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The Last Dragon (docudrama)
Encyclopedia
The Last Dragon, known as Dragons: A Fantasy Made Real in the United States
, and also known as Dragon's World in other countries, is a docufiction
made by Animal Planet
that is described as the story of "the natural history of the most extraordinary creature that never existed".
It posits a speculative evolution of dragon
s from the Cretaceous
period up to the 15th century, and suppositions about what dragon life and behavior might have been like if they had existed and evolved. It uses the premise that the ubiquity of dragons in world mythology
suggests that dragons could have existed. They are depicted as a scientifically feasible species of reptile
that could have evolved, similar to the depiction of dragons in the Dragonology series of books. The dragons featured in the show were designed by John Sibbick
.
The program switches between two stories. The first uses CGI
to show the dragons in their natural habitat throughout history. The second shows the story of a modern day scientist at a museum, Dr. Tanner, who believes in dragons. When the frozen remains of an unknown creature are discovered in the Carpathian Mountains
, Tanner, and two colleagues from the museum, undertake the task to examine the specimen to try to save his reputation. Once there, they discover that the creature is a dragon. Tanner and his colleagues set about working out how it lived and died.
and food sources. The creature is revealed to be a juvenile
prehistoric dragon. The T. rex had not eaten for days and prepares to attack the young dragon: in an attempt to defend itself, the dragon extends its wing
s to give the illusion that it is much larger than it really is, but the T. rex is not convinced and continues to advance. The young dragon then tries another tactic: it utters a piercing scream that carries for miles. Although the screech disorientates the T. rex, hurting its sensitive ears, the attack only goads the dinosaur on. Suddenly, the dragon's mother swoops down from the sky to the rescue and attacks the T. rex, slashing the dinosaur's skull with its talons. During the short fight, both animals cause serious injuries to the other; the T. rex breaks the female dragon's wing and in retaliation, the dragon breathes a jet of fire
at the Tyrannosaur's face. The Tyrannosaurus limps away with fatal burns, while the female dragon is left unable to hunt for herself or her offspring.
65 million years in the future, at the London Museum of Natural History and Science, England
. Dr. Jack Tanner, a young palaeontologist, who has been fascinated with dragons since childhood is introduced. Upon discovering talon
marks on a skull
of a T. rex, Dr. Tanner shares his theory about the creature that caused the damage to the skull with other palaeontologists. He tells them that the damage was caused by a creature unknown to science. However, he says that it was not the talons that killed it; a blast of fire, precisely aimed at the head was the cause of death, as evidenced by carbon
deposits discovered down both sides of the skull. Unfortunately, his colleagues aren't convinced and Tanner's academic reputation is left in tatters.
In his office Dr. Tanner studies photographs taken of a new discovery at Romania
. Several human corpses, dating from the Middle Ages
, were found in a cave in the Carpathian Mountains
while some straying skiers were being rescued. Along with the bodies, a carcass of an unidentified animal was discovered. The Romanian authorities ask the museum to investigate the find. Most of the professors at the museum want nothing to do with the specimen, but Tanner asks if he can go on behalf of the museum. The museum agrees and Tanner prepares to travel to Romania, under one condition - if it is a hoax
, they leave immediately: if it's of interest, the body is shipped back to London
. Tanner, along with two associates, arrive to discover that the remains have been moved off the mountain, Tanner wonders what evidence may have been lost in the process. The three scientists enter the shed where the carcass is being housed and begin analyzing the specimen.
After initial analysis, Tanner notes that the creature has a scaly hide and a tail, suggesting a reptile
, but also has wings and foot talons, characteristics of powered flight. When he finds the wings, he wonders if the creature could really fly, as its wingspan is too small to allow flight. After further investigation, Tanner finds that the bone
s of the creature have a honeycomb
structure, which would allow for flight, being hollow but strong. Internal scans of the creature show a huge heart, needed to pump oxygen-rich blood to the chest muscles during hard work, and two bladder-like structures. Tanner suggests that they could be gas bladders: the gas contained inside is hydrogen
, which is lighter than air and would give the creature extra lift. He tells his associates that the creature has everything needed for flight but that they don't add up.
Back in the Cretaceous, two weeks after the fight with the T. rex, the mother dragon is dead, having succumbed to infection; the starving juvenile must now teach itself how to fly, while evading the scavengers seeking to feed on his mother's body: at present, only pterosaurs, but more dangerous creatures will come. The juvenile begins to eat the only food source available; its mother's carcass. While eating, an aged male dragon arrives to feast on the mother. The juvenile, sensing danger, flees, but the older dragon, seeking fresh meat, gives chase. The juvenile flees into a forest where the adult male cannot fly. Body working overtime, the juvenile begins to make hydrogen, essential for flight, as the adult is gaining on the juvenile, nature kicks in and the juvenile regurgitates
the contents of its stomach to remove excessive weight and takes to the air, narrowly escaping the adult male.
In the present, Tanner inspects inside the mouth of the creature and declares it a carnivore
, but also notices molars
and wonders about their purpose in a carnivore. He also notes a fleshy palate at the back of the throat and wonders if it could have been used to prevent backdraft
from fire. Noting that the mouth shows no evidence of ever having been exposed to fire, he reconsiders. He theorizes that dragons breathing fire is biologically possible, explaining that the bombardier beetle
can emit liquid at a temperature of 200 °C.
The prehistoric dragon, now a young adult, is preparing to fight an alpha male
for territory and mates. Before it goes to fight the other adult male it eats rock rich in minerals, which is found at the heart of every dragon territory. The young adult ventures into the territory of an old alpha male. The two fight and the young male succeeds in winning.
