# To Kill a Dino-Bird **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 27, 2009, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265 "2009-10-27T04:42:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![El\_DeLuxo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_deluxo/32/9043_2.png) [@El\_DeLuxo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_DeLuxo)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 9:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/41 "2009-10-29T09:43:28Z")
Well, Race Bannon only needed three shots from a rocket launcher to bring down Turu the Pterrible Pteranodon…but he’s \*Race Bannon, \*after all. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/42 "2009-10-29T11:31:59Z")
> [@Babale](#): > > Is there a poison which would have been available in 1895 that can act on an animal in the 2 to 30 ton range to prevent a charge? Yes, AFAIK, several animal neurotoxins come to mind, like some snake venoms. The dosage would just have to be big. Plus you have your arsenics and cyanides, all readily available at the time. The Bushmen use the extract of beetle grubs, but theirs usually takes a while to take effect. So, useful for hunting, but not for self defense. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/43 "2009-10-29T12:35:00Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Yes, AFAIK, several animal neurotoxins come to mind, like some snake venoms. The dosage would just have to be big. Plus you have your arsenics and cyanides, all readily available at the time. Maybe you could bring in Lyon Playfair or Fritz Haber to consult? The former proposed “cacodyl cyanide” for use in shells during the Crimean War, and the latter would have been on a university faculty in 1895—maybe you could get him during the summer break. 😉 I don’t, however, know what effect certain chemical agents would have on the meat of the dinosaur, which might something you’d have to consider. Even leaving aside the issue of how to erect an enormous roasting spit in the field, or how many men you’d need to turn it, or apply the giant decorative chop frills to the stubs of the leg bones. ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/44 "2009-10-29T13:54:06Z")
> [@DLuxN8R-13](#): > > Well, Race Bannon only needed three shots from a rocket launcher to bring down Turu the Pterrible Pteranodon…but he’s \*Race Bannon, \*after all. Frankly, he should have only needed one. Pteranodons weren’t exactly built like tanks… ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/45 "2009-10-29T22:40:46Z")
Speaking of dactyls, could a man kill one that has landed through kicks and punches? ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2009, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/46 "2009-10-29T22:57:31Z")
Depends on the pterosaur in question, I’d imagine. Most would probably not put up with such and would just take off (contrary to the way they are often presented in films, they were not completely helpless on the ground). For some of the larger ones, it might be conceivable, but still pretty dangerous; trying to subdue a critter the size of a small plane with punches is probably not a recipe for long life. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/47 "2009-10-30T02:55:03Z")
But scaring one off is possible? After all, if a man punches a hole through one of the wings, the Pterodactyl is pretty much doomed, right? ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/48 "2009-10-30T03:04:16Z")
Sure, they can be scared off. But it’s pretty unlikely you’d be able to punch a hole in the wing. They’re pretty flexible, as well as tough. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/49 "2009-10-30T03:05:51Z")
Probably. Those things had hollow bones and were light as box kites. But they were probably tough too. Tough but fragile. They might take a suprising amount of abuse up to a certain point. But one broken bone or dislocated joint or torn membrane and they’re finished, because if they can’t fly they can’t feed. But they might be able to put up a heck of a fight even though they’re doomed afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/50 "2009-10-30T04:52:12Z")
My first question is how is this presented to the guys who are picking out the weapons? Are you telling them in advance that they are hunting dinosaurs or are you just saying this is a “scientific expedition” and be prepared for some big game, just in case? If it’s the latter, you are going to be woefully under armed. The nitro express is a good choice. It’s going to be new and fancy, and has good penetration compared to other rifles of the time. Most of the guys will be carrying much less capable rifles though. They’ll be more than adequately armed to go on an African safari, but they are going to have trouble taking down dinosaurs. There’s a video floating around the net of police taking down an elephant that had killed two of its trainers and was starting to go on a rampage through the town. They didn’t have an elephant gun either. They just shot the bejeezus out of it with what guns they had. It took a while, but eventually it went down. I suspect your dino hunters will end up using the same tactics. If you tell them ahead of time that they are hunting dinos though I imagine they are going to be bringing along quite a few 2 gauge elephant guns and the like. Depending on where you shoot the dino, though, the nitro express may end up being more effective. The lead ball from an 1895 elephant gun isn’t going to go through the skull of most big dinos. I’d be half tempted to bring along a few small cannons and some chain shot too, as was already suggested. I suspect that a pterosaur would probably beat the snot out of a man on the ground. Think about how much damage a pissed off bald eagle could do to you if you got into a scrape with one, then scale that up to pterosaur size. While Mr. Pterosaur is getting medieval (er, cretaceous, maybe) on your ass, your best defense (with 1895 weapons and assuming you can’t grab your rifle in time) is probably to pull that Colt revolver that you keep for emergencies out of your belt and fire a couple of shots into the pterosaur. You probably won’t kill him, but the sound and pain will probably be enough to discourage him from continuing the attack. If you don’t want to use a pistol, punch the pterosaur in the eye. That will discourage a lot of animals that would otherwise find humans to be tasty and good with ketchup. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/51 "2009-10-30T09:22:23Z")
I’d say a machete is a good backup for your pterosaurs. Also for smaller dinos you might not want to waste ammo on. ---
**Author:** ![EvilTOJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EvilTOJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilTOJ)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/52 "2009-10-30T12:48:28Z")
And what will you do when the T-rex shows up in one of [these](http://roborant.info/images/tyran14.jpg)? ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/53 "2009-10-30T13:55:41Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > If you don’t want to use a pistol, punch the pterosaur in the eye. That will discourage a lot of animals that would otherwise find humans to be tasty and good with ketchup. [Easier said than done](http://www.cryptomundo.com/wp-content/uploads/090107-pterosaur-picture_big.jpg), in some cases. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/54 "2009-10-30T22:39:47Z")
I always forget about that one… Could one of those lift a human? Or eat one? And if they ate one, could they fly with the added weight? ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2009, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/55 "2009-10-30T23:25:30Z")
Oooh. Nice quetzalcoatlus. (But shouldn’t it have a nice naked head, like a condor?) ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/56 "2009-10-31T00:25:19Z")
I don’t recall that they’ve been determined to be scavengers, so I do 't know that they would have been bald. Pterosaurs in general did have furry-type integument, so the furry look seems appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/57 "2009-10-31T01:35:09Z")
I have trouble envisioning the critters as anything other than scavengers, which is probably an indication of the extent of imagination, and my lack of reading anything about the critters in at least ten years. The limb proportions are interesting, and a stork-analogue niche makes sense. ---
**Author:** ![Darwins\_Finch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darwins_finch/32/20304_2.png) [@Darwins\_Finch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darwins_Finch)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/58 "2009-10-31T02:21:19Z")
As noted in the [Wikipedia article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quetzalcoatlus), the latest research indicates > [@](#): > > azhdarchis (sic; it should be “azhdarchids”) were more likely terrestrial stalkers, similar to modern storks, and probably hunted small vertebrates on land or in small streams. _Quetzalcoatlus_, of course, being an azhdarchid pterosaur. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2009, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265/59 "2009-10-31T12:25:24Z")
I am never going to use that term, as it is ugly, and impossible for even Wikipedians to spell properly. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/to-kill-a-dino-bird/515265.md?page=2)