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** There's a type of [[UpToEleven venomous tree!]].
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** There's a type of [[UpToEleven venomous tree!]]. tree!]]
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* DeathWorld: Many of Spec's lifeforms are overly dangerous (ex. there's a species of raptor that likes cutting people's heads off for no reason and penguin-piranhas that are so aggressive they'll even attack the moon) and a lot of animals want to either kill you or ruin your day.
to:
* DeathWorld: Many of Spec's lifeforms are overly dangerous (ex. there's a species of raptor that likes cutting people's heads off for no reason and penguin-piranhas that are so aggressive they'll even attack the moon) and a lot of animals and plants that want to either kill you or ruin your day.day.
** There's a type of [[UpToEleven venomous tree!]].
** There's a type of [[UpToEleven venomous tree!]].
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* NameOfCain: A noasaurid, and fastest predator of Madagascar. It kills and eviscerates its prey entirely with its hands. On an unrelated note it has a symbolic relationship with a spider that protects it from parasites.
to:
* NameOfCain: A noasaurid, and fastest predator of Madagascar. It kills and eviscerates its prey entirely with its hands. On an unrelated note it has a symbolic relationship with a spider that protects it from parasites.parasites.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Lots, examples include the imperial sabre-tyrant, the white ninja, the horned molok, the giant psycho-killer penguin of DEATH!!!, the king kronoshark, and the cockatrice. Among plants there's the Tree of Pain (ironically, animals don't actually feel pain when stung by this tree, they die before that).
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Lots, examples include the imperial sabre-tyrant, the white ninja, the horned molok, the giant psycho-killer penguin of DEATH!!!, the king kronoshark, and the cockatrice. Among plants there's the Tree of Pain (ironically, animals don't actually feel pain when stung by this tree, they die before that).
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* ArtisticLicenseBiology: In the earlier stages of the project it was full of this; there are still quite a few that are being fixed.
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* NameOfCain: A noasaurid, and fastest predator of Madagascar. It kills and eviscerates its prey entirely with its hands.
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* NameOfCain: A noasaurid, and fastest predator of Madagascar. It kills and eviscerates its prey entirely with its hands. On an unrelated note it has a symbolic relationship with a spider that protects it from parasites.
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* NameOfCain: A noasaurid, and fastest predator of Madagascar. It kills and eviscerates its prey entirely with its hands.
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fixed
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** Very few of Spec's maniraptorans have the fully formed wings that real deinonychosaurs would have had.
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** Very few of Spec's maniraptorans have the fully formed wings that real deinonychosaurs maniraptorans would have had.
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* BigBadassBirdOfPrey: Avisaurids. Dromaeosaurids and oviraptorosaurs could arguably count, too, though they're not avialians.
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* BigBadassBirdOfPrey: Avisaurids.Avisaurids and the rocs. Dromaeosaurids and oviraptorosaurs could arguably count, too, though they're not avialians.
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* FeatheredFiend: Any of the predatory or aggressive coelurosaurs, particularly the penguins of death!!!, the cityfinches and the nerds-of-paradise, also known as the chunderbird.
to:
* FeatheredFiend: Any of the predatory or aggressive coelurosaurs, particularly the penguins of death!!!, the cityfinches and the nerds-of-paradise, also nerds-of-paradise (also known as the chunderbird.chunderbird).
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* NeverSmileAtACrocodile: Crocodilians are the top predators of Madagascar and parallel species grow on average larger than on our world, while there are quite a few other types such as...
** The cuttercrocs; basically identical to "normal" crocodilans except that they have slicing teeth that leave much bloodier wounds.
** The crunchercrocs: hyenas if they were crocodilans, the carcass of a full-grown titanosaur will not exist after 3 days when a group of crunchcrocs find it.
** The croctiger and the croclion, huge, saber-toothed top predators of Madagascar.
** The cuttercrocs; basically identical to "normal" crocodilans except that they have slicing teeth that leave much bloodier wounds.
** The crunchercrocs: hyenas if they were crocodilans, the carcass of a full-grown titanosaur will not exist after 3 days when a group of crunchcrocs find it.
** The croctiger and the croclion, huge, saber-toothed top predators of Madagascar.
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* ThreateningShark: The [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast king kronoshark]].
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* EverthingsBetterWithMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverthingsBetterWithMonkeys: EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverthingIsBetterWithMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverthingIsBetterWithMonkeys: EverthingsBetterWithMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverthingIsBetterWIthMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverthingIsBetterWIthMonkeys: EverthingIsBetterWithMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverthingIsBetterWIthMonkeys: You got your pretty normal lorises, galagos, and lemurs; and... you got your pokemuses, chillas, and tree foxes.
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* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: Salmonites. Also the balaenateuths.
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* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: Salmonites. [[note]]although in the latest revision they have been removed because of the high improbability of freshwater cephalopods[[/note]] Also the balaenateuths.
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* TurtlePower: Including a lineage of turtles with breathing organs growing out of their butts.
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* TurtlePower: Including a lineage of turtles with breathing organs growing out of their butts.butts and some colossal club-tailed ones.
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made it broader
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** Very few of Spec's deinonychosaurs have the fully formed wings that real deinonychosaurs would have had.
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** Very few of Spec's deinonychosaurs maniraptorans have the fully formed wings that real deinonychosaurs would have had.
