Dinosaurs Without Bones (69 page)

p. 358
“But once wolves were back in the neighborhood, salads that were once taken leisurely plummeted, riparian plant communities bounced back… .” (1) Ripple, W.J., and Beschata, R.L. 2003. Wolf reintroduction, predation risk, and cottonwood recovery in Yellowstone National Park.
Forest Ecology and Management
, 184: 299-313. (2) Ripple
et al.
(2013).

p. 358
“This fear factor even caused elk to have smaller families, as the added stress of possible predation triggered hormones that decreased female-elk fertility.” Creel
et al.
(2007).

p. 358
“This effect even helped wolves’ super-friends, grizzly bears, which then had lots more berries to eat during lean times.” Ripple
et al.
(2013).

p. 360
“Coincidentally (or not), early birds and flowering plants expanded and diversified at about the same time, which was in the middle of the Cretaceous Period (about 100–125
mya
).” Zhou, Z., Barrett, P.M., and Hilton, J. 2003. An exceptionally preserved Lower Cretaceous ecosystem.
Nature
, 421: 807-814.

p. 360
“In some of the earliest studies done of this phenomenon, ecologists estimated that about half to 90% of all fruited trees of modern forests are adapted for birds and mammals to eat them.” Howe, H.F. 1986. Dispersal by fruit-eating birds and mammals.
In
Murray, D.M. (editor),
Seed Dispersal
. Academic Press, New York: 123-144.

p. 362
“This even happens in the guts of alligators and crocodiles, some of which eat a surprising amount of fruit.” Platt, S.G., Elsey, R.M., Liu, H., Rainwater, T.R., Nifong, J.C., Rosenblatt, A.E., Heithaus, M.R., and Mazzotti, F.J. 2013. Frugivory and seed dispersal by crocodilians: an overlooked form of saurochory?
Journal of Zoology
, 291: 87-99.

p. 362
“But do not chew and swallow, say, a cup of apple seeds: every seed contains a small amount of cyanide… .” Silverton, J. 2009.
An Orchard Invisible: A Natural History of Seeds
. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois: 224 p.

p. 363
“Charles Darwin even thought of this, as he wondered how the isolated Galapagos Islands off the coast of South America had managed to acquire such thriving plant communities.” Grant, K.T., and Estes, G.B. 2009.
Darwin in Galápagos: Footsteps to a New World.
Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey: 362 p.

p. 363
“Animal immigrants could include members of these birds’ microbiomes … but other accidental tourists—such as snails, larval insects, or larval crustaceans—also can attach to bird feet.” Green, A.J., and Figuerola, J. 2005. Recent advances in the study of long-distance dispersal of aquatic invertebrates via birds.
Diversity and Distributions
, 11: 149-156.

p. 364
“Based on fossil tracks from Korea, we know that palmate bird feet had evolved by about 120
mya
(Early Cretaceous). Moreover, webbed bird tracks became more common and bigger throughout the rest of the Cretaceous.” Kim, J.Y., Lockley, M.G., Seo, S.J., Kim, K.S., Kim, S.H., and Bark, K.S. 2012. A paradise of Mesozoic birds: the world’s richest and most diverse Cretaceous bird track assemblage from the Early Cretaceous Haman Formation of the Gajin Tracksite, Jinju, Korea.
Ichnos
, 19: 28-42.

p. 365
“Yes, that’s right, Charles Darwin thought of flighted birds taking both seeds and small invertebrates to new homes, and repeating these actions over many generations.” Grant and Estes (2009).

p. 366
“
In my opinion these footsteps (with which subject your name is certain to go down to long future posterity) make one of the most curious discoveries of the present century… .
” Letter from Charles Darwin to Edward Hitchcock, November 6, 1845. Entire contents of
correspondence transcribed at: https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/ letter/entry-925

p. 366
“As of this writing, despite continued discoveries of theropod and ornithopod tracks, almost no dinosaur bones are known from the Connecticut River Valley.” Weishampel and Young (1998).

p. 367
“One of the most excitedly received dinosaur books in recent years was
All Yesterdays
(2012)… .” Conway, J., Koseman, C.M., Naish, D., and Hartman, S. 2012.
All Yesterdays: Unique and Speculative Views of Dinosaurs and Other Prehistoric Animals
. Irregular Books: 100 p.

p. 367
“That book’s popularity then led to a sequel published in late 2013, titled
All Your Yesterdays.
…” Koseman, C.M. 2013.
All Your Yesterdays: Extraordinary Visions of Extinct Life by a New Generation of Palaeoartists
. Irregular Books: 180 p.

