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Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: Calixita
Prize Preferences: 1, 4, 2, 3, 7, pass (already won a familiar)
Prompt: 8
What's so interesting about that? By studying a muscle-scarred fossil leg bone, paleontologists have been able to learn more about how dinosaurs grew from hatchlings to adults. The findings showed that even when each animal lived in about the same time and location, they were all varied. That is to say their growth was much like a human's -- such as differences in height and body mass between siblings. Before this discovery, it was believed that these differences identified the sex of the dinosaur. Scientists were able to come to these conclusions in part because of the amount of muscle-scarring found on the bone fossils -- the larger the scarring, the older the animal.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: .Tortured. .Pumpkin.
Prize Preferences: 2, 7, 3, 1, 6, 5
Prompt: 4
What's so interesting about that?
Rauisuchians lived completely on land. They were agile and erect, whereas crocodiles live both on land and in the water and have a sprawling gait.
Aetosaurs lived on land as well. They were heavily armored, but they were herbivores.
Sphenosuchians were erect, and also lived on land. They were smaller, and believed to be an ancestor to modern-day crocs.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: Lunadriel
Prize Preferences: 2, 3, 4, 1, 6, 5
Prompt: 1
What's so interesting about that? Crocodilians closest living evolutionary relatives, are birds! They are also closely related to dinosaurs, or at least closer than most animals classified as reptiles. They are included in the Archosauria group, or "ruling reptiles". We can easily see into their molecular time clock, because their progress was much slower than other mammals. It gives us clean sight into their evolutionary cycles, thanks to their slow rate of genome evolution. Scientists may have pieced together the ancestor that links birds and crocodiles, by using partial genomes of common crocodiles, birds, and dinosaurs.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: Lunadriel
Prize Preferences: 2, 3, 4, 1, 6, 5
Prompt: 3
What's so interesting about that? One example of convergent evolution, is the early whale Ambulocetus. They could walk as well as swim, having the look of a 10 foot mammalian crocodile. They hunted like crocodiles, lurking in shallow waters to snatch their prey. I think animals that look and act like crocodiles, are seen evolving more, because of the slow evolution cycle of crocodilians.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: Fatal Irony
Prize Preferences:1, 2, 4, 7, 3, 5, 6
Prompt: Prompt 1
What's so interesting about that? They are the closest living relatives of birds. The two groups are the only knwon survivors of the Archosauria (which is a group of diapsid amniotes). I had to look up what diapsid amniotes mean and apparently diapsid refers to the creatures who developed two holes in their skull (ears?) and although many of the creatures in this group have lost a hole, or both, or have restrictive skulls they are still classified as such due to their ancestry. Amniotes refers basically to the creautes who lay their eggs on land or retain them within the mother - instead of laying them in water.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: Ragers
Prize Preferences: 6, 5
Prompt: 2
What's so interesting about that? Rauisuchids had large heads, pointed teeth, long legs and scaled backs. Rauisuchid fossils have been found all around the world. The most well known rauisuchids are the South American Saurosuchus and Postosuchus from the American Southwest. For non dinosaurs, these creatures were extremely large. They could reach up to 20 feet long. They've often been mistaken for actual dinosaurs.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: Ragers
Prize Preferences: 6, 5
Prompt: 8
What's so interesting about that? Using bone histology, paleontologists have cracked the secret of dinosaur sexes. They discovered the Confuciusornis sanctus, an early bird, has long feathers if male while the females lacked them. Using a Confuciusornis known as DNHM-D1874, they found tissue in the upper arm bone and traces in the lower arm bone. This proved the bird had laid eggs before dying.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 1
What's so interesting about that?
Crocodiles are thought to be the closest living descendants of the dinosaurs. They are a reptile and thus surprisingly they are related to birds. Crocodile family is also thought to be related to snakes, lizards, and tuataras group. We know these are all closely related because they all are found within the archosaurian reptile group. The ones within this group are known by the name we call them or by another name called anapsid reptiles.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 2
What's so interesting about that?
Poposaurus are a type of reptile related to the dinosaur from the Triassic period. It was more a critter rather than a dinosaur. This dinosaur was built like a smaller version of a t-Rex but had the walk of a crocodile. The poposaurus was a dinosaur from the pseudosuchian which was a group solely represented and related to the croc family of today. They are know as the croc-line archosaurs which include modern related species and totally extinct species as well. They belong to poposauroids class which included bipedal herbivores and sail-backed carnivores.
Then there was the Postosuchus dinosaur which was also a reptile that was related to the dinosaur, that also was a close relative to the poposaurus. The Postosuchus was a dinosaur that belonged to a tangle of pseudosuchians, that are currently categorized as “rauisuchids." This family group was basically the principle predatory group of their time and close cousins to the crocodile of today.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 3
What's so interesting about that?
There was the Suchomimus breed which means crocodile mimic. This breed lived during the Cretaceous period and is from the genus of large spinosaurid dinosaur branch. It was a very large massive predator that did not have any ancestry to crocodiles but had a similar appearance though it stood on two legs like many other predators of its time. This species was closely related to the large and intelligent spinosaurus breed.
The reason I think that crocodiles are so good and have stayed alive are because of their ability to camouflage. Also because of hunting techniques I think that crocodiles and those like them keep evolving to survive and continue on. They evolve based around their landscapes and what they need to do to survive.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 4
What's so interesting about that?