Tanner says that to create fire, they need fuel, oxygen
and a source of ignition. He then realizes that he had already found fuel inside the flight bladders, hydrogen and methane
, both combustible and lighter than air. He then takes samples of the crushed rocks found on the molars of the creature to discover they are rich in platinum
, which can start a fire in a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen. Tanner is now convinced that his theories have been correct and the creature is a dragon. Tanner begins to wonder how dragons survived the K/T Event
, when other large land-dwelling creatures like the dinosaurs didn't. The narrator then explains that at the K/T event, a meteor
the size of Mount Everest
smashed into the Earth, wiping out nearly all life on the planet. Shark
s, coelacanth
s, turtle
s, and crocodile
s all survived and all had one thing in common: they were all marine species. Tanner then remembers that crocodiles also have a false palate like the one found in their dragon, and deduces that it is an evolutionary relic passed down from a marine ancestor. The narrator continues to inform us that the land-dwelling prehistoric dragon was wiped out, but explains that the prehistoric dragon was not the only dragon species alive at the time of the K/T Event. There was also a marine dragon, a cousin of the prehistoric dragon, both descended from a common ancestor.
It is explained that the marine dragon lived in the sea and its the flight bladders became swim bladders allowing extra buoyancy, the wings became vestigial
and served as fins, and the large tail became a rudder. As the land recovered from the impact of the meteor, some dragons returned to shallower waters and eventually made the transition back to land. Tanner suggests that the legends of sea serpents were actually recollections of true encounters with marine dragons. One of his associates discovers that a fossil
of a false palate had been found in bamboo
forest, in China
. Tanner theorizes that the marine dragon came back onto land and evolved into a new species in the bamboo forests of Asia. The dragons of Chinese mythology
are low-slung, elongated, and slender; all characteristics of a body recently adapted from water, but Tanner wonders if this would have been suitable for living in a forest.
We are taken back 50,000 years to the bamboo forests of China. Here we are shown the newly evolved forest dragon, adapted to its new environment
. We follow the dragon as it stalks its prey, and discover that the dragon has evolved a unique adaptation; mimic
ry. By controlling the flow of gasses out of its bladder, the dragon is able to mimic animals in distress. The vestigial wings are too small to allow flight, the dragon only able to glide small distances; but the buoyancy of the gas bladders let it tread less heavily and thus quieter when stalking prey. The dragons also use their natural fire-breathing abilities to cook their captured prey, as the fur on some of its prey is not easily digested
. The dragon succeeds in dealing with several mammalian intruders to its territory, including wild pigs and tiger
s, but in the distance, another species watches the dragon's use of fire with inquisitive eyes, a species that will turn the dragon's own weapon on it: human
s.
In the present, Tanner, after theorizing about the marine and forest dragons, begins to wonder what other dragon species may have evolved within this family of creature. Tanner's associate shows him something strange on the monitor, bone fragments. He thinks they may be rib
s, but the ribs are intact. The three scientists lift the wings of the dragon to discover that it has four legs and two wings. Tanner is amazed saying, "No vertebrate that ever lived had six limbs
". They check the DNA
, knowing that if it is not a hoax then the limbs will show up in the DNA. The DNA test shows that the dragon has a genetic adaptation in the gene responsible for creating limbs. Tanner tells us that world mythology
was correct all the time, all depictions of dragons show them to have six limbs. He cites the different depictions of dragons as evidence of a whole family of dragons existing all over the world. He dubs their carcass the mountain dragon, and wonders if this is the dragon in European folk history.
As the three scientists prepare the dragon carcass to be packed up and shipped to England, they perform one final check to see if they missed anything. They find the tip of a broken sword
buried in its heart, Tanner goes to where the Romanian scientists are studying the human corpses and find the sword that the tip came from. The narrator tells us the dragons survived until the emergence of humans, who used the dragon's fire against it. These encounters between humans and dragons are recorded in folklore
throughout the world. Tanner discovers that the human bodies show evidence of carbonization, showing that the bodies were burnt, but their dragon specimen never breathed fire. As the Romanian authorities come for the dragon, Tanner studies x-ray
s that had been taken, he sees that the ovaries
of the dragon show no follicular activity
, and concludes that their dragon was a baby. The three scientists travel to the cave, hoping to find a nest.
We are taken back over 500 years, to the Carpathian Mountains
in the Middle Ages. Dragons have been driven to live in remote places of Europe by encroaching human. A female mountain dragon is searching for a mate: she marks her territory with her scent. The female is near the end of her season
.
The scientists arrive at the cave and find rocks that have been scorched in symmetrical lines. They scan inside the cave using echo scanning. As the female returns to her den, a male dragon arrives, having traveled to Romania from his territory in the Atlas Mountains
, and the female goes to him. Instinct then takes over as the two begin their courtship
ritual, where they fly to a great height then freefall together, only pulling apart at the last instant. Inside the cave, Tanner finds a nest, containing egg shell fragments and one intact egg.
Back in the 15th century we see the female dragon, using her fire to incubate the eggs inside the nest. The male returns from hunting, with no food. Instead, he brings another rock for the nest. The female, now being very protective of her nest, allows the male to enter the cave and take care of the nest. As the female takes her turn to hunt, the male enters the nest and places the rock on the nest. But instead of keeping the temperature at a high level, he lowers the temperature of the eggs in order for the eggs to develop into all females, as another male may be a rival for him; the resulting imbalance in sex ratio would have been tolerable in a healthy population but is a severe risk in a species which is now nearly extinct. The female returns from the hunt and finds the male not attending to the eggs. She quickly senses that something isn't right inside the nest. She finds out that the temperature in the nest is dangerously low and attempts to raise it again: one infant dragon has already died, but the other can still be saved. The male senses trouble and makes his escape.
The adult female has been stealing livestock
from local villages in order to feed her young daughter, despite the risk of provoking the villagers. As the adult female begins to teach her daughter the secret of fire, a pair of local knight
s arrive to kill the dragon. They find that the young female cannot defend herself because she cannot breathe fire yet, and kill her. The adult female returns to the lair
too late and finds her daughter dead. Both of the knights are soon killed by the enraged female, with one nearly managing to escape. With her daughter now dead, the adult female comes back into heat and begins trying to attract another mate. As winter comes, the female hibernates. More warriors (mercenaries paid by the locals) come to the den and catch her with her gas bladder nearly empty due to hibernation and attack her. She fights bravely, cutting down the mercenaries until only one man is left, badly wounded. As she rears above the man to crush him, he holds a spear upright. As she fatally impales herself on the spear, her toppling corpse crushes the last mercenary beneath her.
