Liopleurodon King of the Carnivores Read online

  It was Luke’s turn, and he was enjoying his friend’s work. Then, near the end of the article, trouble began brewing in Luke’s mind. The article read:

  About four million years ago, in the late Pliocene, lived the largest predatory fish of all time. Known as Megalodon, this fifty-foot-long, fifty ton shark would quite literally bite whales in half. With a bite force of about twenty tons, the Megalodon was easily the deadliest predator of all time.

  “Ben, I think you made a mistake here,” Luke said.

  Ben, who was laughing at a joke that Will had just made, asked, “I’m sorry, what?”

  “Here,” Luke said, as he pointed to the paragraph, “You made a mistake. You said that Megalodon was the greatest predator of all time.”

  Ben nodded, “That’s right, it was.”

  “What about Liopleurodon?” Luke asked.

  “The pliosaur from the late Jurassic? What about it?” Ben asked.

  “Well, it was over three times heavier than Megalodon, and it was an all-around fiercer predator.”

  “Three times heavier? What are you talking about? Liopleurodon was only about thirty tons,” Ben said, growing frustrated.

  Annoyed, Luke persistently said, “No, Liopleurodon was one hundred and fifty tons.”

  “Where did you get that idea?” Ben snapped.

  “I have an eight-inch-long Liopleurodon tooth fossil that is missing its root. If it still had the root it would be twelve inches. A tooth of that size has to belong to an eighty-foot-long predator.”

  “Isn’t your tooth a replica?”

  Luke then remembered when he was five, when he became fascinated with Liopleurodon. His mother bought him a replica Liopleurodon tooth for his birthday present. It has always been his prized possession.

  “Yeah, but it is an exact copy of a tooth from a real animal in the Museum of Natural History in Manhattan,” Luke explained. “Trust me Ben, I study marine reptiles. I know what I’m talking about.”

  Ben could only shake his head. “You have to be kidding. If you aren’t, then you are an embarrassment to scientists everywhere.”

  “That’s the way that you talk to a friend when you disagree with him?” Luke was stunned.

  Ben, who always had little patience for people who he thought were wrong, just continued to shake his head. Whenever he got in one of his frequent arguments with his father, it wouldn’t be long before Ben started shouting. “I don’t believe this. I have been working with a man for years who believes a crack pot theory with absolutely no evidence.” Ben rose and shouted, “You are not a real scientist, Luke. You have no theories, just idiotic opinions. You are just a fake who can’t accept reality for what it really is!” He slammed the door as he left the apartment.

  Luke was in shock. He had no idea Ben was going to get angry so quickly.

  After a few moments, Will broke the silence: “Who wants the last slice of pizza?”

  The group did not last long after that.

  …

  “Luke, are you okay?” Will asks, taking Luke out of his stroll down memory lane.

  “What, oh, yeah, I’m fine. I was just… thinking.”

  “About Ben? I told you not to talk to him.”

  “Will, tell me the truth. Am I wrong? About Liopleurodon, I mean.”

  “Well, it’s hard to say. I mean, we haven’t actually found an eighty-foot-long Liopleurodon, but they could have been pink for all we know!”

  “No, I have evidence now. I know that I’m right!” Luke exclaims.

  Everyone begins heading towards the doorway that leads to the stage. “Tell you what, you can tell me your evidence when we get back, and I’ll decide then. I promise that I won’t drink!”

  Luke laughs as he follows his friend out onto the stage.

  Chapter 3

  The Lecture

  The area in front of the stage is completely packed. The chairs are filled with scientists who have come from all around the country to see this speech. The team hasn’t been seen together in five years, and their reunion has been anticipated. The subject is a popular topic among the crowd of paleontologists: were humans responsible for the extinction of the mammoth?

  Seated three seats from the middle in the eighth row is a muscular man of fifty years. Captain Ryan Hawkins is the commander of a Navy ship, and he is the best among the best. Seated next to him are his wife and his son, who is fascinated by dinosaurs. Personally, Ryan would rather be out with his friends having a couple of beers before setting sail again tomorrow.

