The world domination achieved by such fearsome bipedal dinosaurs as the T. rex may have been a result of their warm-blooded biology, according to new research.
For decades, scientists assumed that because dinosaurs resembled lizards, they were cold-blooded as well, their internal temperature rising and falling with the outside world. However, birds are warm-blooded, and the fact that birds seem to be descended from dinosaurs raises the question of whether their ancestors were as well [LiveScience].
The new study, published in the journal PLoS ONE, examined the anatomy of 14 species of bipedal dinosaurs, and argues that many of them needed more energy to power their massive leg muscles than a cold-blooded metabolism could provide. Lead researcher Herman Pontzer based his
findings on the estimated amount of energy dinosaurs must have expended moving about. Recent research by Dr Pontzer has shown that the energy cost of walking and running is ...