In the present, Tanner discovers a chamber. He enters it and finds the adult female. Back at the museum in England, Tanner shows the specimens to his colleagues: the legends of dragons were real, but had been twisted. The narrator tells us:
The story picks up one year later. Tanner, now Professor Tanner, is given a file by one of his colleagues. Tanner opens the file to find photographs. He looks at them, while his colleague tells him that they were taken only two months ago. Tanner runs off ecstatic, flapping his arms like wings, preparing to track down the dragon that was presumably in the photographs.
in two unique ways, flight
and fire. Many animals possess in their guts active bacteria which aid in the digestion of food. The bacteria inside the dragon's gut produces hydrogen. The hydrogen produced in the gut is then transferred into the internal bladders. this was seen as the dragon breathed fire.
Dragons overcame this by utilizing two internal bladders. Fully inflated, these bladders had a combined volume of 30 cubic foot (0.84950541 m³). The bladders, when filled with hydrogen and methane; both of which are lighter than air, provide the extra lift needed to get the dragon off the ground. Simple calculation, however, shows that 30 cubic foot (0.84950541 m³) of hydrogen at atmospheric pressure gives a lift of about 1.008 kg (2.22 lb.), only a small fraction of what is needed.
, and combust. The inside of dragons mouths are armor-plated and it has a false palate in its throat, similar to a crocodile, to stop backdraft.
Because of the dual use of the bladders, the more fire a dragon breathes, the shorter the distance it can fly.
, only releasing each other at the last moment. Once successful in mating, a female will build a nest of rocks and lay a clutch
of two eggs. Like crocodiles, dragon embryo
s do not possess sex chromosomes
, and the sex of the offspring
is determined by the temperature of the egg, lower temperatures producing females and higher temperatures, males. The shells of dragons' eggs have heat-resistant properties, enabling them to withstand the intense heat generated from the dragons' fire, without which the chicks would die. The female ensures the eggs are kept from falling below the critical temperature, 60° Fahrenheit, by using her fire to incubate the eggs. Dragons possess special sensors in their tongue
s which allow them to check the temperature of the nest.
In the program, four dragon species are explored in detail. These are the prehistoric dragon, marine
dragon, forest
dragon, and mountain
dragon. On the evolutionary tree shown during the program, a fifth species, the desert dragon is identified by name only, and the program does not theorize about its possible evolutionary path.
The program's associated website theorizes that dragons split from other reptiles some time in the late Triassic
period, citing this time as a period of great diversification. All dragons species descend from an aquatic or semi-aquatic ancestor. Some of these ventured further onto land and evolved into the fully terrestrial prehistoric dragon, while others went further out to sea, evolving into the marine species.
, Quetzalcoatlus
, Triceratops
, Ornithomimus
, Alamosaurus
, Edmontosaurus
, and Troodon
. Dragons, having evolved from reptiles, were originally quadruped
s, having four limbs and unable to fly or breathe fire. Via the process of natural selection
, one species developed the ability to run on two legs. No longer having much use for the forelimbs, they eventually evolved into wings allowing for flight. This evolutionary path mirrors that of birds evolving from small bipedal dinosaurs.
At some point in their evolution, dragons harnessed unique bacteria in their guts. Gut flora are present in all creatures' guts, and help to aid digestion. Dragons, however, harnessed bacteria which was able to produce hydrogen. The production of hydrogen allowed dragons to utilize the gas in flight. With this extra lift dragons were able to grow into the largest known flying animal. At another point dragons began ingesting inorganic material, one of the rocks they ingested was rich in platinum ore. The dragons then developed the ability to breathe fire by igniting the hydrogen and methane in their guts by exposing it to the catalyst of platinum.
responsible for the generation of limbs, provided dragons with an extra pair of limbs, an adaptation unique from all other vertebrate
s.
As some of these dragons repopulated the land, their rudimentary limbs evolved into wings as seen in all dragon species post K/T. Other dragons went further out to sea and became more specialized to a life at sea. Over time the rudimentary limbs became fins, the long tail became a rudder and the limbs evolved into flippers. As dragons colonized the seas and oceans, those living in colder waters developed a blood protein to prevent their blood from freezing.
The forest dragon also developed a unique use for its bladder, mimicry. By controlling the flow of gasses from its bladder it was able to manipulate its voice, producing squealing sounds, to sound like a distressed mammal to entice its prey. It is thought that as these dragons ventured further out of the forests into the open country, subspecies evolved, notably the Chinese and Japanese dragon.
The mountain dragon, like all other dragon species after the K/T Event possessed six limbs. The mountain dragon's shorter body is even more specially adapted for flight, a long spine being a disadvantage. The tail grew as long as the body, and ending in an arrow-shaped tip could be used as a formidable weapon.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and also known as Dragon's World in other countries, is a docufiction
Docufiction
Docufiction is a neologism which refers to the cinematographic combination of documentary and fiction. More precisely, it is a documentary contaminated with fictional elements, in real time, filmed when the events take place, and in which someone - the character - plays his own role in real life...
made by Animal Planet
Animal Planet
Animal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...
that is described as the story of "the natural history of the most extraordinary creature that never existed".
It posits a speculative evolution of dragon
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
s from the Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
period up to the 15th century, and suppositions about what dragon life and behavior might have been like if they had existed and evolved. It uses the premise that the ubiquity of dragons in world mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
suggests that dragons could have existed. They are depicted as a scientifically feasible species of reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
that could have evolved, similar to the depiction of dragons in the Dragonology series of books. The dragons featured in the show were designed by John Sibbick
John Sibbick
John Sibbick is a British freelance illustrator, perhaps best known for his reconstructions of prehistoric life in several media.Sibbick studied Graphics and Illustration at Guildford College of Art in the south of England...
