Mega-Beasts That Ruled Prehistoric Australia скачать в хорошем качестве

Mega-Beasts That Ruled Prehistoric Australia

From big birds and massive marsupials … to enormous echidnas and super-sized snakes … Here are 16 Mega-beasts That Ruled Prehistoric Australia Subscribe to Epic Wildlife http://goo.gl/6rzs5u Let's Connect -- http://www.epicadamwildlife.com/ --   / epicadamwildlife   --   / epicwildlife   -- http://gplus.to/epicwildlife #7 Bluff Downs Giant Python Wonambi wasn’t the only large prehistoric snake slithering around Oz. Fossils of this Giant Python were found in 1992 at the Bluff Downs Station in northern Queensland. Evidence suggested that this reptile lived during the early Pliocene, and grew to a length of 33 feet (10 m). That’s larger than Wonambi and the modern day Green Anaconda and Reticulated Python. To date, it’s thought to be the largest serpent that ever existed in Oz. Its closest living relative is the Olive Python. They can grow 13 feet (4 m) and are the second-longest snake species found in Australia. #6 Quinkana (k’win-kah-nah) Until around 40,000 years ago these crocodilian critters were roaming about Australia. Judging from their fossils, paleontologists say the animals could have measured between 10 and 20 feet long (3 m to 6 m). If that estimate holds up its size would have rivaled that of Megalania, the giant monitor lizard. With its long legs and sharp serrated teeth, the Quinkana would have been one of the top terrestrial predators found in Oz. #5 Thunder-Birds They’re known as Stirtoni’s (stur-toe-nees) Thunderbirds. And although the common name is the same, there’s no relation between this animal and the creatures that appear in Native American mythologies. However, both were large birds. This one inhabited the subtropical woodlands of Oz more than five million years ago. Standing some 10 feet tall (3 m) and weighing 1,100 pounds (499 kg) they would have been difficult to overlook. This flightless beast had stubby wings and powerful legs, although it wasn’t a fast runner. Paleontologists have suggested that its large beak might be an indication that it was carnivorous, although that’s still being debated. #4 Megalania Prisca (Mega-lay-nee-uh Pris-kuh) Also known as the Giant Ripper Lizard, it was native to Australia, where it lived until around 50,000 years ago. The Komodo Dragon is today’s largest extant species of lizard. Their largest verified specimens have measured about 10 feet long (3 m) and weighed over 360 pounds (163 kg). Experts estimate that the largest specimens of Megalania grew to 23 feet long (7 m) and weighed nearly 4,300 pounds (1,950 kg). That would make them the largest terrestrial lizards known to date. They were powerfully built reptiles with a jaw filled with blade-like teeth that allowed them to take down Diprotodon and other large prey. #3 The Marsupial Lion Despite their common name, this animal is not any sort of cat, although there were some superficial similarities. Thylacoleo was a carnivorous marsupial found in Oz during the late Pleistocene. It was the largest meat-eating mammal known to have existed in Australia. It was also among the largest such animals that ever existed anywhere on Earth. The largest specimens could measure nearly 6 feet long (150 cm) from head to tail, stood 30 inches (75 cm) tall at the shoulder, and weighed more than 360 pounds (163 kg). Their dimensions would have been comparable to a female tiger, or lion. Experts say these were robust, powerful animals that possessed retractable claws which is not typical of marsupials. Neither were their exceptionally strong jaws, which would have exerted a bite force close to that of an African lion. Even though these animals vanished some 46,000 years ago, sightings of them are still reported today. #2 Too Huge to Hop One thing that we expect from kangaroos is that they hop. However, this was not the case more than 2.5 million years ago. That’s when a genus of kangaroos existed that were too huge to hop. Experts say that species related to Sthenurus (sten-yur-uss) could weigh 530 pounds (240 kg), or about three times the size of the largest roos today. Unlike like the modern beasts, they had short tails that were more powerful, and only one toe instead of three. At a height of nearly 9 feet (2.7 m) these prehistoric marsupials were so tall and massive that hopping was not an option. They had to walk bipedally, not unlike hominids. These kangaroos are thought to have been strolling about Oz until about 50,000 years ago. 1...