Most dangerous extinct predators for humans ?

[Grey]

I ask here a classical question.

Extinct, ancients large predators are often featured in fictional, popular medias confronting humans, depicting how much they would be dangerous.

I ask here, in a realistic manner, which predators of any kind would have been dangerous for us in encounter, perhaps with a scale bare level of dangerousness ?

We already suggested that the Haast eagle would have been a fearsome foe for an unarmed human because of its size and preys items.

I personnally think however that the famous megalodon, often pictured in bad movies and some horror novels, would not have been so hazardous for isolated humans as the modern great white already known to not have a great taste for our poor, energetically not valuable flesh, added that a 50-60 tons, whale specialist would not have great interest into stalking 70-80 kg skinny primates, even though it would have been potentially dangerous for small and medium-sized boats. Life once linked an article where a specialist was saying you would be safe from megalodon only on a ship at least big like a large ferry...

Kronosaurus however, given its more moderate size (10,5 m; 11 tons), feeding style and preys items described in the thesis of McHenry (2009) would have been terribly dangerous, certainly more dangerous for a human than any living large carnivore.

Give your opinions.

[Grey]

I consider that if the RPR model of predation in dromaeosaurid is confirmed, I think the larger genera would have been terrifyingly dangerous for humans, even more than the Jurassic Park counterparts.

In 2011, Denver Fowler and colleagues suggested a new method by which dromaeosaurs may have taken smaller prey. This model, known as the "raptor prey restraint" (RPR) model of predation, proposes that dromaeosaurs killed their prey in a manner very similar to extant accipitrid birds of prey: by leaping onto their quarry, pinning it under their body weight, and gripping it tightly with the large, sickle-shaped claws. Like accipitrids, the dromaeosaur would then begin to feed on the animal while still alive, until it eventually died from blood loss and organ failure. This proposal is based primarily on comparisons between the morphology and proportions of the feet and legs of dromaeosaurs to several groups of extant birds of prey with known predatory behaviors. Fowler found that the feet and legs of dromaeosaurs most closely resemble those of eagles and hawks, especially in terms of having an enlarged second claw and a similar range of grasping motion. The short metatarsus and foot strength, however, would have been more similar to that of owls. The RPR method of predation would be consistent with other aspects of dromaeosaurid anatomy, such as their unusual dentition and arm morphology. The arms, which could exert a lot of force but were likely covered in long feathers, may have been used as flapping stabilizers for balance while atop a struggling prey animal, along with the stiff counterbalancing tail. Dromaeosaurid jaws, thought by Fowler and colleagues to be comparatively weak, would have been useful for eating prey alive but not as useful for quick, forceful dispatch of the prey. These predatory adaptations working together may also have implications for the origin of flapping in paravians.

Wiki

[theropod]

haasts eagles, intermediate to large-sized lone or all pack hunting dromaeosaurs and all but the very largest Pliosaurs are certainly all ranking very high on a scale for how dangerous they would be to humans

I would furthermore include teratorns, phorusrhacids (due to their inferred speed, bipedalism, fitting size and weaponery), and other medium sized theropods (eg. small specimens of Allosaurus or small tyrannosaurs like Nanotyrannus).

[Runic]

It's hypothesized that predation by cave hyenas chased humans out NA.

[Fragillimus335]

Utahraptor, hands down. Faster than us,and big enough that we have no chance of defending ourselves. Coupled with the fact that we are a perfectly sized prey item. Danger factor is 10/10!!!

[Grey]

Utahraptor is sometimes suggested as the most dangerous predator a human would have encountered indeed. A nightmarish bird-like killer.

How about the giants pterosaurs ?

In the JP novel, the Cearadactylus are very agressive toward humans, not by predation but because of territoriality.

What about the giant Hatzgopteryx or so...

[theropod]

I'm not sure whether they would be agile enough to catch a human without the element of surprise.

[Grey]

But would they be interested by humans ? Would you want to be trapped in a dark alley with a Hatzegopteryx ?

[theropod]

Not so much, even with my bow...

[creature386]

I would say predators who are between the weight classes of Utahraptor and a leopard.

[LeopJag]

Mammalian land predators....i wouldn't want to come across an amphicyon or an entelodont (either sizes of both species) in a dark ally... both appear to have had devastating bite forces. also dinocrocuta gigantica.

[Runic]

May 29, 2013 21:19:45 GMT 5 Fragillimus335 said:

Utahraptor, hands down. Faster than us,and big enough that we have no chance of defending ourselves. Coupled with the fact that we are a perfectly sized prey item. Danger factor is 10/10!!!

I think Utahraptor really wouldn't be that much of a damger to us. Remember human are highly social creatures and no lone predator is gonna mess with a group of humans armed with spears. I see the relationship of a utahraptor to humans as the same as a leopard to baboons

[Runic]

The most dangerous extinct predators to humans would have to be social predators such as wolves, hyenas, smilodon etc. No lone predator back then would simply walk right through a group of neanderthal to predate on one. Infact it's more likely the Neanderthals were the ones hunting animal like the shortfaced bear and smilodon. Humans being social is what got us through the Pleistocene. And added the numerous tramatic injuries and rehealed bones found on our ancestors. The early human (in groups) were a force to be reckoned with. Just like how a baboon troop is a serious danger to a lone leopard.

[theropod]

neanderthals did not coexist with short-faced bears or Smilodons.

[Fragillimus335]

May 30, 2013 9:45:19 GMT 5 Runic said:

May 29, 2013 21:19:45 GMT 5 Fragillimus335 said:

Utahraptor, hands down. Faster than us,and big enough that we have no chance of defending ourselves. Coupled with the fact that we are a perfectly sized prey item. Danger factor is 10/10!!!

I think Utahraptor really wouldn't be that much of a damger to us. Remember human are highly social creatures and no lone predator is gonna mess with a group of humans armed with spears. I see the relationship of a utahraptor to humans as the same as a leopard to baboons

I think we are talking about unarmed humans.