Ideally, books are traces of an author’s thoughts. But in reality they are composite traces built, shaped, and birthed by a huge number of tracemakers, with many influencing an author well before words are imagined, spoken, or written and coalesce with coherence and meaning. I am extremely grateful to all of these tracemakers for their help in making this book real, but also must note—with great frustration—that I cannot possibly name all who left their imprints on my consciousness or otherwise aided in its physical manifestation before the book started and while it was in process.

Of course, that shouldn’t stop me from trying. So I’ll start with the most important people, who are the bookends of my life, my parents and my wife. Chronologically, the first are those who made me exist in the first place, my parents, Veronica and Richard Martin. Neither went to college, and our family only had enough money to pay the bills each month. Yet they still understood the intrinsic value of my enthusiasm for natural history, and they encouraged my learning from it from an early age. All of those hours spent in our back yard, trips to the countryside for hunting or fishing, and jaunts to public libraries, are starting to pay off. Thank you, Mom and Dad. (Side note: Thanks also to public libraries and librarians everywhere. We love you, need you, and want to read all your books.)

At the other end of my life—which I plan to continue as long as possible, and with her—is the one person who was most responsible for nurturing and encouraging my creative growth, Ruth Schowalter. I am in a state of still-stunned disbelief that she agreed to my writing another book so quickly on the heels of one that occupied about 35% of our lives together. Fortunately, that daunting percentage diminishes with each passing year, and this more recent spate of writing and editing was made shorter and far easier with the growing realization of the depth of her wisdom, love, and support that has always been there. Thank you,
Ruth, for all you have done, whether together at home or in the field, or apart from each other. I could not have started, done, or completed this book without you.

The idea for a book on dinosaur ichnology had been germinating for quite a while in my mind, but I needed to gain a little more knowledge and experience before taking it on. For instance, in 1996, back when HTML was still carved out by hand with hammers and chisels, I wrote and posted a crude Web site simply titled
Dinosaur Trace Fossils
, which summarized what I then knew about this topic. (Let’s just say it was a short site.) In 2006, many of the same themes appeared in a chapter on dinosaur trace fossils in my college-level dinosaur textbook (
Introduction to the Study of Dinosaurs
). Soon after that, another book, but one more overtly ichnological, took over my life:
Life Traces of the Georgia Coast
, which took about four years (2008 to 2012) from book-proposal acceptance to holding the book in my hands. That tome, like a sauropod trackway reshaping a landscape, cleared the way for me to write something more focused and fun: namely, the one you’re holding now. My appreciation is thus extended to editors Nancy Whilton (Wiley-Blackwell) and Robert (Bob) Sloan and James (Jim) Farlow (Indiana University Press) for their assistance with the aforementioned books, which made this one more probable.

That’s where Sydney (Sid) Perkowitz enters the story. A friend and colleague of mine at Emory University (the place where I occasionally work), he graciously met with me several times to share his experiences with writing on scientific topics for broader audiences. During one of those meetings, he suggested that I contact his literary agent, Laura Wood (FinePrint Literary Management) for possible representation. Laura agreed to give me a try, took a look at my initial (and now cringe-worthy) book proposal, and shaped it into something that worked splendidly, attracting the attention of multiple publishers. (Obviously, Pegasus Books was the best fit.) She then guided this naïve academic through the world of trade publishing, and she was there with me all of the way from proposal to final book. Thank you, Laura and Sid, for these big breaks in what I hope will be a long career of sharing my scientific passions with those who care about them.

Meanwhile, at Pegasus, my editor Jessica Case was a superb partner in the development of the book, from offering a contract to final page-turner. Her feedback, reassurances, and expert guidance were invaluable, helping me to find my voice as a writer. I’ve often heard that one of the best compliments an author can give to an editor is that her or his changes to writing later become nearly invisible, and Jessica certainly fulfilled this ideal. Sure, most of my darlings were killed along the way, bearing non-healed toothmarks and showing up in coprolites. Nonetheless, most deserved to die, and she spared the lives of a few that pleaded their case. Other good folks at Pegasus, who were indispensable for the honing and crafting of the manuscript, as well as ensuring its good looks, were Deb Anderson (copyediting), Maria Fernandez (interior design), and Phil Gaskill (proofreading). Thank you, Jessica, Deb, Maria, and Phil.

