Living dinosaur
Encyclopedia
In cryptozoology
, living dinosaurs are hypothetical non-bird dinosaurs that survived the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
and continue to exist today.
Living dinosaurs can also be used to denote Neornithes (modern birds), which are the only clade
of dinosaur
s to have survived the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
(apart from controversial reports of Paleocene dinosaurs
). The term is also used for extinct species of dinosaurs that are claimed to exist today, a belief which is unsupported by scientific research.
Alleged living dinosaurs are typically based on interpretations of regional folklore
, so their existence is often considered by the scientific community
to be doubtful and merely the stuff of legend
. Thus, reports of living dinosaurs can be studied as either being mythology
, combined with a sociological
phenomenon, or as possible evidence for further investigation in the field of cryptozoology.
The evidence advanced so far in support of dinosaur survival consists of interpretations of a variety of alleged eyewitness sightings, legends, and works of traditional art that, for some, supposedly depict dinosaurs. Such reports are problematic, as no physical evidence has been brought forth, and without such evidence it is difficult (if not impossible) to identify the animals in such reports as dinosaurs.
n rain forests in the Congo Basin
and the rain forests of South America
, although others include those from Australia and Scotland
.
Other Mesozoic reptiles
such as the winged pterosaurs have been reported as well.
claims. However, paleontologists regard dinosaurs as having gone extinct at the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event, 65.5 million years ago, or, at most, a few hundred thousand years after, in the early Paleocene
. There is no evidence that any non-avian dinosaurs survived beyond the Cretaceous, and there are strong arguments against the survival of populations of large dinosaurs. With no fossil evidence supporting the existence of Cenozoic
dinosaurs, save for the few controversial discoveries limited to the early Paleocene, evolutionary scientists have not supported the existence of living dinosaurs. Reports of living dinosaurs can be studied in terms of cryptozoology, mythology
and/or sociology
, as in the work of Adrienne Mayor
on how various cultures have interpreted fossils.
Still, some cryptozoologists claim that living dinosaurs are zoologically possible, particularly in areas that have been geologically stable for the past sixty million years, arguing that larger dinosaurs that are cold-blooded (ectothermic) might have a more successful chance thriving in stable, warm, equatorial regions than warm-blooded (endothermic
) animals with higher metabolic rates. However, it is not clear that any dinosaurs were ectothermic, and indeed the current scientific consensus is for high metabolic rates.
Areas that are often claimed to have been stable since the Cretaceous have changed considerably in that time. At the end of the Cretaceous, Africa was significantly farther south than its current location and even small degrees of difference in location make for vastly different environments. The idea that dinosaurs (such as Mokèlé-mbèmbé
) could have survived in the thick rainforests of the Congo, for instance, is not strictly supportable, since the Congo rainforests did not exist in anything like their present form, during the Cretaceous period. Similarly, many of Africa's major geological formations - the Great Rift Valley
, for example - are much younger than the dinosaurs, having formed within the last 35 million years. The climate has also changed considerably in the last 20 thousand years. Most of the Congo Basin was semi-arid and covered with a dry-savanna vegetation. The rainforests had retreated to the extreme east (the highlands of Kivu in eastern DRC, near the border with Uganda and Rwanda), extreme west (the coastal areas of Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea) and possibly also as narrow strips along some of the remaining major rivers. Hence, the rainforest and swamp vegetation in which these animals are now claimed to be found simply wasn't there until the rainforests spread across the Congo Basin again toward the end of the last ice age and after, around 12 thousand years ago.
Cryptozoology
Cryptozoology refers to the search for animals whose existence has not been proven...
, living dinosaurs are hypothetical non-bird dinosaurs that survived the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
The Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, formerly named and still commonly referred to as the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event, occurred approximately 65.5 million years ago at the end of the Maastrichtian age of the Cretaceous period. It was a large-scale mass extinction of animal and plant...
and continue to exist today.
Living dinosaurs can also be used to denote Neornithes (modern birds), which are the only clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
of dinosaur
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
s to have survived the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
The Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, formerly named and still commonly referred to as the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event, occurred approximately 65.5 million years ago at the end of the Maastrichtian age of the Cretaceous period. It was a large-scale mass extinction of animal and plant...
(apart from controversial reports of Paleocene dinosaurs
Paleocene dinosaurs
Paleocene dinosaurs describe families or genera of non-avian dinosaurs that may have survived the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction event 65.5 million years ago...
