Thread: Dragons

Please don't think I'm crazy.... Oh wait, I am.

So it is thought that birds may have evolved from reptiles. The main differences is that they have a four chambered heart, are endotherms, and have feathers and wings. They have some other adaptations like beaks and hollowed bones etc.

The main reason, that I have heard, that dragons would not exist is that they are too heavy to fly.

Then I came across another idea. What if dragons (giant flying reptile-birds) could somehow heat up the air inside of them, makeing them lighter. I mean they can exhale fire, right. Also, their size may have been exaggerated a little.

Anyways, is there any organism in the world that can heat up air inside of them for the purpose of becoming lighter? If not, is there anyway that this could be done?

One more thing. How small would a dragon have to be to fly without the internal heated air?

Have at it you Biology experts.

Originally Posted by DaBOB

Please don't think I'm crazy.... Oh wait, I am.

I think that dragons existed. However, I do not think that they could necessarily fly. Dragon was the name given to dinosaur bones found by our semi recent ancestors. The pondered the animals that died and left such bones, and fantasized the dragon. In Chinese, for example, the word dinosaur is based on the word for dragon.

Interesting.

Originally Posted by Hermes

I do not think that they could necessarily fly. Dragon was the name given to dinosaur bones found by our semi recent ancestors. The pondered the animals that died and left such bones, and fantasized the dragon.

If I may ask; is this your idea or is there evidence of this (or both)?

Were any of these fossils found with wings?

Originally Posted by DaBOB

If I may ask; is this your idea or is there evidence of this (or both)?

It is not my idea, and there is plenty of evidence of this.

Were any of these fossils found with wings?

I assume so.

mad madidy mad
dragons as flying reptiles that spits fire is impossible. but there is some reptile species called dragons, but they are not like those fairy tales
to heat up air to get lighter is dangerous for a animal. but they can create lighter gases to gain lift power. and spitting fire would result in their enzym,e activity in certain areas go wild wich would causes permenent damage.

I think a lot of dragons in Chinese myth actually didn't have wings.

Originally Posted by Zelos

mad madidy mad

Originally Posted by Zelos

to heat up air to get lighter is dangerous for a animal. but they can create lighter gases to gain lift power. and spitting fire would result in their enzym,e activity in certain areas go wild wich would causes permenent damage.

Humans have digestive enzymes that can eat away most of our body if it weren't for proper protection. Is it impossible to develop some sort of biological heat resistance?

Originally Posted by Neutrino

I think a lot of dragons in Chinese myth actually didn't have wings.

This is true. In myth could these wingless dragons fly? Weren't they very similar to serpents?

I think they were mostly wingless, but could fly anyway. I'm sure there was some variation but I think that describes the majority.

Originally Posted by Zelos

mad madidy mad
dragons as flying reptiles that spits fire is impossible.

Flying reptiles clearly existed. Do you really dispute that? The fire part is something that you added. No one on this thread did so first.

hmm, the heat resistance wouldn't be needed. The dragons mouth didn't even have to get hot at all. All they need is a burning fluid or gas to spit out at a high enough speed that no flames even come near their mouth.

Most fish use pressurised air in their body to maintain altitude in the water. Snakes use the sun to heat them up, and birds use heat to fly as well. Still, there are no hot air balloon animals. Still some plants use hydrogen as a lift in the water. And probably some in the jungle to gain lift as well... Maybe to disperse seeds.

Awesome!!!

Yes from what I hear from my dragon expert is that dragons have glands in their mouth that release these chemicals that ignite when mixed.

Originally Posted by DaBOB

One more thing. How small would a dragon have to be to fly without the internal heated air?

The largest bird in the world that is able to fly is the Kori bustard, which weighs about 40 lbs. It doesn't fly much, but it is able to. Seems like a 40 lb. dragon would be pretty small. So yeah, thought i'd add that.

Originally Posted by Chemboy

The largest bird in the world that is able to fly is the Kori bustard, which weighs about 40 lbs. It doesn't fly much, but it is able to. Seems like a 40 lb. dragon would be pretty small. So yeah, thought i'd add that.

Interesting. I looked at some pictures and this bird, while it is big, doesn't look like a skilled flier. What I mean is, I think if you had an eagle of this size it would fly better. Do you think it is possible that with the right body structure a animal could be heavier and still fly?

i see what you're saying. maybe if the wings were large and designed for gliding, it could stay airborne for awhile, once it got up in the air...