The Hitchhikers' Guide to Walking with the Dinosaurs

And we can't have that right? So what about food?

Did you know that grass and flowering plants arrived toward the END of the reign of Dinosaurs? Yeah that right buster... that means no fruit, no nuts, no veggies... no nothing. Zip. Zero. Nada.

All that grew in most of the dinosaur age was ferns, bushes and conifers. And to be honest with you, those plants are extremely poor, poor quality foods and I still don't know how the heck did so many of the Dinosaurs... especially the sauropods get so huge...

So what's left? All the mammals were rat-like during the Mesozoic period. Let's see a show of hands here, how many volunteers will try eating a rat?

(No hands in the air) Yeah, that's what I thought...

So how about making up some spears and bow & arrows and bring down a Diploducus or a Brachiosaurus? Well never mind the fact that these sauropods could grow up to 100 feet and weight up to 70 tons... they will stomp on you before you could even say "Micky Mouse."

For those of you, who aren't so good with math (like me for instance) 1 ton is equal to 2,000 pounds.

And if it isn't because they are too big, well some of these dinosaurs were virtually built like an M1 army tank such as the Ankylosaurus. These Dinosaurs were heavily armored on their backs and sides. And they had a massive club at the end of the tails for good measure! I'm almost positive that not too many Tyrannosauruses tangled with them.

Hey, how about a Torosaurus? You know those guys... they have three horns on their skulls and a large bony crest. You know how ornery the Rhinoceroses get if you get close to them? Well, imagine an animal that is about 2-3 times bigger than your typical Rhinoceros. With a very, very bad attitude. Naw, let's leave these guys alone. Tease 'em at your risk...

The rest of the Dinosaurs are either to fast, too quick or have too many sharp teeth and claws.

The conclusion you can take a way from this is if you want to eat something... you better plan ahead and pack it in because there ain't gonna be anything here that you can and will eat.

And besides, looking for food in the Mesozoic Era is academic anyways... because YOU my friend are the FOOD!

We Want You at AllPosters.com

If I haven't dissuaded you yet from going into the Mesozoic world... then keep on reading...

And for those of you that still have the fantasy of seeing a scantily-clothed Raquel Welch of One Million Years B.C., please put down the crayon and pay attention...

The producers of One Million Years B.C. got it wrong. Dinosaurs went extinct 64 million years before our long dead ancestors ever appeared.

And oh yeah, like you EVER had a chance with Raquel anyways...

But let's just move on here.

I CAN tell you that you don't want to be around during the end of the Permian period. This happened about 30 million years before the Dinosaurs first appeared. What happened was that the Permian ended very, very badly.

The giant continent (Pangaea) came back together and probably created the mother of all extinctions. Our scientists estimates that 95% of all life perished. And the most plausible theory? Lack of oxygen. The temperature variations around the globe lessened and the Oceans started to stagnate. Lots of carbon dioxide got released into the air and either roasted or suffocated most of anything living.

If you skipped that period, then you can move on to the Mesozoic Era... (good choice by the way).

First of all, the Mesozoic Era was marked by 3 geologic periods. The Triassic, The Jurassic, and the Cretaceous. So let's cover a little of each period and see which one is the best fit for you.

The Triassic is when the Dinosaurs first appeared. This period covered 251 to 199 million years ago. The supercontinent of Pangaea was at it's biggest size. Just one humongous landmass from North to South. It was relatively warm on the coast and most of the center of Pangaea was just the biggest and hottest dry desert that you have ever saw.

Frankly, not too much too see, the Dinosaurs were still trying to diversify...

The next period would be the Jurassic. This was about 200 to 145 million years ago. And this period was marked by the HUGE sauropods such as the Diplodocus or the Brachiosaurus. You also would see another herbivore species called the Stegosaurus (large triangular plates on the top of their spines). And the largest meat eater of this time was the Allosaurus. And remember, the only plants around was the conifers, ferns and other scrubby plants. No grass or flowering plants or trees.

Size mattered in the Jurassic. For the herbivores, the bigger they were, the better likely the carnivore dinosaurs would leave them alone. And of course the carnivores had to get bigger just so they could tackle somebody...

The last period would be the Cretaceous (145 - 65 Million years ago). And it was dominated by the three-horned Dinosaur, the duck-billed Dinosaurs, the armored Dinosaurs and the meanest, nastiest and hungriest carnivore ever - the Tyrannosaurus!

Geologically speaking, North America broke off from Pangaea and the rest of the continents were starting to separate. The seasons were more seasonal and wetter.

But what about the oceans? Well, you had the sharks, huge salt-water crocodiles, and the largest predator ever - the 150 ton Liopleurodon!

Besides, it doesn't really matter where you go... you will still be at the bottom of the food chain.

Get this poster at AllPosters.com

Great question...

Nobody knows for certain. There are clues... I think it is a combination of several things... Plate tectonics activities that created excessive volcanoes that threw up million of tons of debris up in the sky and blocked the sun from reaching the surface. And of course the meteor from outer space.

Besides, the end of the Dinosaurs didn't happen all of a sudden. It was over a period millions or thousands of years. Little by little... inch by inch... they all died.

However, did you know the descendants and cousins of the Dinosaurs are still alive? Yep! The Birds are the descendants and the Crocodiles are the cousins.

And did you know that both of these groups see in color? Well, you could draw the conclusions that Dinosaurs saw in color too. And you could also infer that they used colorful plumage and skin color to attract mates.

Have we found everything that we can now about Dinosaurs? I don't think so. It seems every year, paleontologists are finding or discovering something new about Dinosaurs. Whether the Dinosaurs had feathers, were warm blooded, or even nurtured the young.

And there are great Dinosaur DVDs and Books that have tons of graphic images of what Dinosaurs looked like. It is sort of like bringing them back to live again... but not at the expense of sacrificing your body.

I hope you enjoy reading and watching the Dinosaurs. I have always been fascinated by them and I hope you do too. But please... don't go walking with the Dinosaurs... if they didn't go extinct, the mammals would have never inherited the Earth... and if that didn't happen, YOU would never exist.

God willing and if the creek don't rise... just stay home and stay safe. Watch some of the recommended Dinosaurs DVDs or read some of the suggested Dinosaurs books instead.

Wouldn't it be so much easier to just get a poster?