). The term is also used for extinct species of dinosaurs that are claimed to exist today, a belief which is unsupported by scientific research.
Alleged living dinosaurs are typically based on interpretations of regional folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
, so their existence is often considered by the scientific community
Scientific community
The scientific community consists of the total body of scientists, its relationships and interactions. It is normally divided into "sub-communities" each working on a particular field within science. Objectivity is expected to be achieved by the scientific method...
to be doubtful and merely the stuff of legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
. Thus, reports of living dinosaurs can be studied as either being mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
, combined with a sociological
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
phenomenon, or as possible evidence for further investigation in the field of cryptozoology.
The evidence advanced so far in support of dinosaur survival consists of interpretations of a variety of alleged eyewitness sightings, legends, and works of traditional art that, for some, supposedly depict dinosaurs. Such reports are problematic, as no physical evidence has been brought forth, and without such evidence it is difficult (if not impossible) to identify the animals in such reports as dinosaurs.
Reports
Most reports of allegedly surviving dinosaurs come from AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n rain forests in the Congo Basin
Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is the sedimentary basin that is the drainage of the Congo River of west equatorial Africa. The basin begins in the highlands of the East African Rift system with input from the Chambeshi River, the Uele and Ubangi Rivers in the upper reaches and the Lualaba River draining wetlands...
and the rain forests of South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, although others include those from Australia and Scotland
Loch Ness Monster
The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid that is reputed to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, though its description varies from one account to the next....
.
- Emela-ntoukaEmela-ntoukaThe Emela-ntouka is an African legendary creature in the mythology of the Pygmy tribes, and a cryptid purported to live in Central Africa. Its name means "killer of the elephants" in the Lingala language...
, allegedly a living ceratopsian. - Kasai rexKasai RexKasai rex is an animal claimed to be a carnivorous living dinosaur in Africa. There are conflicting descriptions of it, and the only original reports are suspected by most cryptozoologists to be dubious.-Kasai valley report:...
, allegedly a living theropod. - Mbielu-Mbielu-MbieluMbielu-Mbielu-MbieluThe Mbielu-Mbielu-Mbielu is a cryptid reported from the Likouala Region of the Republic of the Congo. Only a few claimed sightings have been reported, at the villages of Bounila and Ebolo, which were collected by the cryptozoologist Roy Mackal...
, claimed to be a living stegosaur. - Mokele-mbembeMokèlé-mbèmbéMokèlé-mbèmbé, meaning "one who stops the flow of rivers" in the Lingala language, is the name given to a large water-dwelling cryptid found in legends and folklore of the Congo River basin. It is sometimes described as a living creature and sometimes as a spirit. It could be considered loosely...
, claimed to be a living sauropod. - MuhuruMuhuru (cryptid)Muhuru is an alleged relict non-avian dinosaur that has been reported from the jungles of Kenya. It is described as a heavily-armoured beast with thick bone plates on its back and a club-like tail. Although it's never been discussed in the paleontological literature, in pseudoscientific circles...
, allegedly a living ankylosaur. - Nguma-moneneNguma-moneneNguma-monene is a cryptid supposedly living in the Republic of Congo, described as being like a large lizard with a serrated ridge on its back.-Sightings:...
, allegedly a living SpinosaurusSpinosaurusSpinosaurus is a genus of theropod dinosaur which lived in what is now North Africa, from the lower Albian to lower Cenomanian stages of the Cretaceous period, about 112 to 97 million years ago. This genus was first known from Egyptian remains discovered in 1912 and described by German...
. - NgoubouNgoubouThe Ngoubou is a purportedly surviving ceratopsian-like cryptid in the savanna region of Cameroon. It is said to have six horns, and fights elephants for land, despite its smaller size ....
, allegedly a living StyracosaurusStyracosaurusStyracosaurus was a genus of herbivorous ceratopsian dinosaur from the Cretaceous Period , about 76.5 to 75.0 million years ago...
.
Other Mesozoic reptiles
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
such as the winged pterosaurs have been reported as well.
- KongamatoKongamatoThe Kongamato is a reported pterosaur-like creature said to have been seen by natives and explorers in the Mwinilunga district's Jiundu swamps of Western Zambia, Angola and Congo...
