Don't Underestimate The T-rexs little-arm, This Is The Real Function

T-rex from Jurassic Park

 
Tyrannosaurus rex or T-rex is known as one of the most deadly predators in the world. However, his frightening image was marred with a bit of his body's anatomical silliness. He has a pair of arms that are considered not proportional to the size of his giants body.

That's why over the years experts have wondered about the functionality of T-rex's body parts. In a meeting of the Geological Society of America, Steven Stanley, a paleontologist at the University of Hawaii in Manoa, believes that Tyrannosaurus's arm serves as a deadly lethal assailant of prey.

By using a claw measuring about 10 centimeters, T-rex incised a deep cut in the prey. "His short, powerful arms, and large claws, will allow T-rex to injure its prey in a few seconds and can be repeated many times," he was quoted as saying by National Geographic on Thursday (2/11/2017).

This finding refers to a strong T-rex arm bone. According to Stanley, unusual joints in T-rex's arm allow the forefoot to move in any direction, ideal for slashing. What's more, during the evolution, T-rex lost one of their three claws. This produces a 50 percent stronger pressure on the remaining two claws.

However, this hypothesis seems to still lead to debate. "It does not make sense to use the small forelegs to cut," says Jakob Vinther, a paleobiologist at the University of Bristol England.

With further evidence, he prefers the idea of T-rex's forefoot used for other purposes, such as holding a partner during mating. Another with Thomas Holtz, a tyrannosaur expert from the University of Maryland at Collega Park. He argues that even if Stanley's hypothesis is true, it happens when T-rex is young.

Holtz revealed that when adult chest T-rex widened. To exert his arm, he should push his chest toward his prey. "With his position like that T-rex will find it hard to use his powerful jaw," Holtz added.

That's why, according to Holtz, T-rex's arm is more functional when young because in that phase, T-rex's arm is longer. The function decreases as he grows older


source : sains.kompas.com