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Questions that don't need their own topics vol.2; New and fresh
Topic Started: Jan 4 2018, 11:18 AM (26,887 Views)
Fazaner
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Nate River
Jan 27 2018, 11:45 AM
Why is compared to other continents, European fauna so boring?
Boring, no. Less exotic maybe, but I see what are you talking about. The thing is that Europe is not a continent geographically, Its part of Eurasia, and is dominated by temperate climate, that's almost uniform in Eurasia when it comes to fauna (talking about temperate belt and above here), and to some extant North America. That's becouse life tends to homogenize in connected and similar environment, so ,for example, in Eurasian taiga from Finland to Kamchatka there are going to moose, bears and other animals relatively similar. And let's not forget that seasonal temperate climate is simply not able to sustain same diversity as tropical rainforest's, there' simply not enough food, so most of the animals must be generalists, what also reduce deferences between species in most cases.

Human hunting had impacted mainly megafauna diversity, but that would not really change situation, maybe some insular fauna could stir things up, but mostly it will be mammoths, rhinos, lions, and other fauna that could also be found in the rest of the temperate belt, so it would still not stand out much.

And my personal opinion, if you consider fauna of some area boring you are not looking it in right way.
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Carlos
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Scrublord
Jan 25 2018, 09:07 PM
I'm having a discussion on the TetZoo Facebook group about the so-called Lawndale Incident, and I just want to know: is there any authenticated record of cathartids, or New World vultures (as opposed to old world vultures, which are accipitrids) using their talons as weapons?

Some extinct cathartids had enlarged foot tendons compared to modern species, but I don't know if this translates as using the feet to kill.
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http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/5724950/

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Zorcuspine
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Enjoying our azure blue world

Carlos
Jan 27 2018, 04:30 PM
Scrublord
Jan 25 2018, 09:07 PM
I'm having a discussion on the TetZoo Facebook group about the so-called Lawndale Incident, and I just want to know: is there any authenticated record of cathartids, or New World vultures (as opposed to old world vultures, which are accipitrids) using their talons as weapons?

Some extinct cathartids had enlarged foot tendons compared to modern species, but I don't know if this translates as using the feet to kill.
Does this include teratorns?
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Carlos
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No.
Lemuria:
http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/5724950/

Terra Alternativa:
http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/forum/460637/

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Rodlox
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Jan 27 2018, 01:29 PM
Vertebrates living in lower gravity have less bone density and are slightly taller/longer. What does low gravity do to arthropods?
it makes their spiracles HUUUUUGE
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Rodlox
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JewelCombineAdvisor
Jan 27 2018, 03:57 PM
Beetleboy
Jan 27 2018, 02:28 PM
Guys I need help, today I had a lightbulb moment and now I'm stuck in a position where I somehow need to get bichirs into Asia (if you're curious I think I could make a speculative explanation for Oriental dragons out of these fish).

I realised (too late) after getting very excited about the concept that there are no bichirs in Asia, so I've got some questions. Any help would be much appreciated to help me rationalise the giant semi-aquatic bichir fish-dragon that we all need in our lives:

. did bichirs ever exist anywhere besides Africa? Anywhere even close to Asia?

. is there anyway at some point in the bichir's evolutionary history that it could somehow have made it to Asia? I'll need to do some research on past continental drift on this one but any help would be appreciated

Edit: think I may have come up with something but it's kind of long-winded and confusing. During Cretaceous, bichir eggs are transported to Madagascar via birds/pterosaurs, when India splits off from Madagascar it takes some bichirs with it, it joins Asia, introducing the new fishies into their new home. Eh I dunno whether I like it or not.
Bichirs live only in Africa.They are in good shape today by evolutionary standards,despite other relatives died out fast during either KT or the recent cooling.The thing with eggs being transported by birds is true,but is almost rare.Carp eggs for example survive a lot outside of water,but not enought to get to the destination ,if the next body of water is too far.If they got to Asia,think about freshwater plumes.
they only live in Africa *now* and in our timeline. that wasn't the question.

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maybe have them (the Bichirs) spread through Gondwana, including both India (as you suggested) and Australia...and have one Australian species that manages to sneak past the Wallace Line (some species have managed it IRL), where it diversifies, and runs across the descendants of the radiations that slipped out of India, around the mountains one way or another.
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LittleLazyLass
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Nate River
Jan 27 2018, 11:45 AM
Why is compared to other continents, European fauna so boring?
Because you're European (at least, according to your profile). It's natural that you find the strange and exotic creatures from elsewhere in the world to be more interesting than those you've seen all your life.
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I don't even really like this song that much but the title is pretty relatable sometimes, I guess.
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Scrublord
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Carlos
Jan 27 2018, 06:54 PM
No.
Well, now that you mention it, yes. Though last I checked weren't they mostly terrestrial hunters?
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Carlos
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Yes, teratorns were mostly terrestrial predators. Its inferred they were more predatory than modern new world vultures due to their larger beaks.
Lemuria:
http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/topic/5724950/

Terra Alternativa:
http://s1.zetaboards.com/Conceptual_Evolution/forum/460637/

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Scrublord
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I know that. But they still didn't kill large prey with their talons. They mostly just hunted on the ground for animals small enough (i.e. rabbit-sized) to swallow whole or kill with their beaks. They were no more capable of carrying off their prey than cathartids are.

Then again, some living New World vultures can be surprisingly predatory. American black vultures in particular will prey on newborn ungulates, insects, hatchling turtles, and seabird chicks. Might they be a good model for teratorn behavior?
Edited by Scrublord, Jan 28 2018, 08:06 PM.
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In the end, the best advice I could give you would be to do your project in a way that feels natural to you, rather than trying to imitate some geek with a laptop in Colorado.
--Heteromorph
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LλmbdaExplosion
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Vieja Argentea the oscar cichlid
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When trachemys spp. appeared in the fossil record?
Edited by LλmbdaExplosion, Jan 30 2018, 12:09 PM.
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GreatAuk
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Why are there no Venomous or poisonous birds?
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Dragonthunders
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There are poisonous birds
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxic_bird

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Rebirth
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Would it be possible for a tree-like organism (of Earth-type compatibility and biochemistry) to use biogenic silica as a main structural material instead of wood?
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Rodlox
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Jan 30 2018, 11:46 PM
Would it be possible for a tree-like organism (of Earth-type compatibility and biochemistry) to use biogenic silica as a main structural material instead of wood?
well, given that grass uses silica, I would assume so. (is there silica in bamboo, or did those grasses switch it out for something else?)
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