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Post by Grey on Sept 5, 2013 19:31:16 GMT 5
I've not seen anything yet talking about the presumable maximum speed Megalania could have reached. Has anything been written about that ?
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Post by coherentsheaf on Sept 5, 2013 20:17:51 GMT 5
I've not seen anything yet talking about the presumable maximum speed Megalania could have reached. Has anything been written about that ? Clemente et al. did an estimate based on curvilinear regression lines in extant varnids, coming to the conclusion that it would be comparable to similar sized crcodylians. However, Komodo dragons are faster than crocodylians their size. Not sure what to make of this. |
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Post by creature386 on Sept 5, 2013 23:02:37 GMT 5
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blaze
Paleo-artist 
Posts: 766
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Post by blaze on Sept 6, 2013 3:18:59 GMT 5
They used Wroe's masss estimates? so 10km/h for a 160kg Megalania?
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Post by coherentsheaf on Sept 6, 2013 4:08:51 GMT 5
They used Wroe's masss estimates? so 10km/h for a 160kg Megalania? Yes. Of course Wroe has since published a study containing a much higher estimate but curiously this has been ignored by researchers. |
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Post by Venomous Dragon on Sept 6, 2013 5:41:32 GMT 5
I find it extremely hard to believe that it wasnt faster than similair sized crocodiles.
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blaze
Paleo-artist
Posts: 766
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Post by blaze on Sept 6, 2013 5:55:56 GMT 5
They used Wroe's masss estimates? so 10km/h for a 160kg Megalania? Yes. Of course Wroe has since published a study containing a much higher estimate but curiously this has been ignored by researchers. I was unware of that, which one? |
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Post by coherentsheaf on Sept 6, 2013 6:02:49 GMT 5
Yes. Of course Wroe has since published a study containing a much higher estimate but curiously this has been ignored by researchers. I was unware of that, which one? The paper he coauthored with fry about venom in komodo dragons. They give a minimum estimate in excess of 500kg. |
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blaze
Paleo-artist
Posts: 766
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Post by blaze on Sept 6, 2013 6:04:14 GMT 5
Bryan G Fry, Stephen Wroe, Wouter Teeuwisse et al. (2009) A central role for venom in predation by Varanus komodoensis (Komodo Dragon) and the extinct giant Varanus (Megalania) priscus., 8969-74. In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 106 (22).
this one?
I found it just before checking if you had responded haha
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Post by coherentsheaf on Sept 6, 2013 6:20:20 GMT 5
Bryan G Fry, Stephen Wroe, Wouter Teeuwisse et al. (2009) A central role for venom in predation by Varanus komodoensis (Komodo Dragon) and the extinct giant Varanus (Megalania) priscus., 8969-74. In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 106 (22). this one? I found it just before checking if you had responded haha Yeah that one  |
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Post by Ceratodromeus on Oct 4, 2016 6:20:40 GMT 5
How to build your dragon: scaling of muscle architecture from the world’s smallest to the world’s largest monitor lizardBackgroundThe functional design of skeletal muscles is shaped by conflicting selective pressures between support and propulsion, which becomes even more important as animals get larger. If larger animals were geometrically scaled up versions of smaller animals, increases in body size would cause an increase in musculoskeletal stress, a result of the greater scaling of mass in comparison to area. In large animals these stresses would come dangerously close to points of failure. By examining the architecture of 22 hindlimb muscles in 27 individuals from 9 species of varanid lizards ranging from the tiny 7.6 g Varanus brevicauda to the giant 40 kg Varanus komodoensis, we present a comprehensive dataset on the scaling of musculoskeletal architecture in monitor lizards (varanids), providing information about the phylogenetic constraints and adaptations of locomotor muscles in sprawling tetrapods. ResultsScaling results for muscle mass, pennation and physiological cross-sectional area (PCSA), all suggest that larger varanids increase the relative force-generating capacity of femur adductors, knee flexors and ankle plantarflexors, with scaling exponents greater than geometric similarity predicts. Thus varanids mitigate the size-related increases in stress by increasing muscle mass and PCSA rather than adopting a more upright posture with size as is shown in other animals. As well as the scaling effects of muscle properties with body mass, the variation in muscle architecture with changes in hindlimb posture were also prominent. Within varanids, posture varies with habitat preference. Climbing lizards display a sprawling posture while terrestrial lizards display a more upright posture. Sprawling species required larger PCSAs and muscle masses in femur retractors, knee flexors, and ankle plantarflexors in order to support the body. ConclusionsBoth size and posture-related muscle changes all suggest an increased role in support over propulsion, leading to a decrease in locomotor performance which has previously been shown with increases in size. These estimates suggest the giant Pleistocene varanid lizard (Varanus megalania priscus) would likely not have been able to outrun early humans with which it co-habitated the Australian landmass with.frontiersinzoology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12983-016-0141-5
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Post by Venomous Dragon on Oct 4, 2016 10:30:35 GMT 5
not a terribly condemning conclusion honestly considering it really means at worst only a slight decrease in speed from the much smaller ora, which when combined with larger less fleet footed prey with the ambush tactics used could mean it was potentially an even more successful predator, that is of course assuming a similar level of acceleration is retained with the increased size.
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