Another day, another T. rex specimen aiming for the title of "largest specimen" for the species. Luckily for us, there are photos of this specimen with a SCALE BAR! Hopefully, someone can do that for "E.D. Cope" sometime soon...
The specimen in question is nicknamed "Goliath." This specimen seems to have some positive hype surrounding it, with consistent measurements for the femur showing that it was longer and thicker than other recorded T. rex femora. My friend "Luke" showed me a video short on Instagram showing the femur with a scale bar in it, but I found another video on YouTube showing a better view. Let's see how big "Goliath" truly 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
Measurements:
Pic of the femur from 7 Days of Science on YouTube:
Right (straight): 186.5 cm.
Left (Femur head): 190 cm.
Left to right (femoral head to bottom right condyle): 199 cm (at best).
*5/1/25:
Right: 188 cm.
Left: 191 cm.
Left to right: 201.5 cm (at best).
So far, very small differences between the measurements. The second measurements (from 5/1/25) were conducted with a better view of the scale bar in the second pic, so for right now that's the best set of measurements.
T. rex specimen "Sue":
Femur length: 143 cm (femoral head to right condyle).
Body length: 13.6 cm.
143 - 201.5 = 58.5.
58.5/143*100 = 40.9% increase.
13.6 m + 40.9% = 63 feet (19.2 meters).
T. rex specimen "Scotty":
Femur Length: 148.5 cm (femoral head to left condyle).
Body length: 46 feet (14.1 meters).
148.5 - 201.5 = 53.
53/148.5*100 = 35.7% increase.
14.1 m + 35.7% = 63 feet (19.1 meters).
So... I was very skeptical about "Goliath" being... well, a Goliath, but so far it seems to be that way. I'll probably remeasure the bone again in the future, or wait for a description of the specimen to come out, to see if my previous measurements hold water still. Based on the measurements I have now, this is the largest specimen of T. rex that's not based on a pedal phalanx. I should also mention that the femur isn't entirely complete. Some of the proximal, and distal, areas of the bone were "damaged during transport," according to Vividen: Paleontology Evolved on YouTube. So in total, the femur would've been longer... Just think about that for a second... The estimate that I'm going with is 63 feet (19.1 meters).
"My bad, 'Goliath.' I was not familiar with your game," (paraphrased from Shaquille O'Neal).
Links:
7 Days of Science on "Goliath":
https://youtu.be/5v9DjcXzJdk?si=hBmM0NZpuHOsMJsd
Vividen: Paleontology Evolved on "Goliath":