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Biggest biological plot twist
Topic Started: Nov 6 2016, 12:28 PM (19,629 Views)
Sphenodon
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Calcareous

jasonguppy
 
Zebras lived in the jurassic.

ÐK
 
Permian bears.

The references are out of control.

Talenkauen Spook
 
Sphenodonts are actually highly derived pelycosaurian synapsids.


(wink wink, nudge nudge, ;D)

*internal screaming*


A few hundred thousand years prior to the P-T mass extinction, a sapient species of therapsids appeared; although they caused a significant amount of ecological damage, in their later years they managed to reverse a significant deal of it due to adoption of a highly environmentalist ideaology. Upon the species reaching high-tech status, they became aware that in a few millennia the combined forces of Pangea forming and the eventual eruption of what are now known as the Siberian traps would cause an extinction capable of killing them all off; as a result, several high-tech groups pursued a policy of space colonization, taking great care to leave as little a mark on the pristine void as possible.

After a few hundred years a colony on the dark side of the Moon had become well established, but disaster struck - a terrorist group unleashed a weaponized methanogenic archean into the oceans, causing mass deoxygenation and the collapse of oceanic ecosystems. Coupled with the unexpectedly early eruption of the Siberian Traps, all Earthly populations of the sophont were destroyed. The moonside group, now alone in the universe, decided to leave behind the Solar System and spread life across the universe, abandoning their colony on the dark side of the Moon.

Many millions of years later, nigh-unrecognizeable descendants of these therapsids returned to their home system to see that life had managed to recover on Earth and create myriad forms, including many that had not existed in the time of their presence - massive seafaring life and flying vertebrates, for instance. Looking down, they also noticed that the synapsids had not only reclaimed their former rule over Earth, but also had begun to produce another sapient species - far different in appearance, but just as intelligent. They decided to guide the progression of this species from afar, the end goal being to help them along in their advancement so that they might join them in the cosmos at some point. Never would they intervene in a war, but perhaps merely sporadically drop a reminder that there was always something more to learn, somewhere to expand.

GREY ALIENS REPTILIANS CONFIRMED ILLUMINATI 2016

We have a Discord server! If you would like to join, simply message myself, Flisch, or Icthyander.
Some of my ideas (nothing real yet, but soon):
Refugium: A last chance for collapsing ecosystems and their inhabitants.
Pansauria: A terraforming project featuring the evolution of exactly one animal - the marine iguana.
Mars Renewed: An insight into the life of Mars thirty million years after its terraforming by humankind.
Microcosm: An exceedingly small environment.
Alcyon: A planet colonized by species remodeled into new niches by genetic engineering.
Oddballs: Aberrant representatives of various biological groups compete and coexist.

..and probably some other stuff at some point (perhaps a no K-T project). Stay tuned!
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lamna
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-Azdarchid pterosaurs were beginning to compete more seriously with birds towards the end of the Cretaceous and were starting to take back some previously-lost niches from them; given time, they may have relegated them to a far more obscure role in the global ecosystem.
I feel a JohnFaa tongue lashing coming.

Flying ain't a niche yo.

Dinosaurs survived the K/Pg, but just couldn't compete with large mammals.

Bats evolved in the Cretaceous.

Rodents are multituberculates.

Ratites have a single origin, and rafted around the world.
Living Fossils

Fósseis Vibos: Reserva Natural


34 MYH, 4 tonne dinosaur.
T.Neo
 
Are nipples or genitals necessary, lamna?
[flash=500,450] Video Magic! [/flash]
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IIGSY
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A huntsman spider that wastes time on the internet because it has nothing better to do
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Myriapods are actually derived hexapods
Projects
Punga: A terraformed world with no vertebrates
Last one crawling: The last arthropod

ARTH-6810: A world without vertebrates (It's ded, but you can still read I guess)

Potential ideas-
Swamp world: A world covered in lakes, with the largest being caspian sized.
Nematozoic: After a mass extinction of ultimate proportions, a single species of nematode is the only surviving animal.
Tri-devonian: A devonian like ecosystem with holocene species on three different continents.

Quotes


Phylogeny of the arthropods and some related groups


In honor of the greatest clade of all time


More pictures


Other cool things


All African countries can fit into Brazil
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Sayornis
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Neotenous
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David Peters is right about everything.
The Library is open. (Now under new management!)
Dr Nitwhite
Aug 19 2016, 07:42 PM
As I said before, the Library is like spec crack.
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malicious-monkey
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Spec Ops
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Quote:
 
David Peters is right about anything.


ftfy
Edited by malicious-monkey, Nov 6 2016, 08:29 PM.
"My recommendation would be to just draw things now and draw good things later." - Nanotyranus

Ilion: an illustrated tour of a tidally locked planet
Spoiler: click to toggle

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Redbubble - Ilion art prints and more
Commissions are OPEN
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IIGSY
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A huntsman spider that wastes time on the internet because it has nothing better to do
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Nautilus are actually derived gastropods.
Projects
Punga: A terraformed world with no vertebrates
Last one crawling: The last arthropod

ARTH-6810: A world without vertebrates (It's ded, but you can still read I guess)

Potential ideas-
Swamp world: A world covered in lakes, with the largest being caspian sized.
Nematozoic: After a mass extinction of ultimate proportions, a single species of nematode is the only surviving animal.
Tri-devonian: A devonian like ecosystem with holocene species on three different continents.

