JPLover764 on DeviantArthttps://www.deviantart.com/jplover764/art/The-Mesozoic-World-Ep-2-The-First-Giants-635424765JPLover764

Deviation Actions

JPLover764's avatar

The Mesozoic World: Ep 2, The First Giants.

By
Published:
5.3K Views

Description

18 million years have passed since our last adventure in the age of Dinosaurs. Its midnight, but one Dinosaur can't sleep. Pain contractions have kept her up. She has built a small nest on a massive dirt pile, and soon enough, she starts to lay eggs. A trait that all Dinosaurs do to give birth. Modern reptiles and Birds do this too. The newly laid eggs are all covered in a slimy coat that shines beautifully from the full moons reflection. Once the mother finishes laying her eggs, she then places rotting plants and dirt on them to hide them from predators. Then she walks away to find a place to sleep for the night. And these eggs, is where our next story begins.

The Mesozoic World: Episode 2, The First Giants.

Location: Europe (Germany)
.

Time: Late Triassic, 212 million years ago.

Several months have passed since the mother Dinosaur has laid her eggs, and their now ready to hatch. The eggs start to move, and little chirp noises sound from inside them. Cracks begin to form on the eggs, and soon enough, a baby Dinosaur emerges from one of the eggs. The newborn is covered in goo from the egg, and has light coating of feathers on his body. When fully grown, this hatchling will grow up to be giant, with a long-neck and tail, and weigh up to four tons. IF he lives long enough. Predators are never too far away.

A female bipedal Dinosaur with a pair of small crests on its snout, and a spiky crest of feathers on the back of its head spreading across her torso, over hears the hatchling calling for his mother and approaches the nest. Most newborn animals imprint on the first creature they see. The female Dinosaur gently grabs the hatchling's tail using her mouth. The hatchling believes that this Dinosaur carrying him is his mother. Suddenly, the adult Dinosaur slams the baby on the ground, breaking his fragile bones instantly killing him. Then she starts to eat the hatchling. First impressions can be misleading. This Dinosaur isn't the mother; this is   Liliensternus liliensterni, a predator, 17 feet long, and weighing up to 440 pounds.

A second hatchling emerges from another egg. The Liliensternus spots him and moves in for the kill, but before she can grab the hatchling, his real mother arrives, Plateosaurus engelhardti! A large bipedal plant-eater, with small arms, a tiny head, a light coating of feathers on its body and a long neck and tail. This massive Dinosaur dwarfs Liliensternus. Oversized by this beast, the predator decides to leave for her own good. The Plateosaurus mother looks back at her remaining young, she's lost one hatchling, but her other infants are alright. The Plateosaurus hatchlings will need to grow up fast if they're to survive. While scientists aren't sure what the maximum life-span of a Plateosaurus was, one thing scientists are sure is that most Plateosaurs usually lived up to 12 to 20 years before they died. And with an average life-span like that, there's no doubt that these Plateosaurus hatchling will indeed grow up fast.

The growth of Plateosaurus was incredible. Scientist believe that it grew depending on its surrounding environment, meaning the more space the animal had, the bigger it would get. Some fully grown Plateosaurs would grow as little as 16 feet long, others could grow as big as 30 feet in length, some would even grow throughout their entire lives. This kind of growth will even be carried onto their decedents, the Sauropods.

Plateosaurus
 was one of the first plant-eating giants and is an early ancestor of the massive Sauropods. Scientists like to call these early giants Sauropodomorphs. As I said in the previous episode, these Dinosaurs played a very important role in the fossil records, for they're the early ancestors of Sauropods, the biggest Dinosaurs to ever live! Giants like BrontosaurusDiplodocus and Ultrasaurus are all descended from the early Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs here in the Triassic.

The first step to growing up for the hatchlings is to learn how to walk on their own two feet. Walking proves to be a bit difficult for the hatchlings, but in time, they finally get the hang of it.

Plateosaurus's hind limbs were well adapted for allowing the animal to walk on just its hind legs, but it lacked muscles that were capable of letting the animal actually run. Future decedent Sauropods will lose the ability to walk on two legs entirely because they'll evolve much bigger body organs that will be too heavy to let them walk on two legs.  

The mother Plateosaurus brings her young to a riverbank to drink. One of the hatchlings though wanders off from his family. As he ventures off, he comes across a small Theropod Dinosaur called Procompsognathus triassicus, a tiny bipedal Theropod, only three feet long and weighing as little as just two pounds. 