The following classes of ancient reptiles are different from modern day crocodiles because of many factors. One the aetosaurs were ancient reptile that lived during the late Triassic period. They were known for being heavily armored dinosaurs that varied in size from being very large to medium in range. They had small heads, their snouts were upturned, erect limbs, and a body that was covered by plate-like scutes.
Rauisuchia was a family group of ancient reptile that were related to the dinosaurs. They are the species most closely related to the modern day crocodiles. They were very lizard like in appearance and lived during the Triassic period. They were often very large in appearance reaching from 4 to 6 meters which is 13 to 20 ft in length. Rauisuchians had an erect gait with their legs being oriented beneath their body rather than sprawling outward. This gait originated from two separated groups of dinosaurs and evolved further through time.
Sphenosuchians were reptiles related to the dinosaurs from the late Triassic and survived through the Jurassic period. They were small gracile animals that had an erect limb posture.
With all these facts you see from very large to tiny how different these animals were to modern crocs they had to have the correct means of survival and from being tiny to large it was all based on who is predator and who may be prey or needed to have the correct body to survive. Plus we see their ancient relatives had an erect gait but modern crocs have more a sprawling lizard it's interesting how the walk is similar but so different.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 5
What's so interesting about that?
Many of the aetosaurs from their time had wide geographic ranges. Yet their stratigraphic ranges they lived in were relatively short. Therefore, the presence of particular aetosaurs can accurately date a site that they are found in. This says to me that the breed could travel great distances and went over plains or other lands that varied and this could be dated. They were looked at as the scavengers of their time. Some of their breed had characteristics of being diggers and there was other evidence that they built nests.
Rauisuchians were the top predators. Thus while they were around other predators weren't the big fish while they ruled the Triassic period. Thus when they died out it left a nitch open which allowed theropod dinos to step into as the top meat-eating dinos and get larger in size then the rauisuchians.
The Sphenosuchians were such a small breed that study is still continuing to understand them and how they interacted with other dinosaurs of their time.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 6
What's so interesting about that?
The pigment of bird feathers are independent from the structure of the feather. Pigment colorization of birds can vary and be classified in 3 separate classes these are called carotenoids, melanins, and porphyrines. When it comes to color abnormalities these occur when pigments are present (or absent) at unusual levels, thus the appearance of a bird can be changed dramatically. Color abnormalities, while are not common, they can and do occur on a regular basis.
Thus in contrast to the pigment of a birds feathers, we can add to the diversity of avian colors. By looking at colors produced by the structure of the feather. This is different to pigments, why because these colors are produced as light is refracted by the proteins in the feather.
Scientists believe they may have enough evidence to understand and know what color a dinosaur feathers may be. Why that is because there is enough preserved harbor melanosomes chemicals preserved which was what allowed the pigment of ancient dinosaurs to be produced, from this study scientists determined they can indeed determine the color of long lost animals. I believe it is entirely possible for scientists to determine color and pigment of ancient dinosaurs with feathers. Yet it may be still to early to declare it true. Why because even though we have the chemicals of pigment, there nobody can be positive if it's just pigment alone. Also that structural color may not be in play on top of pigment alone.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 7
What's so interesting about that?
When it comes to molecular data that has been discovered and looked at with fossils. Little has been found in direct contrast to real exact bio data other then bird pigment chemicals. Yet in 2013 this changed when a complete fossil was found to contain bio material of ancient plants, sea shells and sea life bio material. Along with that bird pigment was found as the Dino that was found was a small ancient bird like Dino that got stuck in the mud and sea during a flood.
Inside the fossil scientists found bio material of crinoids which are the early known ancient sea creature. Also ancient bio markers were found all through the fossil what was found were remains of ancient plant and animal life, all broken up and mixed together and scattered within the fossil. This scientists could determine with fair certainty came from organic molecules of individual animals and or plant life whose remains were tested.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: 8
What's so interesting about that?
When bone slicing and taking a thin slice of bone from a dinosaur fossil. Scientists have come to learn from bones the daily growth lines of the dinosaur from its fossil bone. Also scientists could examine the vascular structures of ancient plant stems and the insides of fossil seeds from fossils. From the information we gain from bones we have gained insight on how these animals grew. How their skeletons built and grew, also what they ate, and how active they were.
Through this information scientist and paleontologist are able to draw a picture timeline and reenactment to how the specific dinosaur lived. Through this we are able to see dinosaurs even though they don't exist. We can also make a timeline to the evolution from the past to the present.

Mr. Investi-Gator! Did you know that...?
Username: IvoryRyu.20
Prize Preferences: 1,7,3,2,4,5,6
Prompt: bonus
What's so interesting about that?
I think that through this all my research I learned that I still love dinosaurs. Also I was happy to learn and put my knowledge of animals to fossils and show it off through this contest. It just goes and show how much my love for science and history is just proven even more. But the most fascinating thing I learned would be the size difference and evolutionary timeline of the ancestors of crocodiles to modern crocodiles. Also the small fact of of the evolution to the gaits and walks of their ancestors to modern crocs. Through this all I will continue to be proud to want to learn how genes react through the evolution of time.