Velociraptor? - Page 2

crocdoc · 12-02-04, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by rwg
Alright, so for Mark and anyone else who has been bitten by a croc monitor, would you mind describing the situation and the outcome a bit? I'm really pretty curious about it. I've read that croc monitors are the only monitors with upper and lower teeth that scissor together making it easier to tear flesh.

Roy

If you want to see teeth designed to tear flesh, look at the species which make a regular habit of eating carrion and have strong, serrated teeth. The brittle, hollow structure of salvadorii teeth are probably evolved for holding or jabbing prey through a thick layer of feathers or fur, rather than cutting chunks out.

It's not unlike comparing different species of sharks' teeth: the ones that grab and swallow whole prey (such as the grey nurse, or sandtiger, shark, which feeds on fish) have long, slender teeth. The ones that tear chunks out of larger prey (great white, which bites into seals, tiger shark, which takes chunks off turtles) have thicker, sharp edged serrated teeth.

mbayless · 12-02-04, 07:26 PM

Hi DK,
That is a damn good analogy - I never thought of it that way! THANKS!
markb

jungleshadows · 12-02-04, 09:51 PM

Hey DK,

I agree they are probly adapt to grasping prey such as birds, bats or whatever else is buzzing around. It makes more sense to me for them to sink those things into the flesh of a bird then a mammal. Almost everytime I have been bit I have to remove a tooth from my skin. It does rip and tear the flesh easily, but it also seems to snag on thicker skin.

When they have bit me on a knuckle it seems to bend there teeth rather then penetrating. I find it amazing such large teeth but yet hollow? To me it makes the croc monitor a specialized hunter. Not saying it doesn't feed on other things but to evolve those teeth must be for a purpose. Not to mention the huge expansion of the mouth man they can swallow some large prey items.

My Salvators and Black tree monitors seem to be the best at shredding prey. Falling close is my indicus but they use claws more then teeth for that job. Then you have my savs and albigs who just smash my fingers leaving very little in that of a puncture wound.

I also find that out of all my monitors the african species seem to be the only ones in which the teeth change drasticaly from young to adults.

crocdoc · 12-02-04, 10:06 PM

I wonder what the flying fox (fruitbat) population is like in croc monitor areas of PNG. There are big colonies of them here and many animals like to feed on them (it's one of the estuarine crocodile's favourite foods - they rest underneath the colonies that roost over water), so I'd be surprised if there weren't similar densities in PNG. That and an abundance of birds.

jungleshadows · 12-02-04, 10:18 PM

I am not certain of the availability of flying fox and birds in PNG.
But if I was going to look for croc monitors I would follow the birds and bats closely to where they roost. I am sure the tree crocs are doing the same.

Thats funny you mention crocodiles liking flying fox. Maybe the fella used the name crocodile in front of monitor for a reason?

mbayless · 12-02-04, 10:41 PM

The information on fruitbats is readily available from the IUCN reports done in recent years, like the one done on Megapode Birds which is pretty good - by M. Dekker. Also the books by Tim Flannery on the 'Mammals of New Guinea' and 'Mammals of the Moluccas' has good informations on them there too...I'll email Tim Flannery and ask him if he has any info on fruitbat populations densities...a good idea to pursue...
markb

whiskybent · 12-08-04, 11:22 AM

hey everyoe i have a young savanna monitor. im not sure on its sex but i was wondering if anyone can tell me when it will reach sexual maturity. i've had this monitor for 4 months now and its 14 inches long. it has a blue tounge if that may hep anyone tell me its sex i saw in one of the posting something about tounge color in a species of monitor. thanks for any help

crocdoc · 12-08-04, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by jungleshadows
Thats funny you mention crocodiles liking flying fox. Maybe the fella used the name crocodile in front of monitor for a reason?

Actually, the original common name for salvadorii was tree crocodile, not crocodile monitor, probably based on a local name for it. Apparently the local name for Komodo dragons translates to land crocodile.

Mark, a very good friend of mine did much of the field work for, and with, Tim (I also know Tim from years ago, when I was doing illustrations of fossils for his then supervisor, Mike Archer). There are definitely fruit bats in PNG, I'll just have to quizz him on distribution and numbers.

It would be very easy for a salvadorii to get fruit bats if it crawled up into a colony (which are called 'camps' in Oz - we have stacks of fruit bats here, even down here in Sydney).

mbayless · 12-09-04, 02:18 PM

"Artrellia" means 'crocodile of the trees'; there are several other names for V. salvadorii but I do not know/have those translations yet...but I have asked around to get meanings of them...I am sure it is similar meaning words as well....perhaps equating with 'demon' or 'devil' which they often refer to them as...
markb