Dinosaurs dominated the Earth for 165 million years. A reign which the human specie, although now at the top of the food chain, cannot yet boast about. However, it is difficult to imagine a time when giant reptiles were the most powerful specie on our planet.
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Their sudden disappearance caused by a giant meteorite 12 kilometers in diameter still fascinates today and any new discovery regarding the giant lizards sends people every where into an excited frenzy.
But what would they look like where they to live now?
What would Jurassic Park look like in real life?
What if the 'monstrous lizards' hadn't suffered that mass extinction 65 million years ago? Putting cinematic images of dinosaurs aside, we can easily imagine how different our world would have been if dinosaurs still existed. But what would dinosaurs have looked like if they hadn't disappeared fromthe face of the Earth?
Dinosaurs or aliens?
Dale Russel, a paleontologist, was the one to tackle this question. Fascinated by the study of the evolution of species, this scientist imagined, in the 80s, how carnivorous dinosaurs would have evolved. The result is surprising, to say the least.
Indeed, the model he created resembles a kind of reptilian alien with opposable thumbs. To create his model, Dale Russel imagined the evolution of Troodon, a small dinosaur that lived during the Cretaceous period. The paleontologist assumed that its diet would have changed, causing it to lose the use of its long neck and tail.
Some dinos are among us
In the course of its evolution, the little Troodon would have moved into an upright position, which would then have mechanically led it towards an increasingly human form. Named 'Herman' by the researcher, the final model bears an uncanny resemblance to what pop-culture thinks of a Martian.
But beyond this somewhat controversial scientific fiction, we can in any case certify, thanks to the work of paleontologists and biologists, that birds are direct descendants of theropod dinosaurs.
But some of these reptiles still live with us! We're talking, of course, about turtles and crocodiles, which belong to the archosaur family, a subgenus that is the cousin and ancestor of our favorite 'monstrous lizards'.
This article was translated from Gentside France
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Sources used :
Futura-sciences: Here's what dinosaurs would look like today if they hadn't disappeared!
Le Monde : The distant ancestors of turtles are crocodiles and birds
