Paleo Bites

(image source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophthalmosaurus)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Ophthalmosaurus, an eye-catcher of a creature that sees the seas with optimal precision, and other eye-related jokes. From the Late Jurassic, this 16-foot ichthyosaur probably used its massive eyes to catch schools of fish in deep waters, meaning it used its pupils to catch pupils! Geddit?! Yeah, that one was a stretch. Required some real yoga to work. Have you seen me do yoga? It’s a real eyesore!

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://www.sciencephoto.com/contributor/jsi/)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Lagosuchus, a long-legged little lunatic that was named like a crocodile but is actually closer related to dinosaurs… then again dinosaurs are often named like they’re lizards when they’re patently not. From the Early Triassic, this 2-foot archosaur was not related to rabbits either despite the name, nor does it look like one. And it also wasn’t found near the city of Lagos, Nigeria, so this thing’s name was just a packful of lies all around.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://www.sci.news/paleontology/transylvanosaurus-platycephalus-11423.html)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Cici Eilert discuss Transylvanosaurus, a dinosaur with a name far scarier than this cute little critter would suggest, but I suppose Romanian means vampires, am I right? From the Late Cretaceous, this 6-foot rhabdodontid lived in an island paradise alongside some other miniaturized dinosaurs with their only fear being the giant pterosaurs that would swoop in from above and kill them, kind of like how Dracula and his brides did the same to villagers with their big bat forms. Huh, maybe the name is more fitting than I thought.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: Beasts of the Mesozoic action figure line)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Lawrence Mack discuss Tsaagan, a raptor from Mongolia that is decidedly not Velociraptor for some reason isn’t due to some minor differences in the skull or whatever. And yet Dracorex… ugh, forget it. From the Late Cretaceous, this 5-foot dromaeosaur got its name from a local Mongolian term for “white monster,” which would be a pretty accurate term if this thing was found in Europe with a ship full of colonizers. We pale folks don’t have the most proud history, in case you didn’t know.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Dacentrurus)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Stephen Curro discuss Dacentrurus, a dinosaur from Europe that had a bunch of points at its end and a set of symmetrical plates on its front, kind of like if a dinner table was a dinosaur. From the Late Jurassic, this 30-foot stegosaur is one of the best known of its family from Europe, and also is incredibly awkward to say. No word should ever have “ruru” in it. Except for the Kanohi Ruru, the Mask of Night Vision. That one’s okay. Where are my Bionicle fans at, millennial listeners?!

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Peltephilus)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Cici Eilert discuss Peltephilus, a large armadillo with the squarest ass you’ve ever seen. Seriously, there’s just flesh and fur one inch and then none the next. From the Oligocene epoch, this 6-foot xenathran mammal was thought to be a predator at first until they realized it was like regular armadillos and ate bugs or whatever. Or rolled into balls. Except this one couldn’t; look at its big square ass! Those buns ain’t rolling nowhere.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://a-z-animals.com/animals/diplodocus/)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Diplodocus, the longest of long boys and the absorber of the awesome but sadly now dubious genus Seismosaurus. Earthquake lizard go kaput. Sad. From the Late Jurassic, this 100-foot sauropod lived in the golden age of its family with so many damn longneck dinosaurs that it’s hard to keep them all straight. Why is Supersaurus still valid if Seismo isn’t? Sorry, it’s a bit of a sore spot for me.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2208044119)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Lawrence Mack discuss Mammut, also known as the American mastodon because this is one of those creatures that has a generic name as well as a scientific name, like why we called lions lions instead of P. leo like we do T. rex. From the Late Pliocene, this 10-foot-tall mammutid isn’t really closely related to mammoths but gets confused with them a bunch, which makes sense as they look really similar and are both elephant-ish. Yeah, elephant-ish. I’m a scientist.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Halszkaraptor) 

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Laura Owsley discuss Halszkaraptor, a relative of those monstrous raptors more akin to a duck or goose, which is actually far more terrifying. From the Late Cretaceous, this 2-foot dromaeosaur had numerous adaptations for fishing and a semi-aquatic existence, which sounds like a peaceful life. Because we all know people who fish to be the most chill and laid-back of folks, especially if they have a picture of them with a fish they caught as their main image on a dating profile. Totally chill, totally non-toxically masculine people.

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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(image source: https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Geosternbergia)

Host Matthew Donald and guest co-host Ben O’Regan discuss Geosternbergia, a pterosaur that really wants you to know it’s named after George Sternberg as its binomial name is Geosternbergia sternbergi. How much did the Sternberg estate pay for this, I wonder? From the Late Cretaceous, this 24-foot-wingspan pteradactyloid was thought for the longest time to be another species of Pteranodon, but now it’s generally regarded as being its own genus. And yet Dracorex and Stygimoloch… ugh, sorry, I said I’d shut up about it!

Want to further support the show? Sign up to our Patreon for exclusive bonus content at Patreon.com/MatthewDonald. Also, you can purchase Matthew Donald's dinosaur book "Megazoic" on Amazon by clicking here, its sequel "Megazoic: The Primeval Power" by clicking here, its third installment "Megazoic: The Hunted Ones" by clicking here, or its final installment "Megazoic: An Era's End" by clicking here, as well as his non-dinosaur-related book "Teslanauts" by clicking here.

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