Invent your own animal

[Kyng]

Interesting one . I'd like to see that in a fight, if we can find a suitable opponent!

[JHG]

Interesting one . I'd like to see that in a fight, if we can find a suitable opponent!

Someday, it could happen!
Also...
Nanodromaius neoangloensis(Small runner of New England)

Western North America has the dinosaurs that draws the most fans but the East is far more overlooked thanks to the sparse fossil finds there. Nanodromaius was a relative of Thescelosaurus and lived around the same time period but in the Eastern continent of Appalachia instead of Laramidia. Nanodromaius would've fulfilled a similar niche to its Western counterparts as a relatively small herbivore in the Late Cretaceous. Nanodromaius would've been about the size of tigers at 4 meters long and 300 kilograms in weight. Males might've been larger or possibly females. Like Thescelosaurus, Nanodromaius would've been a floodplain dweller that swam in water well making these dinosaurs similar to beavers(although they did not build fortresses like beavers.) The dromaeosaurids and large pterosaurs of the time would be the greatest threat to these ornithiscians. Young individuals of Dryptosaurus would likely also have been threats. Nanodromaius went extinct in the K-Pg extinction event.

[Kyng]

In a post in the "Dire Wolves are not wolves" thread, I made an off-handed remark about them not being plants. However, this inspired me to create the following:



The Wolfplant takes the concept of a 'carnivorous plant' to a whole new level. This botanical beast is about 2 metres tall - and, at the end of its lone stalk, you will find the head of an angry, hungry grey wolf. Based on the fact that it lacks any visible legs, you might think it cannot move, and therefore doesn't pose much of a threat. However, you'd be wrong: hidden away in the base of this plant pot is a single leg, which the Wolfplant can use to hop around. It's not especially fast - the Wolfplant usually hops at around 5mph - but it can sprint at 30mph over a short distance. Furthermore, the lengthy stalk gives the head a great deal of flexibility mobility - and, should anybody attempt to ambush it from behind, its extremely sensitive nose and ears will ensure that it hears or smells its attacker long before it sees them. Don't underestimate it - and definitely don't go anywhere near it.

(And no, I didn't draw the plant or the wolf's head. I just Frankensteined this thing together out of two pieces of public domain Clip Art: here, and here )

[Kyng]

Another picture of the Wolfplant, this time created by @ Remington:

[Kyng]

This one's not quite as weird as the Wolfplant, but it's still pretty odd:



The gecko horse is a curious equine beast, which is rather different from the ones we know and love. While it still has the hooves and basic body plan of a regular horse, it's different in pretty much every other respect. For example, it has green, scaly skin, which offers a fair amount of camouflage on the lush green plains of its homeland. It also possesses an extremely long tongue, that can extend to a length of over two metres, allowing it to catch insects and small mammals (although it usually sticks to eating grass and other low-lying vegetation). Its final weapon is its tail, which is much lengthier and sturdier than that of a horse, allowing it to lash any potential predators that attempt to ambush it from behind. However, these extra features do come at a price: it's significantly slower than a regular horse. While an average horse's galloping speed is 25-30mph, the gecko horse is only capable of 18-22mph.

(Once again, this was just a very quick MS Paint drawing: I didn't even attempt to draw the scales. So, if anybody wants to make a better one, then be my guest!)

[Kyng]

And, latest in my serious of outrageous creations is the Solar-powered Elk:



In the frozen tundra to the north of the Artic Circle, there is relatively little food. However, there are a few rugged species that have made extreme adaptations to sustain themselves in this harsh climate. Chief among these is a highly unusual elk, whose organic body has been painstakingly augmented by several rows of solar panels extending down the length of its back. These are intended mainly to supplement its energy intake - especially during the months of the midnight sun when it can enjoy 24 hours of daylight. However, they also have the added benefit of providing shielding from the cold weather - as well as a shelter to hibernate in during the winter months, in which it must endure 24 hours of darkness every day.

Of course, the solar panels aren't the only feature that helps it to eke out an existence in this unforgiving climate. For example, the elk is relatively small (with an average shoulder height of only 0.9 metres), to keep its own energy needs down. Furthermore, its antlers are tipped with sharp, serrated metal blades, in order to help it to ward off predators (mostly polar bears). It can't go on the attack too often, since it needs to keep its energy usage to a minimum (particularly if it's ever disturbed from its hibernation); however, when it does, a headful of antler blades can pack a vicious punch indeed.

[JHG]

Alaskornis phobonyx(Night Terror Alaskan bird)

Alaskornis was a large troodontid living in what is now Alaska. It was thought to be a regional variant of Troodon but that genus was deemed too much of a wastebasket taxon. At 6 meters long and 359 kilograms in weight, Alaskornis was the largest troodontid comfortably beating Latenivenatrix for the record. Par for the course for a troodontid, Alaskornis was an omnivore that fed on plants as well as other animals. It is likely males brooded the nests like with other dinosaurs. Alaskornis did not have nearly enough killing power to bring down large prey like dromaeosaurids could and it was no match for Nanuqsaurus, a small tyrannosaur that was the region’s apex predator. But for an intermediate niche, Alaskornis was supremely successful. As Alaska in the Late Cretaceous was cold for much of the year, Alaskornis would likely have grown a winter coat of thicker feathers.

[Kyng]

Interesting one .

I was going to say that 359kg seemed rather light for a 6m-long - but actually, that seems to be pretty much par for the course with troodontids (the 1.5m ones seemed to weigh less than 10kg, and the 3m ones seemed to weigh less than 50kg). I guess a lot of the length is taken up by the head and the tail, which don't weigh much .