I am extremely grateful to the two outside reviewers of the book manuscript, James (Jim) Kirkland and David (Dave) Varricchio, whose input greatly improved
it, taking parts of it from “truthiness” to (dare I say it?) almost scholarly. Both I have known for quite a while, especially Dave, who went to graduate school with me at the University of Georgia in the late 1980s. While there, we both benefited from the tutelage of one of the best ichnologists of all time, Robert (Bob) Frey, and we do our best to carry on what we learned from him. Jim has also always been a straightforward, honest, and generous friend, whose encyclopedic knowledge of all things dinosaurian—bones, traces, environments, or otherwise—continues to awe me. Thank you, Jim and Dave; and by extension let us acknowledge, remember, and honor our mentors, who helped to make us what we are today.

One point of jealousy, though: both Jim and Dave live in western U.S. states that abound with dinosaur trace fossils, whereas here in Georgia I must content myself with too-infrequent flights out there or flights of fancy here. Helping with the latter are my paleo-friends here in the southeastern U.S., Andrew (Andy) Rindsberg, Stephen (Steve) Henderson, Sally Walker, Melanie DeVore, Patricia (Trish) Kelley, and Gale Bishop. There are many more who should be included on this list, but the preceding have been the ones with me longest in my continued learning in a region sadly lacking in dinosaur trace fossils, but otherwise rich in natural history. Steve Henderson in particular was a huge help in our Emory University effort to educate students about dinosaurs, whether through field courses, on-campus classes, or guest lectures. Thanks to my paleo-friends.

As loyal readers noticed, much of this book is inspired by and takes place in Australia, a place most people in the world have not visited, nor might they have known for its dinosaurs and dinosaur trace fossils. My connection with Australia and its trace fossils began serendipitously with a sabbatical at Monash University (Melbourne) in 2006. My host and mentor there, Patricia (Pat) Vickers-Rich, still doesn’t quite know what she started by inviting me there, but it’s been a fun ride since. Her husband and fellow paleontologist, Thomas (Tom) Rich, was a huge help in my Down Under explorations, and I am very thankful to him for acquiring funds to bring me over in 2010 for a month of field time there, nicknamed “The Great Cretaceous Walk.” Other Australians I must thank for all they have done during my visits there include David (Dave) Pickering, Lesley and Gerry Kool, Michael and Naomi Hall, Greg and Deb Denney, Mike Cleeland, Doris Seegets-Villiers, David and Judy Elliott, and Trish Sloan. I am also extremely lucky to have the gorgeous art of Australian artist Peter Trusler gracing the cover. Peter is one of best paleo-artists alive, and may he continue to produce fine art in that state of being for a long time. As one might reckon, this book is also a big love letter to all of Australia, a place with an incredible four-billion-year history recorded in its rocks, still beckoning us to plumb its mysteries: my thanks to an entire continent. Good on ya, mates!

The ichnologists who have taught me throughout the many years of tracing ancient lives are far too many to name, so I will honor four senior practitioners from outside of the U.S. who have been the most influential and encouraging of my ichnological obsessions. These ichnologists are Richard Bromley, Murray Gregory, Dolf Seilacher, and Alfred Uchman:
Tak
, thanks,
danke
, and
dziękuję
!
For training received and applied since to tracking modern animals, my enduring gratitude is extended to the instructors of the Tracker School (New Jersey), Wilderness Awareness School (Washington), and A Naturalist’s World (Montana). The ancient science of tracking is still alive because of people like them, and it has been even more thrilling to apply tracking principles to animals gone from the earth long before our species evolved.

Because I am not really a dinosaur paleontologist (but could easily play one on TV), I’ve depended on the collective knowledge of many paleontologists who work directly and often with dinosaur fossils, whether these are body or trace. A sample of these people includes (in alphabetical order): Lisa Buckley, Karen Chin, Peter Falkingham, Andrew (Andy) Farke, Jim Farlow, Patrick Getty, Lee and Ashley Hall, Thomas (Tom) Holtz, John (Jack) Horner, Frankie Jackson, Yoshi Katsura, Glen Kuban, Martin Lockley, Heinrich Mallinson, Andrew Milner, Jason Moore, Emma Rainforth, Jenni Scott, Glen Storrs, Hans-Dieter Sues, and Tony Thulborn. I also would be remiss in not thanking Brian Switek for his exquisitely crafted books, correspondences, and conversations we’ve had about dinosaurs, which all taught me a few things about how to write about dinosaurs for a popular audience. Many thanks to all of my dino-phile friends.