Tech - News
Why Were
T-Rex's Arms So Short? Researchers Have A New Idea
By RAHUL SRINIVAS
Even though previous studies have revealed that the Tyrannosaurus Rex’s arms could have bench pressed 400 pounds, they were still too short to be used as a weapon. According to some of the earlier theories, T.rex's arms served as pectoral claspers that helped male T.rex hold females in place during copulation or as a potential tool that was used for attracting mates.
Studies and fossil evidence show that the T.rex showed the behavior of a predator as well as a scavenger, with some studies also claiming that the species could have been pack hunters. Per noted paleontologist Kevin Padian's recent study — which, he admits, will be hard to substantiate — the short length of the T.rex's arms was an evolutionary change to prevent accidental or intentional amputation during a feeding frenzy.
T.rex's short arms, thus, helped the animal escape grievous injuries which could lead to infection, hemorrhaging, shock, and eventual death. T.rex's predecessors had notably longer and functional mobile arms, signifying that the gradual shortening of arms was an evolutionary trend that also affected Theropods like the Carcharodontosaurus and
the Carnotaurus.