  It’s my last freaking night before I’m gone for another three months and I have to spend it listening about mammoths. What did I do to deserve this? Ryan thinks to himself.

  The stage has purple curtains, and a brown, wooden floor. Hanging from the ceiling are five large lights, all of which are pointing down toward the center of the stage. Finally, a woman in her mid forties comes out, the lights shining on her. She has very short brown hair, and begins to squint under the bright lights. “Hello, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming.” The woman puts on a smile. “We have a special surprise for you tonight. Here, for the first time in five years, is a group of young paleontologists who shocked the world with some incredible discoveries. Please welcome: Dr. Kelsey Fainter, Dr. Shawn Ryan, Dr. Luke Jones, Dr. Ben Ross, and Dr. Will Harris!”

  In the crowd, Ryan Hawkins thinks, Finally!

  …

  From behind the curtain, Will asks, “Why did she say my name last?” Ben shushes him to be quiet. “I’m just asking.”

  The curtains swings open, and the five scientists walk out onto the stage, the men taking their seats in dark brown folding chairs, while Kelsey walks up and stands behind the podium. Since she specializes in Ice Age mammals, she leads the lecture. The rest of the group is simply there for moral support.

  Seeing how beautiful Kelsey is, Ryan Hawking sits up in his chair. Maybe this night won’t be so boring after all. His wife turns and gives him a deep glare, and he leans back in his seat.

  While the crowd is still applauding, Shawn turns to Luke and says, “This is stupid, Kelsey might study Ice Age mammals, but I study mass extinctions. It should be me up their behind the podium, giving the speech.”

  Luke responds with, “Can’t you just be happy for her?”

  Shawn shrugs as the applause finally stops. “Thank you,” Kelsey says with a huge smile. “Thank you all so much. As you know, I am Dr. Kelsey Fainter, and this is a very exciting night for me. Not only am I giving a speech about what I love, but this is the first time that I have seen many of my friends in years. Of course, I am here to discuss whether the human race is responsible for the extinction of the Wooly Mammoth.” As she begins, she feels as if all of her worries disappear. She completely forgets about the group and the problems that they had those years ago.

  “As many of you know, the mammoths became extinct about ten thousand years ago. It was the end of the Ice Age, and the world began to heat up. The human population began to increase, and people became a threat to all sorts of large animals, even animals as large as the mammoth. But did we kill them off? It has been a question debated for decades. Since humans are the cause of many animal extinctions, it seems likely that we could be responsible. But remember, we did not have nearly as advanced technology back then as we do now, and we couldn’t affect the world on a global scale the way we do today with things like pollution.

  “Although it is possible that humans were a major contributor to the mammoth extinction, I find it extremely unlikely that our ancestors, who lived in caves, were the cause of the annihilation of one of the largest mammals that has ever lived on land. Instead, I believe that the rising temperatures at the end of the Ice Age are responsible. With their large fur coats and three inches of body fat to keep them insulated, the mammoths were simply unable to adapt, and overheated into extinction. Would anyone like to ask any questions?”

  One man holds up his hand and asks his question after Kelsey calls on him: “How many spe
cies of animals became extinct during the Ice Age?”

  The expression on Kelsey’s face obviously expresses confusion. “I’m not absolutely sure, but I think about twenty-five percent of all species were wiped out.” She turns around to face Shawn and asks, “That sounds about right, doesn’t it?”

  Shawn nods and says, “Yeah, twenty to twenty-five of all species were killed off.”

  Kelsey turns back and asks, “Who has the next question?” A man in one of the last rows raises his hand. “Yes, you, way in the back. What is your question?”

  The man stands up and asks as loud as he can: “What carnivores besides early man were around during the end of the Ice Age?”

