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Dino stampede for what?

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 11:06 pm
by Rokcet Scientist
Thousands of dinos seem to have stampeded in the same direction – and, more importantly, from the same direction – across a slope in china where their tracks were found.
But what were they running from? A meteorite impact? An erupting volcano?
Not from predators, I think. Because there were Tyrannosaurs among the fleeing. What predator could make Tyrannosaurs run in panic?
China dinosaur footprints found in Zhucheng

Scientists say the footprints belong to at least six different dinosaur types

Scientists in China say they have discovered more than 3,000 dinosaur footprints, all facing the same way.
The footprints - thought to belong to at least six dinosaur types - were found in eastern Shandong province, state news agency Xinhua reports.
Experts believe the prints are more than 100 million years old and say they could represent a migration or a panicked attempt to escape predators.

Dinosaur fossils have been found at about 30 sites in the Zhucheng area.
As a result, Zhucheng City has become known locally as "dinosaur city".

The footprints were uncovered on a 2,600 sq m (0.64 acre) rock slope in a gully following three months of excavation work, Xinhua reported.
The find is unusual because of the quantity and size of footprints uncovered, scientists said.
The footprints, which range from 10cm (3.9in) to 80cm in length, belong to dinosaur types including tyrannosaurs, coelurosaurs and hadrosaurs, Xinhua said.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8502076.stm

Re: Dino stampede for what?

Posted: Tue Feb 09, 2010 8:48 am
by Minimalist
But what were they running from? A meteorite impact? An erupting volcano?


Brush fire? I'd think that an impact near enough to scare them would have been near enough to kill them before they had time to run.

Re: Dino stampede for what?

Posted: Tue Feb 09, 2010 12:20 pm
by dannan14
Maybe the T-Rexes were just hunting? i 'd think a 30ft tall predator could cause a stampede.

Re: Dino stampede for what?

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 2010 12:40 pm
by Rokcet Scientist
dannan14 wrote:Maybe the T-Rexes were just hunting? i 'd think a 30ft tall predator could cause a stampede.
Apparently the T.Rexes were concluded to be part of the stampede. Doing the running from... something! Like all the other dinos. But from what?
A brush fire (a.k.a. bush fire, veld fire, prairie fire) is a good candidate, though, imo, like Min suggested.

Re: Dino stampede for what?

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 2010 8:55 pm
by Rokcet Scientist
Rokcet Scientist wrote:Apparently the T.Rexes were concluded to be part of the stampede. Doing the running from... something! Like all the other dinos. But from what?
A brush fire (a.k.a. bush fire, veld fire, prairie fire) is a good candidate, though, imo, like Min suggested.
I'd love to see that scene (re)created by the BBC's CGI wizards! Imagine that: thousands of large dinos panicking, running, bumping into eachother, overrunning eachother, to get away from something extremely ominous. Must have been quite a sight!

Re: Dino stampede for what?

Posted: Sat Feb 27, 2010 3:44 pm
by E.P. Grondine
I wonder what lies in the direction they were running from, and if anything remains where the end of the stampede occurred. But as this is a long way from archaeology, perhaps it belongs in another section.