Paleo Bites

(image source: https://jurassicpark.fandom.com/wiki/Corythosaurus/JW:_E ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Lawrence Mack discuss Corythosaurus , a duckbilled dinosaur with a helmet on its head… except not so much a helmet, as I doubt it would help much against collisions with street pavement or Ankylosaurus clubs. But hey, maybe it would. I’d welcome being surprised. From the Late Cretaceous,...

(image source: https://dinosaurpictures.org/Argentinosaurus-pictures ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Argentinosaurus , a really, really, REALLY big longneck. Like, REALLY big. Oh, and it’s also from Argentina. From the Late Cretaceous, this 100-foot titanosaurid was… goddang, it was SO big! Like seriously, look at it! LOOK AT IT! I am bereft of joke-making capability...

(image source: https://fossil.fandom.com/wiki/Rhamphorhynchus ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Rhamphorhynchus , a sea pterosaur with a lot of pointy teeth and even more unnecessary H’s in its name. No word should have that many ‘H’ letters in it, and if you disagree, shhhh! From the Late Jurassic, this six-foot wingspan pterosaur had a big pointy fin at the end of its t...

(image source: https://www.deviantart.com/ntvtiko/art/Vaderlimulus-tricki-754817629 ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Allen Brooks discuss Vaderlimulus , a horseshoe crab that looked like Darth Vader, or at least like the top of Darth Vader’s helmet. The hat part of the helmet, you know? I bet this gives great helmet. From the Early Triassic, this 4-inch xiphosuran arthropod was your father…...

(image source: https://eartharchives.org/articles/kosmoceratops-was-the-frilliest-of-all-the-ceratopsians/ ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Lawrence Mack discuss Kosmoceratops , a very horny dinosaur in that it had the most horns of any horned dinosaurs. Although maybe it was also horny in the other sense. What it did in its time is none of my business. From the Late Cretaceous, this 16-foo...

(image source: https://jurassicpark.fandom.com/wiki/Shunosaurus/JW:_TG?file=Shunosaurus.png ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Shunosaurus , a small longneck dinosaur that’s not very notable except it has a club at the end of its tail. That’s not that notable either, Shunny-boy. I have a club too! A “Cool Dino Fan” club, currently the only members being me and my mom. Fr...

(image source: https://image.pbs.org/video-assets/5kg0O0I-asset-mezzanine-16x9-RIS0K1C.png ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Hatzegopteryx , the last shadow the poor dwarf dino islanders of the Hateg basin ever saw. Oh, watch out, Zalmoxes ! You’re gonna get et by a jet. From the Late Cretaceous, this 36-foot wingspan azhdarchid pterosaur was basically a giraffe with wing...

(image source: https://www.heraldnet.com/northwest/suciasaurus-rex-named-washington-states-official-dinosaur/ ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Jason Zolle discuss “Suciasaurus rex,” an informally named fossil that’s probably Daspletosaurus or something but that’s not the state dinosaur of Washington, is it? Listen to our episode on that particular genus. Oh wait, we haven’t actually done an...

(original image source: https://images.dinosaurpictures.org/sauropelta_5c34.jpg ) Happy 300 episodes! Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Leonychus the Hoplitosaurus, King of the Lakota Formation, discuss (by performing an overly dramatic farcical audiodrama) Hoplitosaurus , a heavily defended creature that fought the encroaching Acrocanthosaurus armies... except that dinosaur was from a differe...

(image source: https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Rhizodus ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Lawrence Mack discuss Rhizodus , the largest ever freshwater fish that had so much rizz it lived for 30 million whole years. Rhizodus-dizz, thanks for all the rizz! From the Early Carboniferous, this 20-foot sarcopterygian was actually more closely related to us humans than other fish, although it was...

(image source: https://makerworld.com/en/models/767570-shantungosaurus ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Shantungosaurus , a big big BIG duckbilled dinosaur, and in fact the biggest non-sauropod dinosaur ever! Then again, I’m the biggest guy named Matthew who’s written a book called Megazoic. Probably, anyways. From the Late Cretaceous, this 56-foot saurolophine hadrosa...

(image source: http://bit.ly/4kjy8Dk ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Allen Brooks discuss Catactegenys , a type of night lizard, which is a group still alive today BUUUUT there’s a really big and exciting study about them involving the big meteor that killed the dinosaurs so it counts. I make the rules! From the Late Cretaceous to the Late Holocene (i.e., right now), this family of squamat...

