Evolution
Jurassic Park: The Lost Science (Part 4 of 6 - Brachiosaurus)
One of ‘the’ iconic parts of the Jurassic Park trilogy is the moment
when Dr. Grant first sees a live dinosaur. The majestic creature they
first come in contact is one of the most recognisable dinosaurs of all,
yet still probably one of the dinosaurs most easily confused by people;
Brachiosaurus.
The memorable moment when Dr. Grant s
tutters
before finally exclaiming ‘it’s a dinosaur’ was quickly followed by the
Brachiosaur standing on its rear legs, in order to reach the very top
of the tree it was browsing from. However, biomechanical analysis has
suggested that of all dinosaurs, Brachiosaurus is the least likely to be
able to rear up. Their centre of mass is so far forward that any pose
in which they were balanced on two legs would have been incredibly
unstable and could have led to fatal accidents.
Also, as is
becoming a theme throughout this series, the Brachiosaurs in the films
were the incorrect size. Their legs were far too bulky compared with the
more slender limbs they would have had in real life. They were also
shown to be far larger than in reality as when the Brachiosaur feeds
from the same tree that Dr. Grant and the children were sleeping in it
is clearly shown that the Brachiosaurs head is about the same size as an
adult male. In actual fact a Brachiosaurs head was only about the size
of an adult’s upper body, roughly half the size suggested by the film.
Another inaccuracy surrounding the Brachiosaurs was their method of
digestion. It is suggested by the films that Brachiosaurs sustain their
herbivorous diet by breaking down food with a side to side motion of the
jaw similar to cows. The fossil record shows that Brachiosaurid skulls
and jaws were actually only capable of up and down movement and their
teeth were specialised for shearing off plant material rather than
grinding it up. This suggests that any plant matter Brachiosaurs
consumed was mainly broken down internally rather than in the mouth.
This was probably done using gastroliths (rocks inside the digestive
system which break down vegetation) or fermentation by microorganisms.
Although popular in literature the theory of gastroliths is currently
considered unlikely in Brachiosaurs. JB
http://www.tandfonline.com/
http://app.pan.pl/article/
Jurassic Park: The Lost Science (Part 4 of 6 - Brachiosaurus)
One of ‘the’ iconic parts of the Jurassic Park trilogy is the moment when Dr. Grant first sees a live dinosaur. The majestic creature they first come in contact is one of the most recognisable dinosaurs of all, yet still probably one of the dinosaurs most easily confused by people; Brachiosaurus.
The memorable moment when Dr. Grant s
One of ‘the’ iconic parts of the Jurassic Park trilogy is the moment when Dr. Grant first sees a live dinosaur. The majestic creature they first come in contact is one of the most recognisable dinosaurs of all, yet still probably one of the dinosaurs most easily confused by people; Brachiosaurus.
The memorable moment when Dr. Grant s
tutters
before finally exclaiming ‘it’s a dinosaur’ was quickly followed by the
Brachiosaur standing on its rear legs, in order to reach the very top
of the tree it was browsing from. However, biomechanical analysis has
suggested that of all dinosaurs, Brachiosaurus is the least likely to be
able to rear up. Their centre of mass is so far forward that any pose
in which they were balanced on two legs would have been incredibly
unstable and could have led to fatal accidents.
Also, as is becoming a theme throughout this series, the Brachiosaurs in the films were the incorrect size. Their legs were far too bulky compared with the more slender limbs they would have had in real life. They were also shown to be far larger than in reality as when the Brachiosaur feeds from the same tree that Dr. Grant and the children were sleeping in it is clearly shown that the Brachiosaurs head is about the same size as an adult male. In actual fact a Brachiosaurs head was only about the size of an adult’s upper body, roughly half the size suggested by the film.
Another inaccuracy surrounding the Brachiosaurs was their method of digestion. It is suggested by the films that Brachiosaurs sustain their herbivorous diet by breaking down food with a side to side motion of the jaw similar to cows. The fossil record shows that Brachiosaurid skulls and jaws were actually only capable of up and down movement and their teeth were specialised for shearing off plant material rather than grinding it up. This suggests that any plant matter Brachiosaurs consumed was mainly broken down internally rather than in the mouth. This was probably done using gastroliths (rocks inside the digestive system which break down vegetation) or fermentation by microorganisms. Although popular in literature the theory of gastroliths is currently considered unlikely in Brachiosaurs. JB
http://www.tandfonline.com/
http://app.pan.pl/article/
Also, as is becoming a theme throughout this series, the Brachiosaurs in the films were the incorrect size. Their legs were far too bulky compared with the more slender limbs they would have had in real life. They were also shown to be far larger than in reality as when the Brachiosaur feeds from the same tree that Dr. Grant and the children were sleeping in it is clearly shown that the Brachiosaurs head is about the same size as an adult male. In actual fact a Brachiosaurs head was only about the size of an adult’s upper body, roughly half the size suggested by the film.
Another inaccuracy surrounding the Brachiosaurs was their method of digestion. It is suggested by the films that Brachiosaurs sustain their herbivorous diet by breaking down food with a side to side motion of the jaw similar to cows. The fossil record shows that Brachiosaurid skulls and jaws were actually only capable of up and down movement and their teeth were specialised for shearing off plant material rather than grinding it up. This suggests that any plant matter Brachiosaurs consumed was mainly broken down internally rather than in the mouth. This was probably done using gastroliths (rocks inside the digestive system which break down vegetation) or fermentation by microorganisms. Although popular in literature the theory of gastroliths is currently considered unlikely in Brachiosaurs. JB
http://www.tandfonline.com/
http://app.pan.pl/article/
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