, hypothesised to be a living RhamphorhynchusRhamphorhynchusRhamphorynchus may refer to:*Rhamphorhynchus, a genus of pterosaur*Rhamphorhynchus, a former monotypic genus of orchid, containing only the species now called Aspidogyne mendoncae...
. - MahambaMahambaMahamba is a cryptid rumoured to lurk in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, around the Lake Likouala swamp region. It is purported to be an enormous crocodile; reaching lengths of up to...
, hypothesised to be a freshwater mosasaurMosasaurMosasaurs are large extinct marine lizards. The first fossil remains were discovered in a limestone quarry at Maastricht on the Meuse in 1764...
.
Factuality
Living dinosaurs are often the subject of cryptozoologicalCryptozoology
Cryptozoology refers to the search for animals whose existence has not been proven...
claims. However, paleontologists regard dinosaurs as having gone extinct at the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event, 65.5 million years ago, or, at most, a few hundred thousand years after, in the early Paleocene
Paleocene
The Paleocene or Palaeocene, the "early recent", is a geologic epoch that lasted from about . It is the first epoch of the Palaeogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era...
. There is no evidence that any non-avian dinosaurs survived beyond the Cretaceous, and there are strong arguments against the survival of populations of large dinosaurs. With no fossil evidence supporting the existence of Cenozoic
Cenozoic
The Cenozoic era is the current and most recent of the three Phanerozoic geological eras and covers the period from 65.5 mya to the present. The era began in the wake of the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous that saw the demise of the last non-avian dinosaurs and...
dinosaurs, save for the few controversial discoveries limited to the early Paleocene, evolutionary scientists have not supported the existence of living dinosaurs. Reports of living dinosaurs can be studied in terms of cryptozoology, mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
and/or sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
, as in the work of Adrienne Mayor
Adrienne Mayor
Adrienne Mayor is a historian of ancient science and a classical folklorist.Mayor specializes in ancient history and the study of "folk science": how pre-scientific cultures interpreted data about the natural world, and how these interpretations form the basis of many ancient myths, folklore and...
on how various cultures have interpreted fossils.
Still, some cryptozoologists claim that living dinosaurs are zoologically possible, particularly in areas that have been geologically stable for the past sixty million years, arguing that larger dinosaurs that are cold-blooded (ectothermic) might have a more successful chance thriving in stable, warm, equatorial regions than warm-blooded (endothermic
Endothermic
In thermodynamics, the word endothermic describes a process or reaction in which the system absorbs energy from the surroundings in the form of heat. Its etymology stems from the prefix endo- and the Greek word thermasi,...
) animals with higher metabolic rates. However, it is not clear that any dinosaurs were ectothermic, and indeed the current scientific consensus is for high metabolic rates.
Areas that are often claimed to have been stable since the Cretaceous have changed considerably in that time. At the end of the Cretaceous, Africa was significantly farther south than its current location and even small degrees of difference in location make for vastly different environments. The idea that dinosaurs (such as Mokèlé-mbèmbé
Mokèlé-mbèmbé
Mokèlé-mbèmbé, meaning "one who stops the flow of rivers" in the Lingala language, is the name given to a large water-dwelling cryptid found in legends and folklore of the Congo River basin. It is sometimes described as a living creature and sometimes as a spirit. It could be considered loosely...
) could have survived in the thick rainforests of the Congo, for instance, is not strictly supportable, since the Congo rainforests did not exist in anything like their present form, during the Cretaceous period. Similarly, many of Africa's major geological formations - the Great Rift Valley
Great Rift Valley
The Great Rift Valley is a name given in the late 19th century by British explorer John Walter Gregory to the continuous geographic trench, approximately in length, that runs from northern Syria in Southwest Asia to central Mozambique in South East Africa...
, for example - are much younger than the dinosaurs, having formed within the last 35 million years. The climate has also changed considerably in the last 20 thousand years. Most of the Congo Basin was semi-arid and covered with a dry-savanna vegetation. The rainforests had retreated to the extreme east (the highlands of Kivu in eastern DRC, near the border with Uganda and Rwanda), extreme west (the coastal areas of Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea) and possibly also as narrow strips along some of the remaining major rivers. Hence, the rainforest and swamp vegetation in which these animals are now claimed to be found simply wasn't there until the rainforests spread across the Congo Basin again toward the end of the last ice age and after, around 12 thousand years ago.