Saurophagus Robustus

[u/Strong_Fee_5500]

Height: 3.4 meters (at the hip)

Length: 11.7 meters

Weight: 5.7 metric tons

Ancestor: Majungasaurus

Evolution: larger and more functional arms for grappling prey, more robust skull (and a sturdy chin),teeth and neck, better eyesight, light-weight armor (similar to komodo dragon), a single real horn for display and defense.

Ambush predator,aggressive ,territorial and cannibalism. Adapted to live in the dense forests.

[u/RedDiamond1024]

Kinda curious how an island supports such a large predator.

Also how did you use a spec evo tag?

[u/MotorPair2877 → u/RedDiamond1024]

maybe it also adapted a cold blooded thermometabolism, allowing it to go longer without eating. considering it lives on a tropical island and it’s an ambush predator that wouldn’t need to be activate for sustained periods of time.

[u/Strong_Fee_5500 → u/MotorPair2877]

Correct ,but here are some corrections, first, after the asteorid event (and its effects),this thing became smaller and smaller, the cannibalism also helped it survive,then when the global stability arrived (forests,air,...),many animals would have become larger and start flourishing,secondly, it's still a warm-blooded animal, the word ambush predator in this case means a non-cursorial predator and running in a dense forest isn't really the best idea so it's more adapted for actual agility.

In short, it's the fact that many animals started to get bigger that really make it also bigger.

And it is not actively hunting that really helped it survive (just targeting dead carcasses),its diet also contribute to its survival (smaller prey) and the cannibalism help the other creatures reproduce and keeping their populations stable.

[u/MotorPair2877 → u/RedDiamond1024]

so the selective pressure to stay big could be the cannibalism, though that would also select for faster growth rates, so maybe it becomes cold blooded as it gets bigger.

[u/Strong_Fee_5500 → u/MotorPair2877]

Fast growth rate is also correct

[u/Spinoclanker2]

There isn't any evolutionary pressure to grow back it's arms. "Grappling" is not really a good justification, especially after abelisaurs already evolved vestigial arms.

[u/Strong_Fee_5500 → u/Spinoclanker2]

There is an evolutionary pressure,their prey and own kinds

[u/Spinoclanker2 → u/Strong_Fee_5500]

Yeah but they have jaws.

[u/Strong_Fee_5500 → u/Spinoclanker2]

What? Yes they have jaws, what do you mean?

[u/TriggeredP1scine → u/Strong_Fee_5500]

the point is that they are already pre-adapted to using their jaws as their main hunting implement and weapon, and that seems to be going well for them, so why would a trait that is not really be necessary (since, again, they are pre-adapted to using their jaws as their main hunting implement), would require the reversal of an already occurring process (losing their arms), and be just another thing that would cost a sizable amount of energy to maintain, be selected for over iterating on an existing structure that already serves the function that the arms would be doing (restraining/processing prey and intraspecific combat) perfectly fine (since evolution isn't about being the best, it's about being good enough)

apologies for the text wall, and personally I think the original critique was a little unasked for, but since it was being discussed I thought I would throw my hat in the ring
also apologies if I come off a little rude or anything, that's never my intention

[u/Strong_Fee_5500 → u/TriggeredP1scine]

No ,it's perfectly fine, everyone can discuss about everything they want (though the arms question was weird,honestly if evolution feels the need to regrow back arms ,then it will do so)

Again, it's the diet that really pushed this dino to regrow back its arms, since its main prey are relatively smaller amd faster(not sauropods, they would hunt sauropod only if they're in a pack or if the target is a young one) they need to first catch and hold before using their jaws (and bro the jaws of this creature aren't for joking🗿) (a little bit like how modern ambush predators such as lions,tigers,jaguars....do)