I think that's true of most people outside of paleontology. I know I really learned of it when I read the tie-in book as I've never seen the series itself, but it was dmfalk who encouraged continuing to draw them.
I think that's true of most people outside of paleontology. I know I really learned of it when I re
Actually, now that I think about it, I do believe I had seen/heard of the leptictidium several years before on another BBC show called, "Lost Worlds, Forgotten Lives" (I believe that was the name of the show.). In it, David Attenborough was talking to a German paleontologist and he was working with a fossil with a VERY long tail. He said that it was believed (at that time) that the creature he was studying hopped. This, of course, was later disproven before the "Walking with Prehistoric Beasts" came out.
Actually, now that I think about it, I do believe I had seen/heard of the leptictidium several years
From what I understand, they're still unclear on whether Leptictidium hopped or ran. There were certain aspects of their leg and foot bones that suggested they could hop, but other aspects hinted that they couldn't. With very few modern bipedal mammals to compare locomotion styles to, it's hard to say. Pity we can't just time travel or clone some to find out. For that matter, would they make decent pets? :/
From what I understand, they're still unclear on whether Leptictidium hopped or ran. There were ce
Well, I Googled "leptictidium" and, according to the website Prehistoric Wildlife, they were about the size of a dachshund (3 ft. long and 8 inches high). So, I'd guess they might make a decent pet. I know. They're wild animals and wild animals don't make good pets but, people have made pets out of foxes, squirrels, sugar gliders, etc. So, who knows.
As for hopping vs. running, I would guess that would all depend on the design of their hips and pelvis. But, I'm not a scientist nor a paleontologist so I could just be talking through my hat.
Well, I Googled "leptictidium" and, according to the website Prehistoric Wildlife, they were about t
Granted, we'd need a breeding program to domesticate them, but at this point, they wouldn't be able to exist without our intervention anyway. And you're also right in that people have made pets of or at least, gained the friendship of all sorts of wild animals, even the ones we wouldn't think wouldn't go for that sort of thing. Of course, being a pet doesn't mean it's domesticated.
The design of the hips and pelvis would be involved, but the anatomy of the legs and feet would be more important as they take most of the stresses of locomotion. Tendon and ligament attachments to the bones would be different. The bone structures to take the stresses would be different for each one. Of course, I'm not familiar enough with the anatomy involved to get more detailed than that while still understanding what I'm talking about.
Granted, we'd need a breeding program to domesticate them, but at this point, they wouldn't be able
