Sunday, June 19, 2011

Odontogriphus.

Some scientists believe that this weird shelled creature called Odontogriphus was a type of creature called a halwaxiid. It had vicious fangs, which were probably for scraping algae off rocks, and may have been something called a radula. A radula is sort of like a snail mouth. Odontogriphus's shell had wrinkles on top of it. Although the shell was hard, it could be bent, just like your fingernail. 




Odontogriphus could live in all layers of the ocean because it could swim like an eel on its side, or use its carpet-like foot, which didn't cover the whole underside of its body, to move along on rocks. It had an oval of short hair-like things dangling from the edges, which were probably gills. 


Odontogriphus's name means "toothed riddle," which comes from its vicious fangs and that so little is known about it. It had eye-like saliva glands that could easily be mistaken for eyes, which were probably visible from the underside. 

13 comments:

  1. Would halwaxiid mean some similarity to wiwaxia? Or is it something totally different?

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  2. ... make sure to wish your dad a Happy Father's Day, by the way, ABC.

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  3. @William A halwaxiid is a cross between a halkieriid, like Halkieria, and a wiwaxid, like Wiwaxia. Some scientists don't agree with the idea of this group.

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  4. @FlavorDav I really love the joke about Helicaprion eating its own head! And I doubt about the comment that you really look like Odontogriphus!

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  5. ... "carpet-like foot," "an oval of short hair-like things dangling from the edges," "vicious fangs," "saliva glands that could easily be mistaken for eyes, which were probably visible from the underside" ...

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  6. I like your blog. PZ Myers sent me over. Here's a movie for you with lots of pre and post-dinosaur animals in it:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zqsu2AhuXxA

    (If you would review it it would get alot more views. -Ken)

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  7. Thanks! It's a really cool movie! My favorite part was the part with the Cambrian Period.

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  8. Did you view the original ending? (I wrote the subtitles) They're actually in the Silurian, not the Precambrian. I was seven when I first saw this movie. -Ken

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  9. We didn't know there were subtitles, we watched it in the original language. Had to guess which era they were in based on the surroundings.

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  10. I saw Journey to the Beginning of Time theatrically in the 70s! Here's the US release:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bjRVQvgMlA

    "Controversially, the American distributors filmed a new beginning and ending." Both versions now posted @ ...

    http://www.facebook.com/FlavorDav/

    Thanks!

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  11. When I was seven I wrote a blog just like Art does, only my Dad typed it. (In cursive with a pen) And drew all the images, one of which was a turtle, (or tortoise). If you watch the subtitled version of "Journey" you'll see I stuck in a little homage to Dad. -Ken D.

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