In popular culture, Procompsognathus was featured in Michael Crichton's novel Jurassic Park and its sequel The Lost World, but was replaced by   Compsognathus in the movie adaptations. Michael Crichton's novel depicts Procompsognathus for having a venomous bite with hypnotic effects; but there is no evidence of this in the fossil records. However, a character named Henry Wu from the book explains that this venomous bite was caused by DNA of modern animals used to help clone the Dinosaurs in Jurassic Park.

Surprisingly, Procompsognathus is in the same family as Liliensternus, despite being several times smaller. The two Dinosaurs are closely related to a Dinosaur known from North America called Coelophysis, fossils of many different Dinosaurs closely related to other Dinosaurs have often been found on different continents from their relatives, suggesting that Dinosaurs migrated across the world to other continents. This is because the land of the Triassic was very different from today. 

300 million years ago in a time called the Carboniferous, all the continents had merged together into one super continent called Pangaea. Because of this, many of the environments in the age of Dinosaurs were very different from today's environments, the Atlantic Ocean and Himalaya Mountains didn't exist, desserts were far more common, even Antarctica was a tropical jungle. Then as the Triassic came to a close, Pangaea began to break apart. It took till present day for Pangaea to form into the seven continents we know today.

As for the Procompsonathus though, because of his small size and no real venomous bite, he doesn't pose much of a threat to our Plateosaurus hatchling. But someone else does. The two small Dinosaurs are being watched, by a Teratosaurus suevicus. A large quadrupedal Crocodile like creature with long and powerful legs. 

For over a century, Teratosaurus was thought to have been either a carnivorous Sauropodomorph or an early Theropod Dinosaur. However, in 1985, a new study had revealed that Teratosaurus was actually a member of the Rauisuchian family like Saurosuchus. Because this animal is known from only a few fragment remains, its actual size is unknown. Though one thing remains certain, the maxilla of Teratosaurus indicates that this animal was not small.

The Teratosaurus charges towards the two small Dinosaurs. The Procompsognathus is able to escape easily thanks to his legs designed for speed, but the Plateosaurus  hatchling isn't designed for running at all. All he can do is try to walk fast enough to outpace the predator. Unfortunately for him the Teratosaurus catches up to him with ease, and bites down on him crushing his bones. The mother races over to protect her hatchling, but sadly she is too late. The Teratosaurus swallows the baby down whole by the time she approaches the predator. Furious, the mother roars at the Teratosaurus. The predator quickly scurries off to avoid injury. With the predator gone, the mother heads back to check on her other hatchlings. It will be at least 2-3 years that the Plateosaurus hatchlings will rely on their mother's protection, but as the Sauropodomorphs evolve into true Sauropods, they will lose the instinct to look after their young completely.

4 years later.

A juvenile Plateosaurus wanders beside a beach by the sea in search of food. He finds a small bush growing from the sand; he approaches it and lowers his head down to eat its leaves. But as he bites down on the bush, it starts rustling. A small Procompsognathus emerges from it and runs off, mistaking the Plateosaurus for a predator. The Plateosaurus watches the little Theropod run off, before turning his attention back to the bush and begins to eat. The juvenile Plateosaurus is joined by his brothers and sisters; they have all been traveling together ever since their mother stopped caring for them 16 months ago. They're still young, and are only 1/4 of the size of a fully grown Plateosaurus. Fortunately, there is safety in numbers.

In this Triassic world, Dinosaurs aren't the only future rulers of the globe.

Along side the young Plateosaurs is a small creature with a semi long neck and tail as well as short legs with webbed feet. This is Nothosaurus mirabilis, an odd kind of reptile unrelated to Dinosaurs; instead he's a member of a group of reptiles called Sauropterygia, a group of reptiles that lived in the sea. Nothosaurus is commonly referred to as "the Seal of the Triassic", for it is a kind of creature that can live on both land and water. Nothosaurus would go out to hunt in the ocean, but would come to dry land to breed or to rest. In the future though, Sauropterygias will evolve flippers to replace their feet, and will lose the ability to walk on land entirely.

Also beside the young Plateosaurs is a pair of strange creatures with a pair of fuzzy wings and a long tail with a diamond-shaped flap at the end. Paleontologists call this strange animal Eudimorphodon zambelli. Like the Nothosaurus it too is unrelated to Dinosaurs; instead its a member of a group of reptiles called Pterosaurs, these animals are the earliest known vertebrates to have evolved powered flight. Their wings are formed by a membrane of skin, muscle, and other tissues stretching from the ankles to an extremely long fourth finger. As the Dinosaurs take over the land, Pterosaurs will evolve into the biggest flying animals the world will ever see and will become the lords of the sky. While Sauropterygias like Nothosaurus will become the masters of the sea.

