Probably one of the most successful video game franchises in recent years, Monster Hunter has always been a series that has captured the imagination of many people with its fantastical yet realistic creatures. From the scary Vaal Hazak to the goofy...
The Theropods are without a doubt one of the most diverse and successful clade to have ever evolved. Over their 231.4 million year long existence, they've filled a wide variety of roles in their ecosystems, whether that be as powerful apex predators, flightless sprinters, nocturnal assassins, deep divers, long-distance flyers, or clawed browsers.
With them filling so many ecological niches, it's only natural that the Theropods have had to come up with some incredible and sometimes extreme body plans to take full advantage of their roles. Some of the most notable examples are the tiny hummingbirds and their ridiculously long beaks which allows them to drink the nectar from flowers, or the chimera-like appearance of deinocheirus which made them surprisingly adaptable.
But no matter how crazy or outlandish the designs of these creatures become, there are some things that most members have in common. The three features which most Theropods, both avian and non-avian, possess are hollow bones, four toes, and clawed feet. However, these features aren't always very obvious, and this can occasionally lead to some confusion. This is exactly what happened when people were first trying to classify the Vouvalosaurs, meaning buffalo lizard in Greek.
The thing that initially stumped humans about the identity of the Vouvalosaurs was their odd number of short tightly packed toes with hoof-like claws at the end. This was in steep contrast to the feet of most Theropods who have an even amount of long spaced out digits.
Another thing that confused people was the subfamily's herbivorous diet. In avian Theropods, plant eating is actually very common; however, when it comes to the Neokyngós, the majority are predominantly carnivorous or omnivorous in nature, making the Vouvalosaurs stand out with their preference for plant life over meat.
Now it may seem bizarre for the descendents of a carnivorous species to become herbivores, but this transition isn't as hard as it may seem. A good example would be the Giant pandas. These animals still have digestive tracks which are similar to those of their more carnivorous ancestors, a system that primarily extracts the proteins in their diets, and this is likely what happened to the early Vouvalosaurs as well. Since this subfamily has been around longer than these bamboo-loving bears, their intestinal track has had time to evolve and become perfectly suited for breaking down and absorbing as many nutrients as possible, with the most effective of these belonging to Tsekouroura dasotavros.
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Commonly called Duramboroses, these behemoths are some of Southeast Asia's most iconic animals with the species being found as far as the forests of the Upper Gangetic Plains and all the way to the Manchurian mixed forests. The reason these animals are so successful and widespread is because their main food source, wood, is generally easy to find.
Male Duramboroses typically grow to be 15.2 meters long, and 4 meters tall, while females are slightly smaller, with proportions that are closer to 13.7 and 3 meters in length and height respectively. But of course, having such gargantuan bodies means that these animals require a lot of energy to properly maintain them; however, rotting bark isn't particularly rich in nutrients, but this is where their amazing digestive system comes into play.
