Summary: Geologist Scott McKenzie is putting together pieces of the prehistoric fish Dunkleosteus whose remains were found in Erie County, which was under a saltwater ocean 364 million years ago. McKenzie says that when the Dunkleosteus is complete, the size of the head will be similar to that of a Volskwagen Beetle. Unfortunately most of the remains are still buried under sandy shale in Erie County. The Dunkleosteus was one of the most terrifying creatures during the Devonian period because of how fast its jaws could open, creating a suction force that pulled prey into its mouth. The Dunkleostus could snap a prehistoric shark right in half! McKenzie said that the remains would be hard to locate because they are located along a stream in a heavily wooded area.
NOS themes:
Collaboration is part of this article because Scott McKenzie has to collaborate with other geologists to uncover the remains.
Evidence is part
of this article because geologists use the fossils to identify facts about the Dunkleosteus and other animals during the time period.
Conflicts within the scientific community is in this article because McKenzie is not allowed to share the site of the remains with other people because the people who own the land don't want him to.
Katherine Gao Hour 1
Since I have a little brother, I happen to know quite a bit about prehistoric creatures, but I have never heard of this Dunkleosteus. We keep finding new fossils of new creatures all of the time. This just goes to prove that we will never have all of the knowledge in the world. It is always possible to come up with new things, or make a new discovery. That is what makes the Earth so interesting! I also find it interesting that McKenzie can't share the site of the remains with other people. The people who own the land should let him allow other scientists in so that they can help him with his task and also help to understand this new and fascinating creature.
ReplyDeleteLexi Reed, Gabel Hour 1
It is very interesting how people keep finding new things about the past, and how things were before and it makes me think about how smart and good at biology must the people that find these animals be in order to tel exactly how they worked, what they ate and everything just by looking at it's bones. It also makes me think about how amazing it is that bodies are designed specifically for something (thank evolution for this) and this is why we can tell just by looking at bones.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how many things and animals from the past we haven't discovered yet and how this might help us in the future for our understanding of the world around us