# Turkeysaurus Rex! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 5, 2006, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384 "2006-04-05T06:04:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/1 "2006-04-05T06:04:38Z")
[At least that’s what I think they should call it!](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/04/AR2006040401674.html) > [@](#): > > Fossils discovered in southern Utah are from a new species of birdlike dinosaur that resembled a 7-foot-tall brightly colored turkey and could run up to 25 mph, scientists said Tuesday. > > Fossils of the meat-eater’s hand-like claw and foot were found in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument near the Arizona border, giving paleontologists reason to believe some dinosaurs known as raptors roamed from Canada to northern New Mexico about 75 million years ago. How’d you like to have to cook up one of _those_ for Thanksgiving Dinner? ---
**Author:** ![Ice\_Wolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/dfb087/32.png) [@Ice\_Wolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Wolf)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/2 "2006-04-05T09:08:48Z")
I reckon that would have _us_ for Thanksgiving dinner. Raw. ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/3 "2006-04-05T12:00:24Z")
In Triassic Soviet Union, Thanksgiving Dinner eats you! ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/4 "2006-04-05T12:08:02Z")
> [@](#): > > that resembled a 7-foot-tall brightly colored turkey and could run up to 25 mph, scientists said Tuesday. I’ve often wondered how they can tell it that it was brightly colored. Is this pure speculation, or are there principles involved that I’m not aware of? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/5 "2006-04-05T12:42:49Z")
Kinda like this, I guess: [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000014.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000014.jpg) [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000015.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000015.jpg) [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000016.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000016.jpg) [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000017.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000017.jpg) [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000018.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000018.jpg) [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000019.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000019.jpg) Although the creature from Harryhausen’s **Mysterious Island** is actually supposed to be a _Phororacus_, a long-known prehistoric flightless bird. (They never actually explain this in the movie – the “prehistoric animal” subplot was suppressed in the film as released , and people took it for a giant chicken.) ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/6 "2006-04-05T12:50:51Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > Kinda like this, I guess: > > [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000014.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000014.jpg) > [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000015.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000015.jpg) > [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000016.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000016.jpg) > [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000017.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000017.jpg) > [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000018.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000018.jpg) > [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000019.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/images/00000019.jpg) > > Although the creature from Harryhausen’s **Mysterious Island** is actually supposed to be a _Phororacus_, a long-known prehistoric flightless bird. (They never actually explain this in the movie – the “prehistoric animal” subplot was suppressed in the film as released , and people took it for a giant chicken.) None of these links work. :dubious: \< Insert Devastating Sarcastic Remark Here \> ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/7 "2006-04-05T12:56:54Z")
They work on my machine. Try this: [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterio4.html](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterio4.html) or this: [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/new-myst.html](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/new-myst.html) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/8 "2006-04-05T12:59:30Z")
And here’s the ultimate fate of the beast: [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/posters/myst7lc.jpg](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterious/posters/myst7lc.jpg) [http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterio.html](http://lavender.fortunecity.com/judidench/584/mysterio.html) ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2006, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/turkeysaurus-rex/351384/9 "2006-04-05T15:24:34Z")
So is that article bad science writing, or what? I refer to this passage: > [@the Washington Post article](#): > > Fossils discovered in southern Utah…giving paleontologists reason to believe some dinosaurs known as raptors …“This is the southernmost occurrence of this group, and it’s about two times the size of the ones up north,” said Lindsay Zanno, a doctoral student So from this article one concludes that this is a large raptor, 7 feet at the head; large raptors are previously unknown in Utah; and specifically that this one is twice the size of previously discovered ones. Fine and dandy. Except, of course, for [_Utahraptor_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utahraptor). Utahraptor is famous, it’s a large raptor found in…uh…Utah…and it’s 8 feet tall at the head. Its large size was always noted in the articles I have seen about it. Given that Utahraptor is commonly known to dinosaur fans, much less doctoral students, I have no clue why Ms. Zanno would say what she’s quoted as saying. And frankly I’d expect a science writer to do a tiny bit of fact checking. Googling “large raptor utah” gave me a first link about a plant-eating relative and then the rest of the first page of links seemed to be about Utahraptor…focusing on its large size, raptor classification, and Utah origin. Geez. Sailboat