tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post1056050307419389148..comments2024-03-18T07:23:32.809-04:00Comments on Gurney Journey: Part 4: Pteranodons / Hatchling SketchesJames Gurneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01870848001990898499noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-14602802441849297052012-10-08T15:44:24.844-04:002012-10-08T15:44:24.844-04:00James, not sure if you came across this in your re...James, not sure if you came across this in your research, but I think this is relevant (taken from the 'Evolution' facebook page):<br /><br />"Reptiles, known as egg-layers, form their eggs and it completes its embryological development outside the body of mother. However, some species are not following this pattern. A lizard species, yellow-bellied three-toed skink, forms the egg and keeps it inside of the body until baby lizard almost completes its embryological development. The level of this development inside the body changes depending on altitute and temperature. <b>As altitude gets higher and temperature gets lower, these lizards almost gives birth to live babies.</b><br /><br />This change in birth style creates some problems and solution to these problems. The main problem is about nourishment of the embryo. The egg shell gets thinner to make breathing of embryo possible, then, the amount of calcium stored in the egg shell lowers. Since thin shell stores less calcium, baby lizards may have some health problems. James Stewart, a biologist, explains how lizards are evolving to solve this problem :"Now we can see that the uterus secretes calcium that becomes incorporated into the embryo—it's basically the early stages of the evolution of a placenta in reptiles"<br /><br />-UÇ"<br /><br />http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/09/100901-science-animals-evolution-australia-lizard-skink-live-birth-eggs/<br /><br />http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jmor.10877/fullLidahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558301490216378480noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-58811919709438895372012-10-08T13:08:07.416-04:002012-10-08T13:08:07.416-04:00I love all these little studies and the finished a...I love all these little studies and the finished art.<br /><br />I actually think it is OK to 'be wrong'. I don't mean you personally, I mean all of us.<br />Science is an inexact science. ; ) (sorry scientists)<br /><br />It evolves and changes over time, like anything else, as we discover new things and technology advances.<br /><br />So even though you want to be as accurate as possible with current science data, it may be different tomorrow.<br /><br />These are a reflection of what we know now.David Teterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16747334525619423349noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-83211383028155589362012-10-08T10:04:38.000-04:002012-10-08T10:04:38.000-04:00Tom, that's a very interesting point. Every ar...Tom, that's a very interesting point. Every artist must think independently and be ready to question any authority, and any good scientist will welcome ideas and will welcome respectful challenges from artists, who often look at things differently from their scientific colleagues. You can solicit the opinions of various scientists, too. I almost always defer to the top paleontologists because they have studied this stuff for a long time and can marshall the evidence. But fundamentally, you have to look at the evidence and judge for yourself. Paleontology and paleoart are partners in a way, one stimulating and guiding the other. James Gurneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870848001990898499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-5489439369899328422012-10-08T09:45:49.251-04:002012-10-08T09:45:49.251-04:00Of course, you're sort of stuck with the exper...Of course, you're sort of stuck with the experts' interpretations of fossil evidence.What if they're wrong?Tom Hopphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17683044597782252722noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-7082174933503487262012-10-07T18:44:35.273-04:002012-10-07T18:44:35.273-04:00The close up of chick and parent does reach the he...The close up of chick and parent does reach the heart. <br />Looking forward to seeing how your corrected sketches turned out. - MPAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-66360250736117204662012-10-07T17:45:05.731-04:002012-10-07T17:45:05.731-04:00From what I've read and watched, young pterosa...From what I've read and watched, young pterosaurs hatched fully developed and ready to fly (I got this mainly from Flying Monsters 3D with David Attenborough).<br /><br />I could very well be wrong.Zubin Erikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10633405917939746757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-12134718529259397062012-10-07T15:38:24.457-04:002012-10-07T15:38:24.457-04:00The sad thing is, we have a flying analogue in eve...The sad thing is, we have a flying analogue in every other animal classification (fish, birds, mammals), but no flying reptiles (not gliders). We lost our flying reptiles a long time ago. So we really don't have anything to compare them to.Kessiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15019626781634777336noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-82567595878781671632012-10-07T13:18:21.922-04:002012-10-07T13:18:21.922-04:00Anonymous, there's not much direct evidence ab...Anonymous, there's not much direct evidence about Pteranodon nesting behaviors, so speculation is inevitable if you want to reconstruct hatchlings. Let's hope paleontologists find more direct evidence, as they have done with hadrosaurs. Birds and crocs serve as modern analogues for a variety of styles of parenting, but in the post, I try to explain the risks of such extrapolation. As for psychology, it's impossible to be neutral or objective with such speculative work, for any choice is grounded on some sort of assumption.James Gurneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870848001990898499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-12621195384736432702012-10-07T13:01:10.900-04:002012-10-07T13:01:10.900-04:00I think this has more to do with the psychology of...I think this has more to do with the psychology of the artist than the science of pterosaurs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-10064165898334848812012-10-07T11:46:38.298-04:002012-10-07T11:46:38.298-04:00Ouch! That's some critical feedback! I kind of...Ouch! That's some critical feedback! I kind of like the idea of them being good parents, but again, these are reptiles we're talking about. Reptiles aren't usually the mothering types (although there are alligators and crocodiles).<br /><br />I like the sketch of the mama and baby heads. It's very sweet.Kessiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15019626781634777336noreply@blogger.com