Date post: | 30-May-2015 |
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Evolution of a Mythic Creature
DRAGONS!
Ancestry• Related to modern reptiles (dinosaurs, modern
alligators and crocodiles)
Phylogenetic Tree
Common Lizard Ancestor
Modern Lizards
Dinosaur
Dragon
Environmental Conditions
• Dragons are generally they are found in rocky or mountainous environments either at high altitudes or living near seaside cliffs
Adaptations
• Flying is achieved through specialized membranes and jumping into the windy updrafts provided by the currents.
Adaptations
• Dragons are a top predator, with sharp teeth and claws, similar to eagles.
Where did the 3rd pair come from?
Homologous Structures
• Common ancestry with other reptile species is evident with leathery skin and cold blooded nature.
Komodo Dragon Skin (Type of Lizard)
Analogous Structures
• The Dragon wing is analogous to a bird wing. Both provide a flight mechanism.
Vestigial Structures• Modern Alligators have a bony structure
right behind the eyes – remnants of dragon horns
Extinction
• Top/large predators will always have a low population level as the amount of prey to needed sustain them will be correspondingly high.
• Dragons required hundreds of square miles to obtain enough prey.
• Global population was very low
Dragons
Deer
Plants
Extinction
• Ancestral dragons would gather yearly in global flights. At this time mating would happen.
Extinction
• As humans encroached further and further into their remote territories, they removed the dragon’s natural food sources and brought new ones – cattle and sheep.
• Subsequent predation (hunting) of the cattle and sheep meant the dragons became the hunted.
Extinction
• Removal of individual dragons from the gene pool lead to increased inbreeding among the remaining dragons.
• Eventual extinction resulted from a loss of habitat, genetic weakness and human competition.
• Could you believe in dragons now?