# Could any modern-day animal give a t-rex a run for its money? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 19, 2006, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952 "2006-03-19T01:15:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/81 "2006-03-21T19:10:54Z")
> [@](#): > > Eh, I seriously doubt that old T Rex was fit to run a marathon. Over the super-long distances, men \* tend to run down any other ambulatory species. There are exceptions, but they’re rare. But isn’t that largely because of our bipedalism? There aren’t too many other modern land bipods to compare to, but how are the large birds (ostriches, emus, etc.) over long distances? If that’s the key to endurance, then I’m not sure I’d want to bet against the lizard king. Besides, long-distance running matters not, if it can catch you on the sprint first. **appleciders** , a place like this, stobors are far from obscure. They’re really only dangerous when they swarm, though. Catch a few of them by themselves, or in the off-season, and they’re pitiful. Rex still might not eat them, though; they taste like kerosene. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/82 "2006-03-21T19:12:49Z")
> [@Fish](#): > > \ Here ve see an ant. Zis ant is engaged in a life or death schtruggle vith ze tyrannosaurus. You can see ze ant creeping up on ze tyrannosaurus on all zixes. > > Now he stops to obserff. Zatisfied that ze tyrannosaurus has not heard him, he approaches nearer. Vith great skill he chooses his moment and zen, qvick as a limpet, vith one mighty bound buries his fangs in ze tyrannosaurus’s neck. Ze tyrannosaurus struggles to no avail. A battle of zis kind can take anything up to fifteen years because ze timber ant has such a tiny mouth. Beautiful! I could visualise the accompanying film just from your well-chosen words. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Grendel\_s\_Father](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grendel\_s\_Father](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grendel_s_Father)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/83 "2006-03-21T19:13:00Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > IF the traditional view of the T. Rex as a vicious predator is accurate, it might well be the most lethal land animal of all time. BUT… there are more than a few paleontologists who’ve suggested it was primarily an overgrown carrion eater. Minor nitpick, but as far as I know the only scientist who supports the theory of _T. rex_ as a pure scavenger is [Jack Horner](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Horner_%28paleontologist%29). The majority of paleontologists seem to subscribe to the idea that _T. rex_ was an opportunist–in other words, it would have scavenged if carrion was available, and also hunted live prey (like most land predators today). Healed-over _T. rex_ bite marks on _Triceratops_ and _Edmontosaurus_ specimens lend support to this. ---
**Author:** ![dinahmoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/8797f3/32.png) [@dinahmoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dinahmoe)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/84 "2006-03-21T20:02:10Z")
Ditka. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/85 "2006-03-21T20:09:04Z")
> [@glee](#): > > Beautiful! > I could visualise the accompanying film just from your well-chosen words. 😃 Well, I’m glad somebody recognized what it was from… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BMalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e274bd/32.png) [@BMalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMalion)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/86 "2006-03-21T20:30:54Z")
> [@glee](#): > > Beautiful! > I could visualise the accompanying film just from your well-chosen words. 😃 So could [these guys.](http://www.ibras.dk/montypython/episode30.htm#14) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Madd\_Maxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Madd\_Maxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Madd_Maxx)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/87 "2006-03-21T23:23:30Z")
> [@dinahmoe](#): > > Ditka. The 1985 Chicago Bears? Da Bears. ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2006, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952/88 "2006-03-21T23:50:24Z")
> [@Greenback](#): > > So we’d be facing a t-rex with rocket launchers. The last time I was facing a T-rex armed with a grenade launcher, I looked through the mail order catalog, and picked out an animate palm tree armed with a laser pistol. All I had to do was run the tree around long enough for photosynthesis to charge up the pistol, and ZAP! No more T-rex. I’m _really_ showing my age with this obscure reference. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-any-modern-day-animal-give-a-t-rex-a-run-for-its-money/348952.md?page=4)