T.Rex's puny arms were not useless at all; they served an unexpected and brutal purpose
T. Rex has been one of the most frightening creatures to have ever walked on land. As much as the creature itself, one of the most popularly discussed aspects is also the beast's puny arms, making human beings wonder what a beast so massive in size did with tiny hands!
There are tons of memes, cartoons, and jokes about a giant predator that supposedly couldn't even scratch its own nose!
Recently, researchers found a surprising use, and it seems those tiny arms weren't useless at all!
T. Rex's tiny arms were a secret weapon used by the beast
Tyrannosaurus rex is famously known for its massive size and bite force, as an animal that could weigh around six tons and rip off hundreds of pounds of flesh in a single chomp. Its arms, by contrast, have always seemed like an afterthought.
But paleontologist Steven Stanley of the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa argues that's a mistake. According to History.com, Stanley believes the roughly three-foot-long limbs were tipped with curved talons, actually built for close-range slashing rather than grasping.
Presenting his findings at the Geological Society of America's annual meeting in October 2017, Stanley explained that the short length of the arms wasn't a limitation, taking into consideration how enormous the T. rex's head already was; longer arms would have simply gotten in the way.
There are tons of memes, cartoons, and jokes about a giant predator that supposedly couldn't even scratch its own nose!
Recently, researchers found a surprising use, and it seems those tiny arms weren't useless at all!
Tyrannosaurus rex is famously known for its massive size and bite force, as an animal that could weigh around six tons and rip off hundreds of pounds of flesh in a single chomp. Its arms, by contrast, have always seemed like an afterthought.
But paleontologist Steven Stanley of the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa argues that's a mistake. According to History.com, Stanley believes the roughly three-foot-long limbs were tipped with curved talons, actually built for close-range slashing rather than grasping.
Presenting his findings at the Geological Society of America's annual meeting in October 2017, Stanley explained that the short length of the arms wasn't a limitation, taking into consideration how enormous the T. rex's head already was; longer arms would have simply gotten in the way.
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