs left on the earth. In an age where espionage satellites can spot things of the size of a golf ball we can be rather certain that no dinosaur of any significant size (and there would have to be a couple of them to ensure the survival of the species) could still roam the earth. I don't like to make too absolute statements; but there are no dinosaurs left on the earth...
Except perhaps in some governments and parliaments

Jasper · **Reply #23 on:** February 04, 2008, 04:40:23 AM

I wonder if it's possible to clone one then.

Malte279 · **Reply #24 on:** February 04, 2008, 04:43:28 AM

I wonder if, if possible, they should be.

DarkHououmon · **Reply #25 on:** February 04, 2008, 10:57:16 AM

Quote

The only way a dino can still exist is if it's adapted over millions of years and is some other creature we know today. I don't think this sort of evolution is possible in such a short amount of time (geologically speaking of course), which leads me to believe that inter-species breeding occurred. Some organisms interbreed with other organisms when their race is dying. It is rare, but sometimes it works. I don't think that huge amount of adaption could have occurred in such a short amount of time, so I think the species that could interbreed did, and created significantly different (but recognizable) offspring and the species that were unable to interbreed died off.

It is possible that, if dinosaurs were still around, they would still closely resemble dinosaurs we are familiar with, if they had reached an evolutionary dead-end. Examples would be sharks and crocodilians. They've been around longer than dinosaurs (sharks being the oldest of the two) and they haven't changed that much after their killing techniques were "perfected" sort of speak. Giant crocodiles and modern day crocodiles may differ in size but their physical appearance is almost unchanged.

Quote

I wonder if it's possible to clone one then.

It's not possible to clone dinosaurs. There's no DNA strand complete enough to build a dinosaur. The idea used by Jurassic Park is impossible, one of the reasons being that if they put frog DNA in the code, they would get a frog/dinosaur mutant.

Purple Presence · **Reply #26 on:** February 04, 2008, 11:07:28 AM

I can't deny having dreamt of the same thing in my youth. Hell, the thought still crops up in the back of my skull from time to time. But I'd have to agree with Malte on one thing: If there were dinosaurs around, they would likely have been discovered by now due to the sphistication and sheer resolution of some of those satelites in orbit.

Granted, there are still areas that are unexplored, covered by thick jungles that would obscure visibility from space, but the bigger dinosaurs would not be able to hide in vegetation this thick. Although I disagree with you on one point, Malte.

There were plenty of dinosaurs who were small enough to hide in such environments. Compsognathus, Coelophysis, Leallynosaura, Micropachycephalosaurus...possibly even one up to the size of a Minmi. The towering hulking lumbering giants of the Age of Dinosaurs were actually a minority...

Kor · **Reply #27 on:** February 04, 2008, 01:47:22 PM

All true points. Though they can always live in fiction as well. When the last extinction event happened there were less genus around then well before it, I wonder how long dinosaurs would have lasted if the extinction event had not happened. Would they be down to only a few species today maybe?

Malte279 · **Reply #28 on:** February 04, 2008, 02:00:35 PM

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There were plenty of dinosaurs who were small enough to hide in such environments. Compsognathus, Coelophysis, Leallynosaura, Micropachycephalosaurus...possibly even one up to the size of a Minmi. The towering hulking lumbering giants of the Age of Dinosaurs were actually a minority...

You are definitely right about that one. However, if any dinosaurs survived, they would most likely have changed through evolution and looking at how much mankind changed in the short time of their existence or other species as well (whales turned from land to sea animals) we might not even recognize the direct descendants of dinosaurs (e.g. birds, some types of lizards etc.) as such.

DarkHououmon · **Reply #29 on:** February 04, 2008, 02:12:47 PM

Quote from: Kor,Feb 4 2008 on 01:47 PM

All true points. Though they can always live in fiction as well. When the last extinction event happened there were less genus around then well before it, I wonder how long dinosaurs would have lasted if the extinction event had not happened. Would they be down to only a few species today maybe?

There is a program that touches up on that I believe. "My Pet Dinosaur" presents a world where dinosaurs are still around, and humans are around as well. They explained how dinosaurs could still appear mostly the same even after 65 million years, and how people could exist along side them. It's a very interesting program.

Here's a link about it if anyone is interested: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes...tx/petdinosaur/

Jasper · **Reply #30 on:** February 04, 2008, 06:10:01 PM

Quote from: DarkHououmon,Feb 4 2008 on 01:12 PM

Quote from: Kor,Feb 4 2008 on 01:47 PM
All true points. Though they can always live in fiction as well. When the last extinction event happened there were less genus around then well before it, I wonder how long dinosaurs would have lasted if the extinction event had not happened. Would they be down to only a few species today maybe?
There is a program that touches up on that I believe. "My Pet Dinosaur" presents a world where dinosaurs are still around, and humans are around as well. They explained how dinosaurs could still appear mostly the same even after 65 million years, and how people could exist along side them. It's a very interesting program.

Here's a link about it if anyone is interested: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes...tx/petdinosaur/

That would be crazy and intresting if we were living side by side with dinosaurs.

Kor · **Reply #31 on:** February 04, 2008, 09:19:38 PM

It could prove interesting, though I do wonder how changed would they be. Would any of the species have gained sentience?

Ptyra · **Reply #32 on:** February 04, 2008, 09:31:44 PM

Technically yes.

*Birds are considered to be closely related to dinosaurs...how I don't know

* Snakes have been around since the T-Rex showed up, so they could be called living dinos. The same goes for other reptiles

* Certain types of fish have been around since dinos...AND BEFORE! Sharks, horses shoe crabs, etc...

Purple Presence · **Reply #33 on:** February 05, 2008, 01:29:38 AM

It's in the hips.

Ornithischians are bird-hipped dinosaurs. It's a widely believed theory (compared to any other single theory) that there is a lot of evidence to show that Dinosaurs evolved into birds. The discovery of both markings on bone where feathers attatched and actual follil imprints of bone on a few more recent discoveries are widely believed to support this theory. As are the gradual lightening of bone density - something else some use to explain away all those holes in dinosaur bones.

Kor · **Reply #34 on:** February 05, 2008, 02:57:10 AM

From the various new evidence I"ve read about it does seem to indicate that a dinosaur did evolve into a creature that later become birds. I've not read if birds have a common ancestor so thus 1 type of dinosaur evolved into what later became birds, or several evolved into different types of birds.

Purple Presence · **Reply #35 on:** February 06, 2008, 12:24:06 AM

*nods* I, personally, believe the dinosaurs to birds theory.

Kor · **Reply #36 on:** February 06, 2008, 02:29:03 AM

Imagine if some were around, maybe you could have a Compsagnathus as a pet or companion.

Purple Presence · **Reply #37 on:** February 06, 2008, 11:12:24 AM

Yes. *chuckles* A pasture full of Ankylosaur.

Beats horse-back riding any day! =D

Kor · **Reply #38 on:** February 06, 2008, 12:11:44 PM

Yes, imagine riding an Ankylosaur, or other types of dinos.

AvestheForumFox · **Reply #39 on:** February 06, 2008, 08:07:16 PM

There is the ever so popular Hallow Earth theory.

A world within our world. Most people still believe this theory, and some even believe that the dinosaurs still exists down there