  Kelsey smiles and says, “Well, there were several different species of cats at the end of the Ice Age. There were saber-tooths like Smilodon, and in North America, a relative of the modern lion roamed. Nicknamed the ‘Cave Lion,’ it was one of the largest cats of all time and probably hunted baby mammoths. Adults, of course, were too large to take down. There was also the Short Faced Bear, which at over twelve feet tall, was the largest species of bear that has ever lived. The Short Faced Bear and the Cave Lion probably competed for food on a regular basis since food was so rare, especially at the end of the Ice Age.

  “And in the water, Orcas were beginning to evolve. Smart, powerful, and having the ability to work well together, the Orca is a very capable animal and a very deadly predator. We are lucky that they are intelligent enough to know that we are not nutritious to them and that they have never deliberately harmed a human being. Another mammalian sea titan during the late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene was a relative of the Sperm Whale. Brygmophyseter, or the ‘Biting Whale,’ was extremely fearsome and one of the first animals to use echolocation. But none of these mammals could compete with the deadliness of the Megalodon. This fifty-foot-long, fifty-ton relative of the great white shark had a bite force of about twenty tons, and was easily the deadliest animal that ever lived.”

  Luke sits up in his seat. His instincts cause him to stand up and say, “Actually Kelsey, I’m not sure if that is true.”

  Kelsey turns around, surprised. “What’s not true?”

  “That Megalodon is the greatest predator in history,” Luke responds.

  Kelsey gives him a look that says; ‘what the hell are you doing?!’

  Luke knows that he has made a mistake, but it is too late to take it back now. Will grabs his friend’s pant leg and whispers, “Dude, sit down now before she gets pissed.”

  Luke ignores his friend and walks up to the podium. “For those of you who don’t know me, I am Dr. Luke Jones. I am a paleontologist who specializes in marine reptiles. I have been spending a great deal of time trying to prove that a predator from the Jurassic known as Liopleurodon is the-”

  Luke can easily hear the groans of Shawn and Will from behind him. Then he hears Ben say, “Unbelievable! You are honestly going to ruin Kelsey’s night over your crap ideas?”

  “I’m just stating my opinion,” Luke responds.

  “Your opinion is wrong! You were wrong then when our group broke apart, and you are wrong now. You’re no scientist, Jones, stop pretending to be. You don’t even have any evidence for your claims!” Ben exclaims.

  “It has been five years since we first had this argument. I happen to have done a little research. First, a couple of years ago, scientists found a sixty-five foot Liopleurodon skeleton in Mexico. This specimen was still just a young adult, and it wasn’t done growing when it died. Second, there have been discoveries of twenty-foot-long ichthyosaurs that have been quite literally been bitten in half. These partially devoured bodies could only have been attacked by a pliosaur of that size, and they have been dated back to the time and place where Liopleurodon lived.

  “Third, there have been dozens of thirty-foot-long Liopleurodon skeletons that show a lack of growth rings in the center of the bone, proving that they were just adolescents, teenagers, if you will. Finally, I happen to own an eight inch Liopleurodon tooth. The only reason that it is that small is that the root is missing, and if it were still there, then the tooth would be twelve inches in length, which could only belong to an eighty-foot-long predator!”

  Ben stands there and asks, “Finished?” Luke nods, feeling triumphant. Ben begins to clap, saying, “Congratulations, once again you have proven nothing at all.” The crowd begins to laugh as Ben starts to explain, “All of your little reasons don’t mean crap until an eighty-foot-long skeleton is discovered. Until then, you can have a million theories, but not a single scientist will believe you. Now, I suggest that you sit down now, before you humiliate Kelsey further.”

  Kelsey! I had completely forgotten about her! He turns to her, and watches as tears roll down her cheek. He has completely destroyed her special night, and knows that she will never forgive him. “I am so sorry,” is all that he says as he returns to his seat.

  As he sits down, Luke hears some of the crowd’s mutterings: “That poor woman!” and “That man is a jerk.”

  Luke sits back in his chair and thinks about what he has just done. He watches as Shawn walks her out. Will leans over to Luke and whispers in his ear, “That’s the way to make her fall in love with you: go all Kanye West on her.”