.
The program switches between two stories. The first uses CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
to show the dragons in their natural habitat throughout history. The second shows the story of a modern day scientist at a museum, Dr. Tanner, who believes in dragons. When the frozen remains of an unknown creature are discovered in the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
, Tanner, and two colleagues from the museum, undertake the task to examine the specimen to try to save his reputation. Once there, they discover that the creature is a dragon. Tanner and his colleagues set about working out how it lived and died.
Synopsis
The story begins 65 million years ago, sometime in the late Cretaceous period. A Tyrannosaurus rex is stalking a creature that has been raiding its territoryTerritory (animal)
In ethology the term territory refers to any sociographical area that an animal of a particular species consistently defends against conspecifics...
and food sources. The creature is revealed to be a juvenile
Juvenile (organism)
A juvenile is an individual organism that has not yet reached its adult form, sexual maturity or size. Juveniles sometimes look very different from the adult form, particularly in terms of their colour...
prehistoric dragon. The T. rex had not eaten for days and prepares to attack the young dragon: in an attempt to defend itself, the dragon extends its wing
Wing
A wing is an appendage with a surface that produces lift for flight or propulsion through the atmosphere, or through another gaseous or liquid fluid...
s to give the illusion that it is much larger than it really is, but the T. rex is not convinced and continues to advance. The young dragon then tries another tactic: it utters a piercing scream that carries for miles. Although the screech disorientates the T. rex, hurting its sensitive ears, the attack only goads the dinosaur on. Suddenly, the dragon's mother swoops down from the sky to the rescue and attacks the T. rex, slashing the dinosaur's skull with its talons. During the short fight, both animals cause serious injuries to the other; the T. rex breaks the female dragon's wing and in retaliation, the dragon breathes a jet of fire
Fire breathing
Fire breathing is the act of creating a fireball by breathing a fine mist of fuel over an open flame. Proper technique and the correct fuel create the illusion of danger to enhance the novelty of fire breathing, while reducing the risk to health and safety...
at the Tyrannosaur's face. The Tyrannosaurus limps away with fatal burns, while the female dragon is left unable to hunt for herself or her offspring.
65 million years in the future, at the London Museum of Natural History and Science, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Dr. Jack Tanner, a young palaeontologist, who has been fascinated with dragons since childhood is introduced. Upon discovering talon
Claw
A claw is a curved, pointed appendage, found at the end of a toe or finger in most mammals, birds, and some reptiles. However, the word "claw" is also often used in reference to an invertebrate. Somewhat similar fine hooked structures are found in arthropods such as beetles and spiders, at the end...
marks on a skull
Skull
The skull is a bony structure in the head of many animals that supports the structures of the face and forms a cavity for the brain.The skull is composed of two parts: the cranium and the mandible. A skull without a mandible is only a cranium. Animals that have skulls are called craniates...
of a T. rex, Dr. Tanner shares his theory about the creature that caused the damage to the skull with other palaeontologists. He tells them that the damage was caused by a creature unknown to science. However, he says that it was not the talons that killed it; a blast of fire, precisely aimed at the head was the cause of death, as evidenced by carbon
Carbon
Carbon is the chemical element with symbol C and atomic number 6. As a member of group 14 on the periodic table, it is nonmetallic and tetravalent—making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds...
deposits discovered down both sides of the skull. Unfortunately, his colleagues aren't convinced and Tanner's academic reputation is left in tatters.
In his office Dr. Tanner studies photographs taken of a new discovery at Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. Several human corpses, dating from the Middle Ages
Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages was the period of European history generally comprising the 14th to the 16th century . The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern era ....
, were found in a cave in the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
while some straying skiers were being rescued. Along with the bodies, a carcass of an unidentified animal was discovered. The Romanian authorities ask the museum to investigate the find. Most of the professors at the museum want nothing to do with the specimen, but Tanner asks if he can go on behalf of the museum. The museum agrees and Tanner prepares to travel to Romania, under one condition - if it is a hoax
Hoax
A hoax is a deliberately fabricated falsehood made to masquerade as truth. It is distinguishable from errors in observation or judgment, or rumors, urban legends, pseudosciences or April Fools' Day events that are passed along in good faith by believers or as jokes.-Definition:The British...
, they leave immediately: if it's of interest, the body is shipped back to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Tanner, along with two associates, arrive to discover that the remains have been moved off the mountain, Tanner wonders what evidence may have been lost in the process. The three scientists enter the shed where the carcass is being housed and begin analyzing the specimen.
After initial analysis, Tanner notes that the creature has a scaly hide and a tail, suggesting a reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
, but also has wings and foot talons, characteristics of powered flight. When he finds the wings, he wonders if the creature could really fly, as its wingspan is too small to allow flight. After further investigation, Tanner finds that the bone
Bone
Bones are rigid organs that constitute part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells and store minerals. Bone tissue is a type of dense connective tissue...
s of the creature have a honeycomb
Honeycomb
A honeycomb is a mass of hexagonal waxcells built by honey bees in their nests to contain their larvae and stores of honey and pollen.Beekeepers may remove the entire honeycomb to harvest honey...
structure, which would allow for flight, being hollow but strong. Internal scans of the creature show a huge heart, needed to pump oxygen-rich blood to the chest muscles during hard work, and two bladder-like structures. Tanner suggests that they could be gas bladders: the gas contained inside is hydrogen
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
, which is lighter than air and would give the creature extra lift. He tells his associates that the creature has everything needed for flight but that they don't add up.