Not far away, trouble brews. A Teratosaurus is drawn over to the beach, by the smell of prey. The juvenile Plateosaurs are currently only 5-6 feet long, Teratosaurus   however is much larger. One of the Eudimorphodons spots the predator and flies away, his sudden panic alerts the other animals by the beach. The second   Eudimorphodon flies off with him, the Nothosaurus quickly dives into the water to escape. The juvenile Plateosaurs however have nowhere to escape. All they can do is walk fast and hope to outpace the predator. The Plateosaurs try to escape, one however is left behind, the Teratosaurus catches up to the straggler, pinning him down, biting down on his neck and killing him. The other Plateosaurs successfully escape, leaving their dead sibling behind in the teeth of the Teratosaurus.

The Teratosaurus begins to eat, however, making a kill doesn't always guarantee a meal. Polonosuchus silesiacus, a large quadrupedal reptile, growls at the   Teratosaurus, grabbing his attention. Like Teratosaurus, it too is a member of the Rauisuchian family, the difference however is that this Polonosuchus is larger than the Teratosaurus. The two carnivores hiss and growl at each other trying to scare their opponent off, but neither one backs down, the fight is on! The two predators charge towards each other and begin biting each other’s heads. Using their powerful jaws and sharp teeth to try and inflict the most damage on their opponent. They even start to use their sharp claws on their front legs to claw and scratch each other, hoping to inflict extra wounds. Finally, the Teratosaurus loses his grip on the Polonosuchus, giving his opponent the upper hand. The Polonosuchus bites down on the Teratosaurus's side as hard as he can. He ends up breaking the Teratosaurus's legs. Badly injured, the Teratosaurus limps away in defeat and the Polonosuchus snarls in victory and watches the Teratosaurus as he limps away. Once his opponent is out of sight, the Polonosuchus begins to feast on the carcass.

When the fossils of Polonosuchus were first discovered, it was thought to have been a new species of Teratosaurus's genus, but in 2009, it was discovered to have been its own genus. An animal genus is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms in biology. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family groups. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial species name for each species within the genus. Many species of animals alive today are known to share the same genus as other animals. Some good examples of different species of animals that share the same genus could be Lions and Tigers (Panthera leo and Panthera tigris), Polar Bears and Brown Bears (Ursus maritimus and Ursus arctos), or Emperor Penguins and King Penguins (Aptenodytes forsteri and Aptenodytes patagonicus). This relationship between species and genuses has also been found in Dinosaurs and every other prehistoric creature.

Meanwhile, the surviving juvenile Plateosaurs have ran off somewhere where they'll be safe from the two predators. They still have allot to learn if they are to survive, from now on, they will keep an extra eye out for danger. Predators are constantly on the hunt.

3 years later.

The Plateosaurus hatchlings are now seven years old, and have reached the adolescent stage in their lives. They are now nine to ten feet long and weigh two tons. The group is feeding off of trees in the center of a forest.

There is much debate about the feeding habits of the early Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs. While these animals were the ancestors of large plant-eaters, they had actually immediately evolved from predatory Theropod DinosaursPlateosaurus itself however was almost certainly a vegetarian. Its teeth were broad and leaf shaped, designed for eating plants. Its skull was even capable mashing up tough plants when feeding; this meant that  Plateosaurus might have been able to chew its food in its mouth. Later Sauropods though will just gulp down mouthfuls of plants with little to no chewing in the mouth. Instead of chewing, they'll start eating stones called Gastroliths to help them grind and digest tough plants in their stomachs.

Once again the young Plateosaurs are being stalked by a carnivore, this time by a Polonosuchus. The predator gets ready to strike, suddenly one of the Plateosaur adolescents lets out a danger call to his siblings, and it's not Polonosuchus that he is afraid of. Drifting through the trees comes the scent of burning wood smoke, a smell that terrifies every animal. Just a few miles away, a lightning strike has caused a huge forest fire. The Polonosuchus soon smells the smoke too; he quickly abandons his hunt and runs off. But the Plateosaurus adolescents are in big trouble. As I said before, Plateosaurus are not built for running. To support their heavy weight, they must keep one leg on the ground at all times when walking. So despite the danger, they can only manage to amble.