  Chapter 4

  Arctic

  It has been several hours since the documentary film producer and his team left their camp, which is now several miles behind them. Nathan Noodie has red hair, green eyes, and a boyish look to him that makes him recognizable to any fan. Nathan specializes in making documentaries about large and dangerous animals. He has come to the Arctic to take some footage of polar bears. At over ten feet tall, it is the largest land predator alive today.

  I’ve got to take some video of these bears; it’ll probably be the last documentary before they become extinct because of all of this global warming, Nathan thinks to himself.

  “I see one!” The words disrupt Nathan’s train of thought. He sits up and looks at where the man driving the large snowmobile is pointing. One hundred feet away, there is a female polar bear with her cubs.

  “Stop the snowmobile, we don’t want to disturb them,” Nathan says. When the snowmobile stops, the three men get off. Besides Nathan, there is a cameraman and a driver, who, during shooting, is to remain a lookout.

  Nathan takes the microphone with him and walks about thirty feet closer to the family of vicious omnivores. Nathan pulls his top jacket on a little tighter as a cool breeze of air goes by. Nathan has three jackets on, and is ready for a fourth.

  Now only seventy feet away from the polar bear family, Nathan raises the microphone to his lips and turns back to face the camera. “I am here in the Arctic, only seventy feet away from a family of polar bears. Because global warming is melting the ice caps, these are some of the last polar bears left in existence. But I still don’t want to get too close. Like all bears, mother polar bears are very protective of their young.”

  Nathan turns around for a brief moment to see what the polar bears are doing. The mother is putting her nose in the ice. It may look strange, but she has a good reason to do it: “Apparently I have come across a family of polar bears while they are hunting. It may look weird, but this mother bear is actually looking for seals through the ice. Of course, she can’t actually see the seals, but bears have a sense of smell one hundred times more powerful than our own. They can actually smell seals through three feet of ice. It is no wonder why they have the nickname ‘noses on legs!’”

  The cameraman rolls his eyes as Nathan continues, “I am going to try to get a little closer to the bears.” Nathan slowly tiptoes over the ice about twenty feet, and then stops, the bears still not noticing his presence. Nathan begins whispering to the camera, “I am only fifty feet away from a family of bears. Polar bears can run much faster than a man, and with one swipe of a paw, could knock my head right off my shoulders.”

  Finally, the mother bear realizes that she has an intruder. She gets up on her hind legs and roars as loud
as she can. Nathan can feel vibrations from the deafening sound go though his body. Even though he knows that the first rule of encountering bears is to try and look larger than you are, he does the one thing that you are not supposed to do: run!

  “Ah, shoot, she saw us!” Nathan turns back to his cameraman and shouts, “Go!” The three men begin to run as fast as they can, but the bear is too fast, they cannot outrun it. Nathan decides to begin zigzagging, and the bear has a difficult time keeping up. Finally, after four turns, the bear brakes off its bluff pursuit, knowing that the humans got the message.

  But Nathan and his crew keep running, only stopping when they reach the sea. I didn’t know we were this close to the ocean! Nathan looks back and says, “I think we lost it.”

  The cameraman nods as he puts the camera down. Then, as he looks up again, he noticed something green in a nearby iceberg. “What the heck is that?” he asks.

  Nathan turns to see what he is pointing at. Seeing the green object, he replies, “I don’t know.” The three men begin to walk closer to the green object.

  “Maybe it’s a jewel?” the driver suggests.

  “This far north? I doubt it,” Nathan says. Then, he notices a black slit through the center of the object. “Oh my… it’s an eye.”

  The eye is reptilian, and seems to stare straight at the men. “What? You are honestly telling me that you think this thing is an eye?” the driver asks.

  Nathan nods as he realizes that it is not just an eye, but an entire animal. The first thing that he notices is that there are foot-long teeth, connected to ten-foot-long crocodilian-like jaws. It has four massive flippers, an enormous torso, and finally, a small tail in the back.