Wild Things: Spider Monkeys, Fire Ants, Hagfish and More...
Dinosaur "thunder thighs" and fast-flying moths
- By Arcynta Ali Childs, T.A. Frail, Megan Gambino, Brian Switek and Sarah Zielinski
- Smithsonian magazine, May 2011
Brontomerus fighting off a Utahraptor. (Francisco Gascó)
A newly described dinosaur from Utah had a huge hipbone that must have supported massive muscles. Why did Brontomerus ("Thunder Thighs") have such beefy limbs? One possibility, suggested by paleontologists at University College London and elsewhere and depicted by artist Francisco Gascó, is that the big muscles gave Brontomerus a formidable kick that enabled it to fight off predators (Utahraptor in the illustration).
Additional Sources
"Traditions in Spider Monkeys Are Biased towards the Social Domain," Claire J. Santorelli et al., PLoS ONE, February 23, 2011
"Convergent patterns of long-distance nocturnal migration in noctuid moths and passerine birds," Thomas Alerstam et al., Proceedings of the Royal Society B, March 9, 2011
"Adaptations to in situ feeding: novel nutrient acquisition pathways in an ancient vertebrate," Chris N. Glover et al., Proceedings of the Royal Society B, March 2, 2011
"Global Invasion History of the Fire Ant Solenopsis invicta," Marina S. Ascunce et al., Science, February 25, 2011
"A new sauropod dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous Cedar Mountain Formation, Utah, USA," Michael P. Taylor et al., Acta Paleontologica Polonica, March 2011
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