Sophie M.

Young American Alligator basking in the sun

This little one didn't move in the three hours I was there. Originally they were in really harsh lighting by the time I left they were in the same spot with much better light. I didn't name this one though lol
#Canon R50 EF100-400 II w1.4 TC
#herps #photography #ECK

This is one of the places where both modern nature documentaries and paleontological "documentaries" struggle, because people do not want to watch animals (even CGI ones) enduring prolonged and hideously graphic suffering, something that happens in nature *all the time*

Unraveling the identity of Plesiosaurus posidoniae, the first plesiosaur described from the Posidonia Shale of Germany Schematic representation of the stratigraphic distribution of nearly complete plesiosaur specimens within the lower Toarcian (upper Lower Jurassic) Lias ɛII interval of the Posidonia Shale (Posidonie...

Unraveling the identity of Plesiosaurus posidoniae, the first plesiosaur described from the Posidonia Shale of Germany - Sachs - The Anatomical Record - Wiley Online Library anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Newest watercolor is the iconic long-necked Elasmosaurus. 🎨#paleoart

Not many museums would ask for this...... a taphonomic model

#paleontology #fossils #PaleoReconstruction

Netflix promo poster for The Dinosaurus, showing Spinosaurus jaws in shallow water with a shark swimming toward them.

Last night I watched all 4 eps of the new Netflix series The Dinosaurs. I tend not to comment on these kinds of shows as, having worked on them, I find that those people who criticize or critique them have no understanding of the competing pressures and factors inherent to the TV industry... 1/8

From evolution of eyes & ears to cutting-edge imaging of sensory anatomy, new issue explores how vertebrate senses guide adaptive responses in a complex world. Shared theme: sensing cues in an expansive environment shaped vertebrate radiation
anatomypubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/19328494...

the sonselasuchus - gracile, beaked, herbivorous pseudosuchians - stand bipedally in the middle of the piece, whereas a third sonselasuchus adopts a quadrupedal stance in the foreground

a very warm welcome to sonselasuchus cedrus, a shuvosaurid from the chinle formation described by smith and sidor 🐊 sonselasuchus is known from a bonebed of mostly immature individuals, totalling at least 36 in number
(art by gabriel ugueto)

I feel like there’s a 25% chance the camera gets swallowed by a big rhizodont within minutes, but wouldn’t that make for some incredible footage?

This is very close to the top of my list. It’s something I’ve wanted to explore artistically for ages and never have the time!

Giant bolosaurs adapted for hindgut fermentation, feeding on obscenely huge quantities of poor-quality forage. No reason to think this, I just like the idea.

Photo of a very large mosquito in brown and cream with striking gold bands on its abdomen, and gold and blue on its legs and proboscis.

Australian Elephant Mosquito (Toxorhynchites speciosus).
A most welcome sight in my garden. The adults don't drink blood at all (they prefer nectar and sap), while the larvae consume other types of mosquitoes!
#insects #invertebrates

Osteology and relationships of a new shuvosaurid (Pseudosuchia, Poposauroidea) from the Upper Triassic Chinle Formation of Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona, U.S.A. Shuvosauridae is a clade of pseudosuchian archosaurs currently represented by three named species characterized by a body plan strikingly convergent with that of ornithomimid theropod dinosaurs. Th...

Osteologia e relacionamentos de um novo shuvossaurídeo (Pseudosuchia, Poposauroidea) da Formação Chinle do Triássico Superior do Parque Nacional da Floresta Petrificada, Arizona, EUA www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

NO NO NO YOU DON’T

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Results from the #paleostream!
Arctognathus with Arctops, Tanyka, Nannippus (with giant puffer fish) and Caninosaurus.

A large predatory dinosaur, Allosaurus, breaks into a run alongside a shallow pond. Turtles and pterosaurs are seen in the foreground around the allosaur's feet, and stegosaurs and sauropods occur in the far distance. Ferns, cycadophytes and conifers comprise the vegetation.

A gloomy scene of Cambrian life. A field of tower-like sponges creates a set of obstacles for an all-star cast of Cambrian critters to swim and climb around, including anomalocarids, trilobites, lots of wormy things and the bizarre Opabinia.

Flying animals of the Yixian Formation: pterosaurs, birds, and insects compete for airspace over mountains and ginkgo treetops.

Deposits of the Cleveland Shale and the fossil animals they contain: among several species of Devonian sharks is the famous Dunkleosteus. Palaeontologists work to discover new fossils at the base of the cliff.

At #Patreon, I've been discussing my 2024 #paleoart murals for the Cleveland Museum of Natural History: www.patreon.com/markwitton. They include a life-size Allosaurus, Cambrian faunas, Yixian pterosaurs, birds and insects, Cleveland Shale strata and fishes...

#FossilFriday #sciart #paleontology

Vector illustration of the mid size brontothere Palaeosyops dayii with its head low showing off its fangs and tail raised to ward off a threat. The tapir or rhino like perissodactyl is dark brown with a reddish underside and white patches on its throat, eyes and legs

#Marchofthemammals2026 day 7: an angry Palaeosyops dayi

Result from the Wadi al Hitan #paleostream!
The "valley of the whales" as it is better known is a classic locality from the late Eocene of Egypt. Most famously it is place filled with the remains of early whales, Archaeoceti, but it's less straight forward as a piece than one...

Let’s assume it is for the sake of the question!

Both very fun choices!

My initial thoughts were pulling me towards some sort of mountainous region in the early Jurassic for the same reasoning. Even just a glimpse into a habitat like that would be so enlightening!

That’s a fun pick!

Chinle Supremacy.

All three are excellent choices! I think the Tapinocephalus Assemblage Zone would be my pick from these three, just for the sheer amount we could learn with even the briefest footage of ANY of those animals.

I’d gladly settle for 23 hours and 55 minutes of nothing if it meant five minutes of Triassic Weirdo in clear view.

Chañares is high on my list, basically anything you’d film would give us a wealth of information that could be extrapolated to lots of other species that are generally poorly understood as far as life appearance goes. That’s true of a lot of these, but the Chañares has a special allure.

Definitely a good pick! I’d be crossing my fingers for Torosaurus, personally.

Ten billion dollars and a lifetime of man hours invested in the time-machine trail cam project, and for what!?

The risk factor is a big part of the fun, I think! Maybe you’ll catch a huge multispecies sauropod gathering, maybe you’ll catch an obscured ten second glimpse of some unidentifiable theropod’s tail and nothing else.

This is a great option, though I think there’s a good chance you’ll review the footage and find it recorded nothing at all!