The most active dinosaur digs are in western North America, Argentina, and East Asia. Lots and lots of things to dig up.
What captures the Rhino Imagination is what anyone would make of a wandering bone, before all the 19th century Science and the related explanations of prehistoric events.
We figure the bone would be attributed to giant Mythic Creatures. And come to think of it, how wrong would those assumptions be?
There is that exquisite moment when Rhinos embark on an interaction, when We can’t be sure what’s going to happen, for better or worse. Will this be the Very Best Thing ever? Will it just be One Big Uck Poo?
Rhinos prefer modest expectations. What a disappointment it would be if it were the Peak Experience of a Lifetime. What would We look forward to?
No, We are generally content with ‘Nice’ or ‘Pretty Good’, and let it go at that.
Sometimes We Rhinos wonder why nobody ever tells Us what’s going on.
Possibly We could be more attentive when discussion is underway.
Yes, um, possibly.
Of course, the circus is unlikely to show up every day. In the Wild especially. In the Wild, Never is the norm.
For that reason, Rhinos throw our own circuses, whenever We feel the urge. We are mostly both the performance and the audience; that way We know We are pleasing our crowd.
It’s the Greatest Show on Earth! For Rhinos of All Ages!
From 1877 to 1892, two Paleontologists, Othniel Marsh and Edward Cope, engaged in a competition, with no holds barred. Unscrupulous, ambitious, and mean-spirited, each did his utmost to achieve singularity, collecting and cataloguing fossils from the West. Not pretty in any particular.
And the upshot of all these shenanigans? Both men came to a third-rate ending, ruined and shunned by their peers. But Paleontology was served well in the wealth of samples they claimed from Wyoming, Colorado and Nebraska.
When things get entirely out of hand, it’s hard to think why all that was necessary.
Discussions can be lively when a group of paleontologists, paleoclimatologists, paleoentomolgists, paleobotanists, paleogeophysicists, paleovolcanologists, paleoecologists, paleoanatomists and their friends and supporters decide to compare notes.
Among these folk, intellectual property is qualified as No Joke.
The French genius Georges Cuvier had a profound influence on dinosaur studies. He is called the ‘Father of Paleontology’. He knew a lot about a lot of stuff, plus some more stuff as well.
In 1808, at age 39, he gave the first analysis of a dinosaur, the Streptospondylus, along with speculations on how it carried on. It was inaccurate to some degree, but it provided a System for Naturalists, Geologists, Paleontologists and Comparative Anatomists. And their friends and colleagues.
He also presented the Catastrophy Theory: all natural systems have a lifespan, change and extinction being part of the Natural Order. Easy come, Easy go.
A Very Smart Guy, M. Cuvier. To say the Least. A Wow-Meister.
66 Million years is a long time, so We are told. Still, it supposedly shows how long ago the dinosaurs made their exit. It is as long ago for Rhinos as it is for our Readers. We may have been here 50 Million years longer than Humans, but there is still enough “say What?” to share.
As with everything in the Mysterious Past, there’s debate about how and why, but there is agreement that something went very wrong. (When dealing with Paleontology, We take any agreement We can get.)
Ignorance is hard to combat successfully. Every Answer has a dozen implicit Questions tossing in its wake. Paleontology must be about the balance between Frustration and Aggravation… and Euphoria.
It’s mind-boggling how earnest the efforts have been to understand the Age of Reptiles. The Iguanadon, shown above, was composited by Gideon and Mary Ann Mantell in 1822, using a single tooth she had found on her lunch break. Mr. Mantell was determined to sort it out, and did remarkably well. That’s the astonishing part: how accomplished people were at the time, functioning almost entirely on their wits.
They were also dedicated to the point of mania. Everyone was an amateur really, so the competition was primarily for bragging rights. But these folks really put in the work.
The Mantell’s version had a little horn on the Iguanadon’s nose, which We Rhinos applaud. However, it turned out to be a claw after more consideration.
Clearly these early Naturalists had a lot of Inner Rhino pumping away. What else would account for it all, huh?
Rhinos like the antique version of the four elements, namely: Air, Water, Earth and Fire. All occur Naturally, so they are part of life in the Wild.
In the Wild, Fire occurs mostly through lightning. All critters in the Wild fear it, for there is little they can do but run away and hope for the best.
As you Readers know, not every Fire is Natural. Does “sorry about that” really cover the matter?
Your Inner Rhino 