GLY-1102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Gideon Mantell, Herbivore, Camptosaurus
17 Sep 2018
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Up to around 30 meters long, around 10 tons. Neck vertebrae had deep v-groove in neural spines = tendons. Mamenchiasaurus 21 m, late jurassic, longest neck (11 m, 19 vertebrae) Amargasaurus 10 m, early cretaceous, neural spines out of neck. Brachiosarus 22 m, 55 tons, reconstructed with very vertical necks. Forelimb/hindlimb ratio depicts how far down head is in neutral pose, determines what food organism can reach. Smaller, lower plants tend to be more common and more nutritious, high neck lengths = no go, neck length for reach, defense, or to watch for their eggs, but not for height. Downwards feeding would be particularly apt for foliage and fructifications ofgroups like ferns, cycads, and ground cover. Bulk of the potential plant biomass morrison formation appears to have been medium to low browse. Even tallest conifers had the greatest amount of their foliage located on trees bottom half. Fastest growing and potentially most nutritious plants were ground cover.
