Sauropod Gigantism

Sander, P. Martin; Clauß, Marcus

doi:10.1126/science.1160904

Cited by 88 publications

(103 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…Much of the discussion surrounding the suggested elevated metabolic rate in the larger nonavian dinosaurs has centred on the need to power growth (Reid 1997a;Sander and Clauss 2008;Sander et al 2011). To resolve this issue it is important to distinguish clearly the key pathways of energy flow in growth.…”

Section: Large Dinosaurs As Warm Reptilesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whilst other dinosaurs appear resolutely reptilian in their anatomy, and by inference their physiology, it has been suggested that in the larger non-avian dinosaurs some form of intermediate metabolism (that is somewhere between ectothermy and full endothermy) must have been necessary to power their inferred ecology (Reid 1997a;Sander and Clauss 2008;Sander et al 2011). The precise level of this intermediate metabolism has, however, not been quantified.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Dinosaur Energetics: Setting the Bounds on Feasible Physiologies and Ecologies

Clarke

2013

The American Naturalist

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The metabolic status of dinosaurs has long been debated but remains unresolved as no consistent picture has yet emerged from a range of anatomical and isotopic evidence. Quantitative analysis of dinosaur energetics, based on general principles applicable to all vertebrates, shows that many features of dinosaur lifestyle are compatible with a physiology similar to that of extant lizards, scaled up to dinosaur body masses and temperatures. Sufficient metabolic scope would have been available to support observed dinosaur growth rates and allow considerable locomotor activity, perhaps even migration. Since at least one dinosaur lineage evolved true endothermy, this analysis emphasises that there was no single dinosaur physiology. Many small theropods were insulated with feathers and appear to have been partial or full endotherms. Uninsulated small taxa, and all juveniles, would presumably have been ectothermic, with consequent diurnal and seasonal variations in body temperature. In larger taxa inertial homeothermy would have resulted in warm and stable body temperatures, but with a basal metabolism significantly below that of living mammals or birds of the same size. It would appear that dinosaurs exhibited a range of metabolic levels to match the broad spectrum of ecological niches they occupied.

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Section: Large Dinosaurs As Warm Reptilesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dinosaur Energetics: Setting the Bounds on Feasible Physiologies and Ecologies

Clarke

2013

The American Naturalist

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“…Recent work has revealed that they were fast-growing animals with elaborate lung structure-characteristics associated with high metabolic rates (Sander & Clauss 2008) and consistent with evidence for endothermy in basal archosaurs and dinosaurs (Seymour et al 2004). A high demand for food and the long necks have reasonably prompted many palaeontologists to assume that at least some species browsed in tall trees, as the Mesozoic analogues of giraffes.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Raising the sauropod neck: it costs more to get less

Seymour

2009

Biol. Lett.

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Biomechanics Opinion pieceRaising the sauropod neck: it costs more to get lessThe long necks of gigantic sauropod dinosaurs are commonly assumed to have been used for high browsing to obtain enough food. However, this analysis questions whether such a posture was reasonable from the standpoint of energetics. The energy cost of circulating the blood can be estimated accurately from two physiological axioms that relate metabolic rate, blood flow rate and arterial blood pressure: (i) metabolic rate is proportional to blood flow rate and (ii) cardiac work rate is proportional to the product of blood flow rate and blood pressure. The analysis shows that it would have required the animal to expend approximately half of its energy intake just to circulate the blood, primarily because a vertical neck would have required a high systemic arterial blood pressure. It is therefore energetically more feasible to have used a more or less horizontal neck to enable wide browsing while keeping blood pressure low.

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“…But if sauropods did not grind food in either their mouths or guts, or did so only moderately well, fodder would have arrived in the stomach in large bits. Wings and Sander (2007), Sander and Clauss (2008), and Franz et al (2009) suggested that sauropods may have compensated for their inability to grind food to small pieces by subjecting it to very long retention times in the gut.…”

Section: Herbivorous Dinosaur Metabolic Requirementsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most of these dinosaurs were sauropods, and their sizes are comparable to those seen in other sauropod faunas (cf. Paul 1998;Henderson 1999;Seebacher 2001;Aberhan et al 2002;Mazzetta et al 2004;Carpenter 2006;Foster 2007;Lovelace et al 2007;Gunga et al 2008;Sander and Clauss 2008;Royo-Torres et al 2009;Taylor 2009;Klein et al in press).…”

Section: Introduction: Really Big Herbivoresmentioning

confidence: 99%