Quotes


Phylogeny of the arthropods and some related groups


In honor of the greatest clade of all time


More pictures


Other cool things


All African countries can fit into Brazil
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CaledonianWarrior96
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An Awesome Reptile
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Sayornis
Nov 6 2016, 08:19 PM
David Peters is right about everything.
Maybe this is something the older members know but I don't get this. Who's David Peters?
Come check out and subscribe to my projects on the following subforums;

Future Planet (V.2): the Future Evolution of Life on Earth (Evolutionary Continuum)
The Meuse Legacy: An Alternative Outcome of the Mosasaur (Alternative Evolution)
Terra Cascus: The Last Refuge of the Dinosaurs (Alternative Evolution)
- Official Project
- Foundation
The Beryoni Galaxy: The Biologically Rich and Politically Complex State of our Galaxy (Habitational Zone)

- Beryoni Critique Thread (formerly: Aliens of Beryoni)
The Ecology of Skull Island: An Open Project for the Home of King Kong (Alternative Universe)
The Ecology of Wakanda: An Open Project for the Home of Marvel's Black Panther (Alternative Universe)

(Click bold titles to go to page. To subscribe click on a project, scroll to the bottom of the page and click "track topic" on the bottom right corner)


And now, for something completely different
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Ivan_The_Inedible
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There are some who call me... Spencer.
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Posted Image
Posted Image

He's the brilliant snicker mind behind these.
Quotes are a thing
Who will know?

My Projects
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CaledonianWarrior96
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An Awesome Reptile
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I take it he's made... more
Come check out and subscribe to my projects on the following subforums;

Future Planet (V.2): the Future Evolution of Life on Earth (Evolutionary Continuum)
The Meuse Legacy: An Alternative Outcome of the Mosasaur (Alternative Evolution)
Terra Cascus: The Last Refuge of the Dinosaurs (Alternative Evolution)
- Official Project
- Foundation
The Beryoni Galaxy: The Biologically Rich and Politically Complex State of our Galaxy (Habitational Zone)

- Beryoni Critique Thread (formerly: Aliens of Beryoni)
The Ecology of Skull Island: An Open Project for the Home of King Kong (Alternative Universe)
The Ecology of Wakanda: An Open Project for the Home of Marvel's Black Panther (Alternative Universe)

(Click bold titles to go to page. To subscribe click on a project, scroll to the bottom of the page and click "track topic" on the bottom right corner)


And now, for something completely different
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Sphenodon
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Calcareous

-Remnants of Antarctica's pre-glaciation life remain within caverns deep below its surface.

-A lineage of sauropterygian reptiles developed a method of underwater breathing akin to the methods used by Fly River turtles, as well as an extreme atavism resulting in their infants being born with gills retained from embryonic stages. As a result, they migrated further into the deep sea than any other tetrapod lineage, no longer constrained by their ties to the surface, and became abyssal predators. They managed to survive the K-Pg extinction, and despite being heavily restricted as a result of competition with ceteans, a small clade still ekes out a living near hydrothermal vents.

-Monotremes fall outside of Mammalia proper, and are instead extremely derived tritylodontids.

-Any of the "surviving prehistoric group" hypotheses.

-Corvids are truly sapient, and have remained undetected by humankind as a result of their own planning - by pretending to be merely smart birds, they can avoid the persecution, investigation, coddling, and other riff-raff resulting from humans knowing of their true state.


As for David Peters, he's a paleontologist and curator of the site Reptile Evolution. He's pretty controversial as a result of his incredibly unorthodox methods of determining evidence, which has led to him creating a particularly obtuse family tree of Amniota, the Large Reptile Tree. He's particularly well-known/infamous for his theories on pterosaurs, which he claims are true lizards as opposed to archosaurs and were adorned with long tails and flamboyant crests.

He's rather nutty, but I don't truly understand the level of contempt that the paleontological community has for him - unless I missed something rather big (such as him being a rabid BANDit or something), he's just an isolated outlet of bizarre ideas with relatively little impact on the scientific community as a whole.
Edited by Sphenodon, Nov 6 2016, 09:18 PM.

We have a Discord server! If you would like to join, simply message myself, Flisch, or Icthyander.
Some of my ideas (nothing real yet, but soon):
Refugium: A last chance for collapsing ecosystems and their inhabitants.
Pansauria: A terraforming project featuring the evolution of exactly one animal - the marine iguana.
Mars Renewed: An insight into the life of Mars thirty million years after its terraforming by humankind.
Microcosm: An exceedingly small environment.
Alcyon: A planet colonized by species remodeled into new niches by genetic engineering.
Oddballs: Aberrant representatives of various biological groups compete and coexist.