Back in the Cretaceous, two weeks after the fight with the T. rex, the mother dragon is dead, having succumbed to infection; the starving juvenile must now teach itself how to fly, while evading the scavengers seeking to feed on his mother's body: at present, only pterosaurs, but more dangerous creatures will come. The juvenile begins to eat the only food source available; its mother's carcass. While eating, an aged male dragon arrives to feast on the mother. The juvenile, sensing danger, flees, but the older dragon, seeking fresh meat, gives chase. The juvenile flees into a forest where the adult male cannot fly. Body working overtime, the juvenile begins to make hydrogen, essential for flight, as the adult is gaining on the juvenile, nature kicks in and the juvenile regurgitates
Regurgitation (digestion)
Regurgitation is the expulsion of material from the mouth, pharynx, or esophagus, usually characterized by the presence of undigested food or blood.Regurgitation is used by a number of species to feed their young...
the contents of its stomach to remove excessive weight and takes to the air, narrowly escaping the adult male.
In the present, Tanner inspects inside the mouth of the creature and declares it a carnivore
Carnivore
A carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of animal tissue, whether through predation or scavenging...
, but also notices molars
Molar (tooth)
Molars are the rearmost and most complicated kind of tooth in most mammals. In many mammals they grind food; hence the Latin name mola, "millstone"....
and wonders about their purpose in a carnivore. He also notes a fleshy palate at the back of the throat and wonders if it could have been used to prevent backdraft
Backdraft
A backdraft is an explosive event at a fire resulting from rapid re-introduction of oxygen to combustion in an oxygen-starved environment, for example, the breaking of a window or opening of a door to an enclosed space. Backdrafts present a serious threat to firefighters, even those with a high...
from fire. Noting that the mouth shows no evidence of ever having been exposed to fire, he reconsiders. He theorizes that dragons breathing fire is biologically possible, explaining that the bombardier beetle
Bombardier beetle
Bombardier beetles are ground beetles in the tribes Brachinini, Paussini, Ozaenini, or Metriini—more than 500 species altogether—which are most notable for the defense mechanism that gives them their name: When disturbed, the beetle ejects a noxious chemical spray in a rapid burst of pulses from...
can emit liquid at a temperature of 200 °C.
The prehistoric dragon, now a young adult, is preparing to fight an alpha male
Alpha (biology)
In social animals, the alpha is the individual in the community with the highest rank. Where one male and one female fulfill this role, they are referred to as the alpha pair...
for territory and mates. Before it goes to fight the other adult male it eats rock rich in minerals, which is found at the heart of every dragon territory. The young adult ventures into the territory of an old alpha male. The two fight and the young male succeeds in winning.
Tanner says that to create fire, they need fuel, oxygen
Oxygen
Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...
and a source of ignition. He then realizes that he had already found fuel inside the flight bladders, hydrogen and methane
Methane
Methane is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is the simplest alkane, the principal component of natural gas, and probably the most abundant organic compound on earth. The relative abundance of methane makes it an attractive fuel...
, both combustible and lighter than air. He then takes samples of the crushed rocks found on the molars of the creature to discover they are rich in platinum
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is a dense, malleable, ductile, precious, gray-white transition metal...
, which can start a fire in a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen. Tanner is now convinced that his theories have been correct and the creature is a dragon. Tanner begins to wonder how dragons survived the K/T Event
Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event
The Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, formerly named and still commonly referred to as the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event, occurred approximately 65.5 million years ago at the end of the Maastrichtian age of the Cretaceous period. It was a large-scale mass extinction of animal and plant...
, when other large land-dwelling creatures like the dinosaurs didn't. The narrator then explains that at the K/T event, a meteor
Meteoroid
A meteoroid is a sand- to boulder-sized particle of debris in the Solar System. The visible path of a meteoroid that enters Earth's atmosphere is called a meteor, or colloquially a shooting star or falling star. If a meteoroid reaches the ground and survives impact, then it is called a meteorite...
the size of Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
smashed into the Earth, wiping out nearly all life on the planet. Shark
Shark
Sharks are a type of fish with a full cartilaginous skeleton and a highly streamlined body. The earliest known sharks date from more than 420 million years ago....
s, coelacanth
Coelacanth
Coelacanths are members of an order of fish that includes the oldest living lineage of Sarcopterygii known to date....
s, turtle
Turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
s, and crocodile
Crocodile
A crocodile is any species belonging to the family Crocodylidae . The term can also be used more loosely to include all extant members of the order Crocodilia: i.e...
s all survived and all had one thing in common: they were all marine species. Tanner then remembers that crocodiles also have a false palate like the one found in their dragon, and deduces that it is an evolutionary relic passed down from a marine ancestor. The narrator continues to inform us that the land-dwelling prehistoric dragon was wiped out, but explains that the prehistoric dragon was not the only dragon species alive at the time of the K/T Event. There was also a marine dragon, a cousin of the prehistoric dragon, both descended from a common ancestor.
It is explained that the marine dragon lived in the sea and its the flight bladders became swim bladders allowing extra buoyancy, the wings became vestigial
Vestigial structure
Vestigiality describes homologous characters of organisms that have seemingly lost all or most of their original function in a species through evolution. These may take various forms such as anatomical structures, behaviors and biochemical pathways. Some of these disappear early in embryonic...
and served as fins, and the large tail became a rudder. As the land recovered from the impact of the meteor, some dragons returned to shallower waters and eventually made the transition back to land. Tanner suggests that the legends of sea serpents were actually recollections of true encounters with marine dragons. One of his associates discovers that a fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
of a false palate had been found in bamboo
Bamboo
Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....
forest, in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Tanner theorizes that the marine dragon came back onto land and evolved into a new species in the bamboo forests of Asia. The dragons of Chinese mythology
Chinese dragon
Chinese dragons are legendary creatures in Chinese mythology and folklore, with mythic counterparts among Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Bhutanese, Western and Turkic dragons. In Chinese art, dragons are typically portrayed as long, scaled, serpentine creatures with four legs...
are low-slung, elongated, and slender; all characteristics of a body recently adapted from water, but Tanner wonders if this would have been suitable for living in a forest.
