Ralph attanasia iii biography examples

Scientists believe they may have uncovered the first known incident of a mammal being eaten by a dinosaur.

Palaeontologists in the UK have analysed fossil remains from around 120 million years ago, showing a small, feathered dinosaur – known as Microraptor – with the foot of an animal inside its ribcage.

The experts said their findings, published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, is “the first record of a dinosaur eating a mammal”.

Dr David Hone, from Queen Mary University of London, who is first author on the study, said: “It’s so rare to find examples of food inside dinosaurs, so every example is really important as it gives direct evidence of what they were eating.

“While this mammal would absolutely not have been a human ancestor, we can look back at some of our ancient relatives being a meal for hungry dinosaurs.

“This study paints a picture of a fascinating moment in time – the first record of a dinosaur eating a mammal – even if it isn’t quite as frightening as anything in Jurassic Park.”

Microraptors lived in the ancient forests of what is now China, somewhere between 125 and 113 million years ago.

While it moved on its two legs, experts believe some species may have been capable of guided flight.

About the size of a crow or a small cat, Microraptors would have been gliding from tree to tree to prey on small animals.

Although the specimen was first described in 2000, the researchers said the previous team had failed to see the remains of another animal inside the dinosaur.

Further analysis suggests the prey was a mammal about the size of a mouse, which likely lived on the ground and was not a good climber.

Previous research has shown other Microraptor specimens with preserved food in their stomachs, such as a bird, a lizard and a fish.

However, the team added that it

The small, feathered dinosaur Microraptor is preserved with the foot of a small mammal inside its ribcage. 

A new study led by Dr David Hone of Queen Mary University of London, published today in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, records the first known incident of a dinosaur having eaten a mammal. (Note: The mammal would not have been a human ancestor).

The fossil is of a small, feathered dinosaur called Microraptor that lived in the ancient forests of what is now China in the Early Cretaceous Period around 120 million years ago. Microraptor was about the size of a crow and had long feathers on its arms and legs and was likely gliding from tree to tree, hunting out small animals to eat. 

Although the specimen was first described in 2000, many years later Professor Hans Larsson of McGill University in Montreal spotted what others had missed – the remains of another animal inside it – the foot of an ancient mammal preserved between the ribs. Together with Dr Hone, and colleagues from Canada, the USA and China, they have now described this additional discovery.

The mammal foot is almost complete and belonged to a very small animal, about the size of a modern mouse. Analysis of the bones suggest that it was one that predominantly lived on the ground and was not a good climber, making it an interesting option for Microraptor that likely spent most of its time in the trees.

Previous studies have revealed other Microraptor specimens containing a bird, a lizard and a fish. So with this new evidence for eating mammals, it is clear that this dinosaur had a diverse diet and was not a specialist on any given option. It is not certain if the dinosaurs in question had directly preyed upon and eaten these animals or found them already d

An international team of researchers has found new evidence of a dinosaur eating a mammal.

The foot of a small mammal about the size of a mouse was found preserved inside the stomach region of a Microraptor zhaoianus, a small feathered dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous period, according to a new study published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. The find is only the second specimen ever discovered that shows some dinosaurs ate mammals.

It’s extremely rare to find conclusive evidence of a dinosaur’s diet because of how difficult it is for a dinosaur’s gut contents to be preserved, says Corwin Sullivan, associate professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, curator of the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum in Wembley, Alta., and co-author of the paper.

“There was always interest in [Microraptor’s] diet because there had been previous specimens that contained remains of different vertebrates inside the rib cage, but we have the first one that contains parts of a mammal,” he notes.

Several factors must align for a dinosaur’s gut contents to be preserved, says Sullivan. First of all, the specimen needs to have a reasonably complete skeleton — a rarity in and of itself, particularly for small, delicate animals like Microraptor.

The dinosaur also must have eaten something recently enough before death that the remains were still in the stomach at the time of burial. And whatever was eaten has to have preservation potential, which depends on the presence of bones or other hard components. Potential dinosaur dietary items like leaf matter or flesh would have decayed in the process of fossilization.

“Those things all have to come together — you need to be lucky enough to find not just an intact individual, but an individual that ate a meal including hard parts within a reasonably short time before its death,” says Sullivan.

The Microraptor was found within Early Cretaceous lak

When Ralph Attanasia isn't designing cakes at the bakery, he spends his free time participating in live-action role-playing, also known as LARP. Attanasia's friends let the secret out in an episode of "Cake Boss" when they came in for a cake consultation with Buddy Valastro (via YouTube). According to his friend, James, Attanasia is a member of Knight Realms, a LARPing community set in a medieval fantasy world. During Knight Realms' events, participants put on costumes and fight each other with latex swords. "He's an awesome character actor. He's played lots of funny characters, like a hunchback, a pirate," James shared in the episode.

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Though Valastro wasted no time poking fun at Attanasia for his nerdy hobby, once Attanasia showed him how to properly shoot a bow and arrow, he ended up having a lot of fun (via TLC). Since 2015, when the episode first aired, Attanasia continues to be an active LARPer, sharing to Twitter in 2020 that he now has his own customized sword.