T-REX

thingiverse

The text discusses various aspects of Tyrannosaurus rex behavior, including its potential for pack hunting, intraspecific attacks, and pathology. Here are some key points: 1. **Pack Hunting**: Philip J. Currie suggested that Tyrannosaurus may have been a pack hunter based on fossil evidence from three T. rex skeletons found in close proximity in South Dakota. However, this theory has been criticized for not being peer-reviewed. 2. **Intraspecific Attacks**: Evidence of intraspecific attack was found by Joseph Peterson and his colleagues in the juvenile Tyrannosaurus nicknamed Jane. Her skull showed healed puncture wounds on the upper jaw and snout which they believe came from another juvenile Tyrannosaurus. 3. **Pathology**: A study published in 2001 examined evidence for stress fractures and tendon avulsions in theropod dinosaurs, including Tyrannosaurus. This suggested a "very active" predation-based diet rather than obligate scavenging. 4. **Parasite Infections**: A 2009 study showed that smooth-edged holes in the skulls of several specimens might have been caused by Trichomonas-like parasites that commonly infect birds, leading to starvation after feeding became increasingly difficult. 5. **Cannibalism**: Tooth marks in the bones of Tyrannosaurus specimens may indicate opportunistic scavenging rather than wounds caused by combat with another T. rex, suggesting that other tyrannosaurids may have practiced cannibalism. 6. **Paleoecology**: Tyrannosaurus lived during the Lancian faunal stage (Maastrichtian age) at the end of the Cretaceous period in what is now North America.