Triceratops horn and Keratin?

[sbell]

Feb 1, 2009 3:54:00 GMT [][][]cordylus[][][] said:

One way to prove trexes preyed on trikes would be scientists finding healed trex bite marks on trikes.

They have--we have a cast of a Triceratops pelvis in our museum with healed tooth marks in it--from teeth that could only be T rex. They are actually quite common, once people started looking for them.

Also, even more convincing--a gigantic coprolite (found a mile away from Scotty) that contained, among other things, pieces of ceratopsian bone. In fact, the coprolite will always be the only true evidence--because a wound could be due to other possibilities, like a fight (not hunting).

And to answer the obvious question--the only other carnivorous animals known at the time are a few small dinos like a dromaeosaur, Troodon and Richardoestesia (sp? and a fish eater) plus some small crocs and champsosaurs. Only a rex could have left it behind.

[Tyrannax]

Troodon lived at the same time? I was almost positive it lived during the time of Daspletosaurus? Not Tyrannosaurus? Hmm.. who am I to contradict Bell though? ;D

The pelvis? Okay, I knew we had several pieces of evidence that pointed to predation. Jack Horner has his head in the clouds. ;D

[sbell]

Well, if it isn't Troodon, it left it's teeth in the wrong time period. And since Troodon is diagnosed by its teeth, I am guessing the researchers know what they are doing.

[tetonbabydoll]

I personally don't think there is much doubt rex preyed on living trikes. Maybe not healthy big bulls, don't most predators weed out the old and sick first if possible? Healed wounds would suggest that if a trike was healthy and strong enough, it could fend off an attack. I don't find that unlikely. Maybe trying to take a healthy animal wasn't the norm, but times were tough and the rex had no choice but to try. If it was weak or injured, certainly that would explain the failure? Just thinking. I know, i shouldn't do that, and certainly not after taking my night meds. Some of you have had that pleasure of trying to decipher what the heck I just said.....

[stoneage]

Feb 1, 2009 4:55:02 GMT Tyrannax said:

Troodon lived at the same time? I was almost positive it lived during the time of Daspletosaurus? Not Tyrannosaurus? Hmm.. who am I to contradict Bell though? ;D

The pelvis? Okay, I knew we had several pieces of evidence that pointed to predation. Jack Horner has his head in the clouds. ;D

Daspletosaurus died out about 8 MY before T-Rex. Troodon lived at the same time as both of them. Troodon only weighed about 130 pounds. It lived along side T-Rex at Hell Creek. Up north in Alaska they have found larger Troodon teeth. They speculate Troodons grew larger there due to the absense of T-Rex and may have hunted larger prey. ;D

[stoneage]

Feb 1, 2009 9:01:55 GMT @tetonbabydoll said:

I personally don't think there is much doubt rex preyed on living trikes. Maybe not healthy big bulls, don't most predators weed out the old and sick first if possible? Healed wounds would suggest that if a trike was healthy and strong enough, it could fend off an attack. I don't find that unlikely. Maybe trying to take a healthy animal wasn't the norm, but times were tough and the rex had no choice but to try. If it was weak or injured, certainly that would explain the failure? Just thinking. I know, i shouldn't do that, and certainly not after taking my night meds. Some of you have had that pleasure of trying to decipher what the heck I just said.....

Actually what you speculate sounds plausible!

[Tyrannax]

Ah! Thank you stoneage! I didn't know that.

I knew, of course, that Daspletosaurus, like Albertosaurus died out 6 Million Years before Tyrannosaurus, but didn't know Troodon lived on as well.

Teton, that idea is rather popular with most theropods actually. It is thought that they would most likely go after sickly or older animals who were weaker in comparison to the herd.