Tuesday, October 30, 2018

How Big Was Giganotosaurus Specimen MUCPv-95?

MUCPv-95 (from Calvo and Coria, 1998):
The second specimen of Giganotosaurus to have been discovered. Since the paper describing the specimen was published, MUCPv-95 has been stated to have been 8% longer than MUCPv-CH 1, the holotype of Giganotosaurus (Calvo and Coria, 1998) (Mazzetta et al., 2004). MUCPv-Ch 1 is cited as being 12.2 meters, while MUCPv-95 is 13.2 meters long. However, I want to see just how big it really is.

The Percentage Increase/Decrease Method:
1. Take new number and subtract it from original number.
2. Take that number and divide it by the original number and multiply by 100.
3. That number will by your percentage increase or decrease if it's negative.

Ex.: "Stan's" Femur is 130 and has a body length of 12.2 meters. "Wyrex" has a femur length of 132.7 cm.

132.7 - 130 = 2.7.
2.7 divided by (represented by "/") and multiplied by (represented by "*") equals 2.1.
(2.7/130*100 = 2.1)
2.1 is your percentage increase, or 2.1% increase.
12.2 m + 2.1% = 12.5 meters for "Wyrex."

Links:
Percentage Increase/Decrease Method Links:
"Percentage Change - Percentage Increase and Decrease." SkillsYouNeed:
https://www.skillsyouneed.com/num/percent-change.html
"Relative Increase." percentage.calculators.ro:
https://percentages.calculators.ro/15-percentage-increase-from-original-number-to-new-value.php

1. First, I need to see how big MUCPv-Ch 1 really is:

MUCPv-Ch 1 (Holotype):
Update (3/15/19): I got 128.0 cm for its femur (With femur head). (Measured in Calvo, 1999, pg. 29) (Scale bar is 10 cm):
Update (9/7/19): Length (Not with femur head): 125 cm. (Measured in Calvo, 1999, pg. 29)

Update (7/11/20): Femur is in Cuesta et al., (2018) (Figure 19, "D," Posterior view) (Scale bar is 10 cm):
Length: 132.5 cm (at best).

Note: Benson et al., (2014) gave 132 cm for the femur and 99 cm for the tibia.

MUCPv-Ch 1's Dentary (Novas et al., 2013, "C"):
Length: 56 cm. (My measurement from Novas et al., 2013, "C")

Update (9/5/19): For now, I'll measure MUCPv-CH 1's femur against T.rex specimen "Stan's":

"Stan":
Femur: 130 cm.
Skull: 147 cm.
Body: 12.2 meters.

Body:
130 - 132.5 = 2.5.
2.5/130*100 = 1.9% increase.
12.2 m + 1.9% = 12.4 meters. (Coria and Currie, 2002, gave 12.0 meters for MUCPv-Ch 1, but Coria and Salgado (1995) gave a length of 12.5 meters.)

Skull:
147 + 1.9% = 149.8 cm.

MUCPv-CH 1's Total Length: 41 feet (12.4 meters).
Skull: 149.8 cm. (My estimation)
Dentary: 56 cm. (Measured in Novas et al., 2013)
Femur: 132.5 cm. (Measured on 7/11/20 in Cuesta et al., 2018)

Links:
Dentary:
Novas et al., (2013):
https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Selected-skull-elements-of-Giganotosaurus-carolinii-MMCH-Pv-1-holotype-A-Left_fig6_259045022
Femur:
Cuesta et al., (2018) (Figure 19):
https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/ZbyGKEjskApcGBWkrYkn/full
Calvo (1999) (pg. 29):
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284053211_Dinosaurs_and_other_vertebrates_of_the_Lake_Ezequiel_Ramos_Mexia_Area_Neuquen-Patagonia_Argentina
Benson et al., (2014):
https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.1001853
Supplementary Data:
https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article/file?type=supplementary&id=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pbio.1001853.s011
12.0 Meters:
Coria and Currie (2002):
https://www.jstor.org/stable/4524279?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
Link 2:
https://eurekamag.com/pdf/011/011480416.pdf
Original Paper:
Coria and Salgado (1995):
https://vdocuments.mx/a-new-giant-carnivorous-dinosaur-from-the-cretaceous-of-patagonia.html

2. Now we can do MUCPv-95:
I got 56 cm for it. This would make it the same size as MUCPv-CH 1.

Edit (3/6/19): MUCPv-95's Dentary (Brusatte et al., 2012, "C"):
Length: 59 cm. (I got it twice at best)

MUCPv-Ch 1:
Dentary: 56 cm.
Body: 12.4 meters.

Body:
59 - 56 = 3.
3/56*100 = 5.4% increase.
12.4 m + 5.4% = 13.1 meters.

Skull:
149.8 + 5.4% = 157.9 cm.

MUCPv-95's Total Length: 43 feet (13.1 meters).
Dentary: 59 cm.
Skull: 157.9 cm. (My estimation).

Links:
Length:
Brusatte et al., (2012):
https://bioone.org/journals/Acta-Palaeontologica-Polonica/volume-57/issue-1/app.2010.0125/A-Reassessment-of-iKelmayisaurus-petrolicus-i-a-Large-Theropod-Dinosaur/10.4202/app.2010.0125.full
2nd Link:
https://www.app.pan.pl/archive/published/app57/app20100125.pdf
3rd Link:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/260714702_A_Reassessment_of_Kelmayisaurus_petrolicus_a_Large_Theropod_Dinosaur_from_the_Early_Cretaceous_of_China
Calvo and Coria (1998):
http://www.arca.museus.ul.pt/ArcaSite/obj/gaia/MNHNL-0000776-MG-DOC-web.PDF

Giganotosaurus' Total Length: 41-43 feet Feet (12.4-13.1 meters).