..and probably some other stuff at some point (perhaps a no K-T project). Stay tuned!
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IIGSY
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A huntsman spider that wastes time on the internet because it has nothing better to do
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Sphenodon
Nov 6 2016, 08:58 PM
-Remnants of Antarctica's pre-glaciation life remain within caverns deep below its surface.

-A lineage of sauropterygian reptiles developed a method of underwater breathing akin to the methods used by Fly River turtles, as well as an extreme atavism resulting in their infants being born with gills retained from embryonic stages. As a result, they migrated further into the deep sea than any other tetrapod lineage, no longer constrained by their ties to the surface, and became abyssal predators. They managed to survive the K-Pg extinction, and despite being heavily restricted as a result of competition with ceteans, a small clade still ekes out a living near hydrothermal vents.

-Monotremes fall outside of Mammalia proper, and are instead extremely derived tritylodontids.

-Any of the "surviving prehistoric group" hypotheses.

-Corvids are truly sapient, and have remained undetected by humankind as a result of their own planning - by pretending to be merely smart birds, they can avoid the persecution, investigation, coddling, and other riff-raff resulting from humans knowing of their true state.


As for David Peters, he's a paleontologist and curator of the site Reptile Evolution. He's pretty controversial as a result of his incredibly unorthodox methods of determining evidence, which has led to him creating a particularly obtuse family tree of Amniota. He's particularly well-known/infamous for his theories on pterosaurs, which he claims are true lizards as opposed to archosaurs and were adorned with long tails and flamboyant crests.

He's rather nutty, but I don't truly understand the level of contempt that the paleontological community has for him - unless I missed something rather big (such as him being a rabid BANDit or something), he's just an isolated outlet of bizarre ideas with relatively little impact on the scientific community as a whole.
He also says that mammals are archosaurs.
Projects
Punga: A terraformed world with no vertebrates
Last one crawling: The last arthropod

ARTH-6810: A world without vertebrates (It's ded, but you can still read I guess)

Potential ideas-
Swamp world: A world covered in lakes, with the largest being caspian sized.
Nematozoic: After a mass extinction of ultimate proportions, a single species of nematode is the only surviving animal.
Tri-devonian: A devonian like ecosystem with holocene species on three different continents.

Quotes


Phylogeny of the arthropods and some related groups


In honor of the greatest clade of all time


More pictures


Other cool things


All African countries can fit into Brazil
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
Finncredibad
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Edgy and Cool
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Pigs are actually future descents of humans that voyaged back to the anthropocene only to be captured and eaten by their ancestors.
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Projects and stuff
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Finncredibad
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Edgy and Cool
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Spicy_Ivan_Bread
Nov 6 2016, 08:53 PM
Posted Image
Posted Image

He's the brilliant snicker mind behind these.
Although his representations of prehistoric creatures are really inaccurate, I do think that the overall design of them is interesting and would look cool in a fantasy or alternate evolution setting.
Favorite quotes

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Projects and stuff
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IIGSY
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A huntsman spider that wastes time on the internet because it has nothing better to do
 *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
Lissamphibians are actually "degenerate" amniotes.
Projects
Punga: A terraformed world with no vertebrates
Last one crawling: The last arthropod

ARTH-6810: A world without vertebrates (It's ded, but you can still read I guess)

Potential ideas-
Swamp world: A world covered in lakes, with the largest being caspian sized.
Nematozoic: After a mass extinction of ultimate proportions, a single species of nematode is the only surviving animal.
Tri-devonian: A devonian like ecosystem with holocene species on three different continents.

Quotes


Phylogeny of the arthropods and some related groups


In honor of the greatest clade of all time


More pictures


Other cool things


All African countries can fit into Brazil
Offline Profile Quote Post Goto Top
 
ÐK
Member Avatar
Adult
 *  *  *  *  *  *
Sphenodon
Nov 6 2016, 08:58 PM
He's rather nutty, but I don't truly understand the level of contempt that the paleontological community has for him - unless I missed something rather big (such as him being a rabid BANDit or something), he's just an isolated outlet of bizarre ideas with relatively little impact on the scientific community as a whole.
He's very prolific, very vocal, and very arrogant. While he only has a small pool of dedicated followers who are "on his side", his work has been used and trusted by people naive to how unscientific it is, including artists and just curious people who find his stuff on google. Someone at this year's SVP even used one of his diagrams in a presentation uncritically, and apparently hadn't realised there was any issue.

He believes himself to be some sort of Galileo, and that the rest of the palaeontology community is up in their ivory tower constantly trying to put him down and silence the truth that only he is uncovering. And he's not afraid to be a dick about it either.
~Projects~

Earth Without Earth; Like nothing on Earth...


Quote:
 
In the absence of proper data, speculate wildy.

~Mark Witton, Pterosaurs (Chapter 3, page 18)


Quote:
 
pfft, DK making a project

~Troll Man, Skype (15/2/15)


Quote:
 
I'm sorry but in what alternative universe would thousands of zebras be sent back in time by some sort of illegal time travel group to change history and preparing them by making gigantic working animatronic allosaurs?

~Komodo, Zebra's sent back in time (4/1/13)
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