We are taken back 50,000 years to the bamboo forests of China. Here we are shown the newly evolved forest dragon, adapted to its new environment
Natural environment
The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
. We follow the dragon as it stalks its prey, and discover that the dragon has evolved a unique adaptation; mimic
Mimic
In evolutionary biology, mimicry is the similarity of one species to another which protects one or both. This similarity can be in appearance, behaviour, sound, scent and even location, with the mimics found in similar places to their models....
ry. By controlling the flow of gasses out of its bladder, the dragon is able to mimic animals in distress. The vestigial wings are too small to allow flight, the dragon only able to glide small distances; but the buoyancy of the gas bladders let it tread less heavily and thus quieter when stalking prey. The dragons also use their natural fire-breathing abilities to cook their captured prey, as the fur on some of its prey is not easily digested
Digestion
Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food into smaller components that are more easily absorbed into a blood stream, for instance. Digestion is a form of catabolism: a breakdown of large food molecules to smaller ones....
. The dragon succeeds in dealing with several mammalian intruders to its territory, including wild pigs and tiger
Tiger
The tiger is the largest cat species, reaching a total body length of up to and weighing up to . Their most recognizable feature is a pattern of dark vertical stripes on reddish-orange fur with lighter underparts...
s, but in the distance, another species watches the dragon's use of fire with inquisitive eyes, a species that will turn the dragon's own weapon on it: human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
s.
In the present, Tanner, after theorizing about the marine and forest dragons, begins to wonder what other dragon species may have evolved within this family of creature. Tanner's associate shows him something strange on the monitor, bone fragments. He thinks they may be rib
Rib
In vertebrate anatomy, ribs are the long curved bones which form the rib cage. In most vertebrates, ribs surround the chest, enabling the lungs to expand and thus facilitate breathing by expanding the chest cavity. They serve to protect the lungs, heart, and other internal organs of the thorax...
s, but the ribs are intact. The three scientists lift the wings of the dragon to discover that it has four legs and two wings. Tanner is amazed saying, "No vertebrate that ever lived had six limbs
Polymelia
Polymelia is a birth defect involving limbs , in which the affected individual has more than the usual number of limbs. In humans and most land-dwelling animals, this means having five or more limbs...
". They check the DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
, knowing that if it is not a hoax then the limbs will show up in the DNA. The DNA test shows that the dragon has a genetic adaptation in the gene responsible for creating limbs. Tanner tells us that world mythology
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
was correct all the time, all depictions of dragons show them to have six limbs. He cites the different depictions of dragons as evidence of a whole family of dragons existing all over the world. He dubs their carcass the mountain dragon, and wonders if this is the dragon in European folk history.
As the three scientists prepare the dragon carcass to be packed up and shipped to England, they perform one final check to see if they missed anything. They find the tip of a broken sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
buried in its heart, Tanner goes to where the Romanian scientists are studying the human corpses and find the sword that the tip came from. The narrator tells us the dragons survived until the emergence of humans, who used the dragon's fire against it. These encounters between humans and dragons are recorded in folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
throughout the world. Tanner discovers that the human bodies show evidence of carbonization, showing that the bodies were burnt, but their dragon specimen never breathed fire. As the Romanian authorities come for the dragon, Tanner studies x-ray
X-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
s that had been taken, he sees that the ovaries
Ovary
The ovary is an ovum-producing reproductive organ, often found in pairs as part of the vertebrate female reproductive system. Ovaries in anatomically female individuals are analogous to testes in anatomically male individuals, in that they are both gonads and endocrine glands.-Human anatomy:Ovaries...
of the dragon show no follicular activity
Folliculogenesis
In biology, folliculogenesis is the maturation of the ovarian follicle, a densely-packed shell of somatic cells that contains an immature oocyte...
, and concludes that their dragon was a baby. The three scientists travel to the cave, hoping to find a nest.
We are taken back over 500 years, to the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
in the Middle Ages. Dragons have been driven to live in remote places of Europe by encroaching human. A female mountain dragon is searching for a mate: she marks her territory with her scent. The female is near the end of her season
Estrous cycle
The estrous cycle comprises the recurring physiologic changes that are induced by reproductive hormones in most mammalian placental females. Estrous cycles start after puberty in sexually mature females and are interrupted by anestrous phases or pregnancies...
.
The scientists arrive at the cave and find rocks that have been scorched in symmetrical lines. They scan inside the cave using echo scanning. As the female returns to her den, a male dragon arrives, having traveled to Romania from his territory in the Atlas Mountains
Atlas Mountains
The Atlas Mountains is a mountain range across a northern stretch of Africa extending about through Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia. The highest peak is Toubkal, with an elevation of in southwestern Morocco. The Atlas ranges separate the Mediterranean and Atlantic coastlines from the Sahara Desert...
, and the female goes to him. Instinct then takes over as the two begin their courtship
Mating
In biology, mating is the pairing of opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms for copulation. In social animals, it also includes the raising of their offspring. Copulation is the union of the sex organs of two sexually reproducing animals for insemination and subsequent internal fertilization...
ritual, where they fly to a great height then freefall together, only pulling apart at the last instant. Inside the cave, Tanner finds a nest, containing egg shell fragments and one intact egg.
Back in the 15th century we see the female dragon, using her fire to incubate the eggs inside the nest. The male returns from hunting, with no food. Instead, he brings another rock for the nest. The female, now being very protective of her nest, allows the male to enter the cave and take care of the nest. As the female takes her turn to hunt, the male enters the nest and places the rock on the nest. But instead of keeping the temperature at a high level, he lowers the temperature of the eggs in order for the eggs to develop into all females, as another male may be a rival for him; the resulting imbalance in sex ratio would have been tolerable in a healthy population but is a severe risk in a species which is now nearly extinct. The female returns from the hunt and finds the male not attending to the eggs. She quickly senses that something isn't right inside the nest. She finds out that the temperature in the nest is dangerously low and attempts to raise it again: one infant dragon has already died, but the other can still be saved. The male senses trouble and makes his escape.
