OLogy Cards > Drinker nisti

The Drinker Was Not Alone
Drinker was found along with the fossils of many other small animals. Strangely enough, the skeleton of a large sauropod acted like a dam in the stream or river where the Drinker lay dead. Small dead animals that washed downstream got trapped against the huge carcass. The body of the dead sauropod concentrated the bodies of the small animals that became fossilized with it.

Fossil Feud
Edward Drinker Cope (right) and Othniel Charles Marsh, paleontologists from the 1800s, started out as friends. Then one day, Cope made a huge mistake while restoring a fossil reptile. He put the head on the wrong end of the body! Cope was humiliated when Marsh pointed out this goof in public. So much for the friendship! For the rest of their lives, these two scientists fought bitterly. They stole fossils from each other's sites, then raced to publish their findings. This competition helped fuel many scientific discoveries. Although Cope and Marsh died enemies, the two plant-eating dinosaurs named in their honor (Drinker and Othnielia) are probably closely related.