Unfortunately the flames move much faster. And by nightfall the fire engulfs the entire forest. Above the blazes come the panicked cries of trapped Dinosaurs and other large reptiles. These prehistoric fires are rare, but can be devastating. Next morning, the fire has died out, but the damage is done. 90% of the entire forest has been destroyed, along with hundreds of burnt corpses of Dinosaurs that have also perished in the flames. Even the Polonosuchus that was hunting the Plateosaurs was killed. Only two Plateosaurs of the group have survived. Their still not large enough to survive a full front attack from a large predator like Polonosuchus,   Teratosaurus or even Liliensternus, they need help badly.

There is evidence in the fossil records that Plateosaurus might have sometimes traveled in herds for better protection. And the way the current situation stands for the adolescents, the protection of a herd is their last chance. The two youngsters start to cry out for help, their desperate calls sound out for hours, but there's no response. However, as dusk ascends across the prehistoric sky, their calls are finally answered. A huge herd of adult Plateosaurs approach the two youngsters. One adult sizes up the two newcomers. She accepts them, and the two from in line behind her, safe at last.

A few days later, the two youngsters have settled down in the herd. The Plateosaurs decide to stop to feed on trees and bushes growing by a river bed. As they feed, the herd spreads out. One of the two adolescents decides to feed by the edge of the herd, but he is unaware that he is being watched. Liliensternus, an old childhood enemy of his, knows he is vulnerable. A lone Liliensternus is no match for an adult Plateosaurus, but this carnivore has a mate that is hunting with him. The two carnivores wait for the adolescent to become distant from the herd. Suddenly the male Liliensternus strikes and charges toward the young Plateosaur! He jumps onto his victim's side and bites down on his skin, but loses his grip and falls off.

The Plateosaurus adolescent despretly tries to flee back to the safety of the herd. But the female Liliensternus leaps in-front of him and blocks his way. The  Plateosaurus rears his neck higher to avoid the predator's jaws. The predator gets ready to leap onto the herbivore's side, when suddenly she is knocked to the ground by a tail swipe, delivered by a larger fully grown Plateosaurus. The young Sauropodomorph quickly rejoins the herd while the predator is down. The male Liliensternus joins up with his mate just as she's getting up. The two are just about to attack again, when more adult Plateosaurs join up with the lone adult to fight off the predators. Out-sized, out-numbered and out-matched, the two Liliensternus flee. The young Plateosaurus rejoins the herd with a large gash on his side. The predators only hope now that the adolescent Plateosaurus will die from the wound, but the wound isn't deep and he will recover.

3 years later.

The adolescent Plateosaurs are finally fully grown. The Plateosaurus that was attacked has fully recovered, and for the first time in his life he's ready to mate. He heads over to a female Plateosaurus, and the two mate with each other. The male uses his front limbs to hold to her back as he mates, once they've finished, the male lets go and the two rejoin the herd. Sauropodomorphs leave each other once they finish mating; they'll continue with their daily lives and will mate with other     Plateosaurs. Mating with several females increases the number of babies that will be reproduced and will help these Dinosaurs to increase their species's chances for survival.

This male will mate with many more females and will pass on his genes to the next generation of Plateosaurs, until they and many other species of Sauropodomorphs evolve into true Sauropods. They'll continue to grow bigger and stronger until they become one of the biggest and most beautiful animals to ever live.


Next Time on Mesozoic World: We enter our final destination of the Triassic. We journey to the Chinle Formation in North America and will meet some of the strangest animals of the Triassic, from the clever agile Coelophysis, to the strange armored Aetosaur Desmatosuchus. As well as the most famous of all the Rauisuchians, Postosuchus!


Next Episode: coming soon.
Previous Episode: The Mesozoic World: Ep 1, Dawn Of The Dinosaurs.
Full Episode list: The Mesozoic World Series Poster.


Author's note: After SO many struggles with writing this episode, episode 2/20 of The Mesozoic World is finally here! The Liliensternus in the drawing above is actually a heavy modified version of the Herrerasaurus from the first episode (sorry, was feeling kinda lazy and didn't feel like drawing a Liniensternus from scratch.) Special thanks to :icontidalwave21:, :iconantoniorenteria: and :iconpcawesomeness: for volunteering to help out with the story when I was running low on ideas for this (even if your ideas never actually made it in, I still thank you for participating). Feel free to also critique this episode, like point out any inaccuracies I might have not noticed so I can fix them.


The Mesozoic World series and artwork are owned by me.

© 2016 - 2024 JPLover764
Comments10
Join the community to add your comment. Already a deviant? Log In
grisador's avatar