The adult female has been stealing livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
from local villages in order to feed her young daughter, despite the risk of provoking the villagers. As the adult female begins to teach her daughter the secret of fire, a pair of local knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
s arrive to kill the dragon. They find that the young female cannot defend herself because she cannot breathe fire yet, and kill her. The adult female returns to the lair
Lair
Lair may refer to:*An animal's lair or home; see :Category:Shelters built or used by animals*Lair , a 2007 video game*In Scots language, lair refers to a burial-plot in a graveyard...
too late and finds her daughter dead. Both of the knights are soon killed by the enraged female, with one nearly managing to escape. With her daughter now dead, the adult female comes back into heat and begins trying to attract another mate. As winter comes, the female hibernates. More warriors (mercenaries paid by the locals) come to the den and catch her with her gas bladder nearly empty due to hibernation and attack her. She fights bravely, cutting down the mercenaries until only one man is left, badly wounded. As she rears above the man to crush him, he holds a spear upright. As she fatally impales herself on the spear, her toppling corpse crushes the last mercenary beneath her.
In the present, Tanner discovers a chamber. He enters it and finds the adult female. Back at the museum in England, Tanner shows the specimens to his colleagues: the legends of dragons were real, but had been twisted. The narrator tells us:
The story picks up one year later. Tanner, now Professor Tanner, is given a file by one of his colleagues. Tanner opens the file to find photographs. He looks at them, while his colleague tells him that they were taken only two months ago. Tanner runs off ecstatic, flapping his arms like wings, preparing to track down the dragon that was presumably in the photographs.
Hydrogen production
Sometime in the evolutionary development of dragons, they succeeded in harnessing their natural gut bacteriaGut flora
Gut flora consists of microorganisms that live in the digestive tracts of animals and is the largest reservoir of human flora. In this context, gut is synonymous with intestinal, and flora with microbiota and microflora....
in two unique ways, flight
Flight
Flight is the process by which an object moves either through an atmosphere or beyond it by generating lift or propulsive thrust, or aerostatically using buoyancy, or by simple ballistic movement....
and fire. Many animals possess in their guts active bacteria which aid in the digestion of food. The bacteria inside the dragon's gut produces hydrogen. The hydrogen produced in the gut is then transferred into the internal bladders. this was seen as the dragon breathed fire.
Flight
Dragons haves several characteristics typical of flight. The honeycomb structure of their bones allows them to be light, while retaining their strength. Huge hearts are also typical of flight, as chest muscles would need vast amounts of oxygen-rich blood in order to move the large wings. Although they possess large wings, just under 20 feet (6.1 m), the wing-span/weight ratio of dragons is not enough for the wings to give enough lift.Dragons overcame this by utilizing two internal bladders. Fully inflated, these bladders had a combined volume of 30 cubic foot (0.84950541 m³). The bladders, when filled with hydrogen and methane; both of which are lighter than air, provide the extra lift needed to get the dragon off the ground. Simple calculation, however, shows that 30 cubic foot (0.84950541 m³) of hydrogen at atmospheric pressure gives a lift of about 1.008 kg (2.22 lb.), only a small fraction of what is needed.
Fire breathing
As well as the flight bladders being used as buoyancy aids, they also double as fuel stores for the fire that dragons are famous for breathing. The hydrogen and methane combine with oxygen in the presence of platinum, as a catalystCatalysis
Catalysis is the change in rate of a chemical reaction due to the participation of a substance called a catalyst. Unlike other reagents that participate in the chemical reaction, a catalyst is not consumed by the reaction itself. A catalyst may participate in multiple chemical transformations....
, and combust. The inside of dragons mouths are armor-plated and it has a false palate in its throat, similar to a crocodile, to stop backdraft.
Because of the dual use of the bladders, the more fire a dragon breathes, the shorter the distance it can fly.
Reproduction and courtship
Female dragons come into season for one month every year. They will only mate once every seven years. As dragons are naturally attracted to shiny objects, a female may use this for attracting a mate. When a male and female dragon prepare to mate, they begin a frightful courtship ritual: they fly to a great height, lock talons and free-fallFree-fall
Free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. These conditions produce an inertial trajectory so long as gravity remains the only force. Since this definition does not specify velocity, it also applies to objects initially moving upward...
, only releasing each other at the last moment. Once successful in mating, a female will build a nest of rocks and lay a clutch
Clutch (eggs)
A clutch of eggs refers to all the eggs produced by birds or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest.In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators, , results in double-clutching...
of two eggs. Like crocodiles, dragon embryo
Embryo
An embryo is a multicellular diploid eukaryote in its earliest stage of development, from the time of first cell division until birth, hatching, or germination...
s do not possess sex chromosomes
Sex-determination system
A sex-determination system is a biological system that determines the development of sexual characteristics in an organism. Most sexual organisms have two sexes. In many cases, sex determination is genetic: males and females have different alleles or even different genes that specify their sexual...
, and the sex of the offspring
Offspring
In biology, offspring is the product of reproduction, of a new organism produced by one or more parents.Collective offspring may be known as a brood or progeny in a more general way...
is determined by the temperature of the egg, lower temperatures producing females and higher temperatures, males. The shells of dragons' eggs have heat-resistant properties, enabling them to withstand the intense heat generated from the dragons' fire, without which the chicks would die. The female ensures the eggs are kept from falling below the critical temperature, 60° Fahrenheit, by using her fire to incubate the eggs. Dragons possess special sensors in their tongue
Tongue
The tongue is a muscular hydrostat on the floors of the mouths of most vertebrates which manipulates food for mastication. It is the primary organ of taste , as much of the upper surface of the tongue is covered in papillae and taste buds. It is sensitive and kept moist by saliva, and is richly...
s which allow them to check the temperature of the nest.
