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Book Reviews: Raptor Pack and T. rex: Hunter or Scavenger?


© Beverly Eschberger

Random House recently published two new books about dinosaurs in its Step Into Reading Books series. Raptor Pack by Dr. Robert T. Bakker and T. rex: Hunter or Scavenger? by Dr. Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. are both illustrated by Michael Skrepnick.

Raptor Pack is a look at the paleobiology of a group of predatory dinosaurs known commonly as "raptors" as envisioned by Dr. Robert T. Bakker. Bakker examines the raptors Deinonychus, Velociraptor, and "Wyoming-raptor". Bakker begins Raptor Pack with a scenario of a group of feather-covered raptors that attack a mixed herd of brachiosaurs, ankylosaurs, and tenontosaurs and are able to bring down a limping tenontosaur using teamwork. After their parents call them to join in the feeding, a group of raptor chicks fill their stomachs, then climb into the branches of a tree to cool off and digest their meals in safety. A little before dawn, an acrocanthosaur wakes up the chicks as he prowls around their tree; the little raptors upchuck bone fragments onto the larger predator, and he eventually leaves in frustration.

In the following chapters, Bakker presents the paleontological evidence for why he believes that this scenario is feasible. Could a relatively small predator really bring down much larger prey? Could raptors climb trees? Did raptors hunt in groups and take care of their young? Did they upchuck bone and other indigestible animal parts the way that many extant (still living) predatory birds do? Bakker discusses why he believes they did.

Raptor Pack is fairly well-written, although I found Bakker's constant referral to herbivorous dinosaurs as "veggie-saurs" overly cute. Children who are reading at the level that this book is geared toward will certainly understand the meanings of herbivore and carnivore. Although I found Bakker's comparison of finding dinosaur teeth to finding bullets at a crime scene helpful, he then continues to write about finding "dinosaur bullets" at dig sites. I felt this could be confusing to young readers, as well as overly cute.

Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. begins T. rex: Hunter or Scavenger? with two alternate scenarios. In the first scenario, a Tyrannosaurus rex smells the rotting carcass of a duck-billed Anatotitan dinosaur. While the T. rex is feeding on the Anatotitan carcass, a few dromaeosaurs wait nearby for it to finish, until the T. rex is scared away by a larger T. rex who is also looking for a free meal. In the second scenario, the hungry T. rex encounters a herd of live Anatotitan which he chases, and is able to catch and kill one.

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