(image source: https://dinosaurpictures.org/Shuvuuia-pictures ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-hosts Jaymes Buckman and their boyfriend Toby discuss Shuvuuia, the tiny, quirky desert-dwelling dino-bird-thing that proves you don’t need claws, wings, or teeth to be iconic, just a good sense of direction and a thirst for termites. Yum. From the Late Cretaceous, this 3-foot alvarezsaurid scurried th...

(image source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/gallimimus-paleoart-by-me--236087205460103553/ ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Gallimimus , a classic dinosaur and pioneer of the visual effects industry… at least for us humans. I doubt it dabbled in any visual effects work itself. From the Late Cretaceous, this 20-foot ornithomimosaur had its big scene in Jurassic Park wh...

(image source: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/676736281530757612/) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Laura Owsley discuss Enhydriodon , a giant species of otter that you really otter avoid. That’s the kind of humor you should expect on this show. I truly can’t believe we’re nearing 300 episodes. From the Early Pliocene, this 7-foot mustelid was believed to be mostly terrestrial but very comfort...

(image source: https://newdinosaurs.com/megantereon/ ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Lawrence Mack discuss Megantereon , a fairly typical saber-toothed cat with one major claim to fame in that we have direct evidence of it hunting early humans, so any time you think there’s danger in the darkness, you can thank this guy for instilling that instinct into you. Thanks, Megantereon ! I really...

(image source: https://prehistoria.fandom.com/es/wiki/Scleromochlus ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Scleromochlus , a cute little dude with absolutely nothing remarkable about it on its own and is more interesting in what it evolved into; this guy was in fact an early ancestor of the pterosaurs! Celebrate, all ye boring people, in that eventually you might have more int...

 (image source: https://medium.com/@smartap3s/luca-and-fuca-our-great-great-great-grandmas-7880b0950e53 ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-hosts Jennifer Grossman and Matt’s niece Logan (against his will) discuss FUCA, the original, original life before even LUCA was a thing, which I also covered with Jennifer about two hundred episodes earlier. From the Early Precambrian, this non-cellular e...

(image source: https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Dromaeosaurus ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Dromaeosaurus , the namesake of the dromaeosaur family that are more commonly known as “raptors.” Which means Velociraptor is more the namesake of the family, but I’m talking scientifically! “Uh, actually, they’re not raptors, they’re dromaeosaurs .” Gee, thanks, Kyle. From...

(image source: https://alchetron.com/Smok-(archosaur) ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Laura Owsley discuss Smok , a basal archosaur that looks like a dinosaur but apparently is not. Look, it looks like one to me, but I ain’t no scientist. You should listen to them instead of this dumb show. From the Late Triassic, this 20-foot reptile was one of the top predators of its day and one of the...

(image source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinocrocuta by Dmitry Bogdanov) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Allen Brooks discuss Dinocrocuta , which is not an awesome dinosaur/crocodile hybrid like the name suggests but is instead some lame hyena thing. Oh wait, it’s actually a fricking enormous hyena thing? Eh, it’s still not as cool as a dinocroc. From the Late Miocene, this 7-foot hyena...

(image source: https://marchan-forest.blogspot.com/2021/ ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Kunpengopterus , a monkey-like pterosaur in that it had opposable thumbs, which is pretty cool I gotta say. There’s no joke there, I genuinely think that’s cool. From the Late Jurassic, this 3-foot wukongopterid was first thought to be just a run-of-the-mill pterodactyloid before th...

 (image source: https://ar.inspiredpencil.com/pictures-2023/compsognathus ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Compsognathus , famously the smallest dinosaur of all but not so famously actually not the smallest dinosaur of all anymore, not even close. It’s been working out, getting yoked and stuff. From the Late Jurassic, this 4.5 foot theropod is now believed to not...

(image source: https://newdinosaurs.com/elasmotherium/ ) Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Jaymes Buckman discuss Elasmotherium , a woolly rhino that’s not the Woolly Rhino but is woolly and is a rhino, so call it whatever you want I guess. From the late Pleistocene, this 18-foot rhinoceratid came equipped with a seriously metal nose horn coming out of its face. Except not literally metal, as...

(image source: https://www.publicdomainpictures.net/  ) April Fools, puny humans! Host Emperor Splozzitrox, Supreme Ruler of the Planet Zurkabong, and co-host Karzagloth, the underest of underlings, discuss Homo sapiens, the recently exterminated ground vermin that once overpopulated this hunk of space rock named Earth, a backwater planet in the Goozapeg Sector. From the Late Pleistocene to...