Territory
In order to create fire, dragons need access to plentiful supplies of platinum. Because of this necessity, dragons always ensure that they establish their territory in areas which have rocks rich in platinum ore.Dragon Species
Marine (ocean)
Marine is an umbrella term. As an adjective it is usually applicable to things relating to the sea or ocean, such as marine biology, marine ecology and marine geology...
dragon, forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
dragon, and mountain
Mountain
Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
dragon. On the evolutionary tree shown during the program, a fifth species, the desert dragon is identified by name only, and the program does not theorize about its possible evolutionary path.
The program's associated website theorizes that dragons split from other reptiles some time in the late Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
period, citing this time as a period of great diversification. All dragons species descend from an aquatic or semi-aquatic ancestor. Some of these ventured further onto land and evolved into the fully terrestrial prehistoric dragon, while others went further out to sea, evolving into the marine species.
Prehistoric Dragon
The prehistoric dragon existed at the same time as the TyrannosaurusTyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
, Quetzalcoatlus
Quetzalcoatlus
Quetzalcoatlus was a pterodactyloid pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous of North America , and one of the largest known flying animals of all time. It was a member of the Azhdarchidae, a family of advanced toothless pterosaurs with unusually long, stiffened necks...
, Triceratops
Triceratops
Triceratops is a genus of herbivorous ceratopsid dinosaur which lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago in what is now North America. It was one of the last dinosaur genera to appear before the great Cretaceous–Paleogene...
, Ornithomimus
Ornithomimus
Ornithomimus is a genus of ornithomimid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America.In 1890 Ornithomimus velox was named by Othniel Charles Marsh on the basis of a foot and partial hand from the Maastrichtian Denver Formation. Another seventeen species have been named since...
, Alamosaurus
Alamosaurus
Alamosaurus is a genus of titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Period of what is now North America. It was a large quadrupedal herbivore. Isolated vertebrae and limb bones indicate that it reached sizes comparable to Argentinosaurus and Puertasaurus, which would make it the...
, Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus is a genus of crestless hadrosaurid dinosaur. It contains two species: Edmontosaurus regalis and Edmontosaurus annectens. Fossils of E. regalis have been found in rocks of western North America that date from the late Campanian stage of the Cretaceous Period 73 million years ago,...
, and Troodon
Troodon
Troodon is a genus of relatively small, bird-like dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous period . Discovered in 1855, it was among the first dinosaurs found in North America...
. Dragons, having evolved from reptiles, were originally quadruped
Quadruped
Quadrupedalism is a form of land animal locomotion using four limbs or legs. An animal or machine that usually moves in a quadrupedal manner is known as a quadruped, meaning "four feet"...
s, having four limbs and unable to fly or breathe fire. Via the process of natural selection
Natural selection
Natural selection is the nonrandom process by which biologic traits become either more or less common in a population as a function of differential reproduction of their bearers. It is a key mechanism of evolution....
, one species developed the ability to run on two legs. No longer having much use for the forelimbs, they eventually evolved into wings allowing for flight. This evolutionary path mirrors that of birds evolving from small bipedal dinosaurs.
At some point in their evolution, dragons harnessed unique bacteria in their guts. Gut flora are present in all creatures' guts, and help to aid digestion. Dragons, however, harnessed bacteria which was able to produce hydrogen. The production of hydrogen allowed dragons to utilize the gas in flight. With this extra lift dragons were able to grow into the largest known flying animal. At another point dragons began ingesting inorganic material, one of the rocks they ingested was rich in platinum ore. The dragons then developed the ability to breathe fire by igniting the hydrogen and methane in their guts by exposing it to the catalyst of platinum.
Marine Dragon
As some dragons took to land, others remained in shallow waters and coastal swamps and eventually evolved into the marine dragon. After the K/T Event, these were the only dragons that survived, the terrestrial prehistoric dragon, along with many dinosaur species, were wiped out. A mutation in the geneGene
A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
responsible for the generation of limbs, provided dragons with an extra pair of limbs, an adaptation unique from all other vertebrate
Vertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
s.
As some of these dragons repopulated the land, their rudimentary limbs evolved into wings as seen in all dragon species post K/T. Other dragons went further out to sea and became more specialized to a life at sea. Over time the rudimentary limbs became fins, the long tail became a rudder and the limbs evolved into flippers. As dragons colonized the seas and oceans, those living in colder waters developed a blood protein to prevent their blood from freezing.
Forest Dragon
After the K/T Event, as global temperatures increased, some marine dragon species ventured back into shallower waters and rivers. It was here that these dragons took their steps back onto land. Over time these dragons evolved into the forest dragons of Asia. Here they lived in bamboo forests. They kept the long, slender bodies of their marine ancestors as they were ideal for rapid movement through the forest undergrowth. The swim bladders, also inherited from their ancestor served to give extra lift, allowing them to move more silently through the bamboo. As their ancestor had no need for them their wings remained only as vestiges. The forest dragon was unable to fly, but could use its tiny wings, and air-filled bladders to allow it to glide short distances.The forest dragon also developed a unique use for its bladder, mimicry. By controlling the flow of gasses from its bladder it was able to manipulate its voice, producing squealing sounds, to sound like a distressed mammal to entice its prey. It is thought that as these dragons ventured further out of the forests into the open country, subspecies evolved, notably the Chinese and Japanese dragon.
Mountain Dragon
Also known as the Carpathian dragon or Mountain Devil. As humans encroached further and further into the dragons' natural habitat, they were forced into the more remote and inhospitable regions of the world, such as the deserts and other barren places of the planet. One species eventually made its home in the mountains of Europe. Thus the dragon of medieval legend has been dubbed the mountain dragon, due to its habitat, although the species was not restricted to the mountains and lived in a wide range of habitats until the advance of humans on those lands.The mountain dragon, like all other dragon species after the K/T Event possessed six limbs. The mountain dragon's shorter body is even more specially adapted for flight, a long spine being a disadvantage. The tail grew as long as the body, and ending in an arrow-shaped tip could be used as a formidable weapon.