Fossil Mythology (L10) Flashcards
What do fossils, traces of ancient life, provide important info on?
how life developed through time (evolution)
conditions that existed in ancient sedimentary environments
What ecosystems were like in the past
And factors that exterminated much of Earth’s life in the past and may again in the future
why cant we dismiss mythical creatures in the context of fossils?
many of them probably came about from early interpretations of fossils
What are the similarities of the “Dragon” among cultures
came about from a universal fear of snakes and other reptiles
dinosaur connection very possible
The mythical creature Griffin is a combination of what two distinct classes of animals?
birds and mammals
Where was the idea of Griffin originated?
in the Gobi desert region
What is one of the dinosaurs that can be interpreted as the griffin and why?
The Protoceratops
compact skull with strong beak (like the griffin)
Squat body with long tail and 4 legs (similar to lion, although a reptile)
Long shoulder blades (misinterpreted as wings)
What is another candidate of the real “Griffin” but why its not as a popular theory as the Protoceratops
the birdlike dinosaur Oviraptor
it was bipedal not quadripedal and doesn’t havea robust body
What is the gelogic explanation for the connection between griffin and gold?
the sand grains composing the sandstone in which dinosaur remains are found was probably derived from weathering and erosion of sedimentary rocks
through sorting by wind, light particles leave and heavy ones such as gold are left
What is a possibility of the ancient basis on the Cyclops?
an extinct relative of the modern elephants
Why are the dwarf elephants theorized as cyclops?
the skulls havea hole in the middle of its forehead which is the naval cavity connected to the trunk but could assume that its a single eye
What is another elephant-like mammal that is a candidate to the cyclops?
Deinotheres b/c of its large nasal opening and enormous size
the fundamental groupings of shared characteristics above species level:
Kingdom (e.g., Animalia)
Phylum (e.g., Chordata)
Class (e.g., Mammalia)
Order (e.g., primates)
Family (e.g., Hominidae)
Genus (e.g., Homo)
Species (Homo Sapiens)
What were the fossils of trilobite misinterpeted as in Ancient China?
Stone Swallows
birds made of stones that lew around during thunderstorms
What were Ammonites misinterpreted as in Ancient times?
the headless bodies of snakes - “Snakestones”
Which Phylum and Class do Ammonites belong to?
Phylum Mollusca and Class Cephalopoda