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The best thing you can do is just [[http://www.specworld-project.com/ start reading]].
to:
The best thing you can do is just [[http://www.specworld-project.com/ start reading]].
reading]].[[note]]The project has been jumping around for the better part of a decade, to put it mildly. You may see the original incarnation [[http://web.archive.org/liveweb/http://web.archive.org/web/20080731013714im_/http://www.bowdoin.edu/~dbensen/Spec/ here]], but use it only for nostalgic purposes, as a lot has changed[[/note]]
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** ''Rahonavis'' was thought to have been a relative of ''Archeaopteryx'' and as thus the descendant group the rahonavids were classed as such. Turns out ''Rahonavis'' is a type of unenlagiinae dromaeosaurid. Oops.
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** ''Rahonavis'' was thought to have been a relative of ''Archeaopteryx'' and as thus the descendant group the rahonavids were classed as such. Turns out ''Rahonavis'' is a type of unenlagiinae dromaeosaurid. Oops. Though considering new finds (namely, a recent paper that placed ''Rahonavis'' closer to true birds than to other deinonychosaurs), this may not be far off.
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Slightly tweaked.
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** Along with the discovery crocodilians may have been out-competing theropods at least regionally in the Maastrichtian. At any rate, large, carnivorous crocodyllians were very common in the Cretaceous, and Spec originally had too few of those (though ultimately averted in the Yahoo group, where several terrestrial crocodyllian concepts do exist).
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Bit of a stretch, and if it happened it was probably regional.
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** Along with the discovery crocodilians may have been out-competing theropods at the end of the Cretaceous.
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** Semi-justified that similar niches would probably be held by animals similar in appearance (i.e. the ciraf is an African high-browser like the giraffe- but the coloration is very unoriginal).
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** Semi-justified that similar niches would probably be held by animals similar in appearance (i.e. the ciraf is an African high-browser like the giraffe- giraffe - but the coloration is very unoriginal).unoriginal and it has a close relative that is very similar to the okapi).
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** ''Rahonavis'' was thought to have been a relative of ''Archeaopteryx'' and as thus the descendant group the rahonavids were classed as such. Turns out ''Rahonavis'' is a type of unenlagiinae dromaeosaurid. Oops.
** It turns out the digestive systems of monotremes are too simple to digest meat (or plants) without major changes. Guess what most of all Spec's platypuses eat?
** It turns out that Cretaceous mosasaurs already had tail flukes (and ventured into freshwater).
** Very few of Spec's deinonychosaurs have the fully formed wings that real deinonychosaurs would have had.
** The most crushing one to this project is probably the discovery that ornithischians could have plumage. Hehehehe... OhCrap.
** Along with the discovery crocodilians may have been out-competing theropods at the end of the Cretaceous.
** It turns out the digestive systems of monotremes are too simple to digest meat (or plants) without major changes. Guess what most of all Spec's platypuses eat?
** It turns out that Cretaceous mosasaurs already had tail flukes (and ventured into freshwater).
** Very few of Spec's deinonychosaurs have the fully formed wings that real deinonychosaurs would have had.
** The most crushing one to this project is probably the discovery that ornithischians could have plumage. Hehehehe... OhCrap.
** Along with the discovery crocodilians may have been out-competing theropods at the end of the Cretaceous.
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* DeathWorld: Many of Spec's lifeforms are overly dangerous (ex. there's a species of raptor that likes cutting people's heads off for no reason) and a lot of animals that want to either kill you or ruin your day.
to:
* DeathWorld: Many of Spec's lifeforms are overly dangerous (ex. there's a species of raptor that likes cutting people's heads off for no reason) reason and penguin-piranhas that are so aggressive they'll even attack the moon) and a lot of animals that want to either kill you or ruin your day.
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* EverythingsBetterWithPlatypi: There are some platypi and platypus cousins, including big ones that are a danger to human feet.
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* EverythingsBetterWithPlatypi: There are some platypi and platypus cousins, including big ones that are a danger to human feet.feet and gigantic whale-like animals.
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** Semi-justified that similar niches would probably be held by animals similar in appearance (i.e. the ciraf is an African high-browser like the giraffe- but the coloration is very unoriginal).
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Additional Information
* DeathWorld: Many of Spec's lifeforms are overly dangerous (ex. there's a species of raptor that likes cutting people's heads off for no reason) and a lot of animals that want to either kill you or ruin your day.
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* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: Salmonites.
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* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: Salmonites. Also the balaenateuths.
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* FeatheredFiend: Any of the predatory or aggressive coelurosaurs, particularly the penguins of death!!! and the cityfinches.
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* FeatheredFiend: Any of the predatory or aggressive coelurosaurs, particularly the penguins of death!!! death!!!, the cityfinches and the cityfinches.nerds-of-paradise, also known as the chunderbird.
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Link is fixed and back up, everything\'s iced milk and raspberries.
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Best thing you can do is just wait... [[spoiler: Due to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]]
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** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved. [[spoiler: Due to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]]
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** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved. [[spoiler: Due [[http://www.specworld-project.com to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]] here]]
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** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved, and the URL in the page intro is no longer valid. [[[[spoiler: Due to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]] This]] is the new homepage, but there are still many articles/links that have to be transplanted and/or fixed up before the site is updated.
to:
** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved, and the URL in the page intro is no longer valid. [[[[spoiler: moved. [[spoiler: Due to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]] This]] is the new homepage, but there are still many articles/links that have to be transplanted and/or fixed up before the site is updated.
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** This is also the reason why you won't find anything even remotely similar to a sapient creature on Spec; it's a silent protest against [[HumanAliens Dinosauroids]] (to the point where the group of dinosaurs to whom Dale Russel's absurdly humanlike Dinosauroid belonged is almost extinct!)
to:
** This is also the reason why you won't find anything even remotely similar to a sapient creature on Spec; it's a silent protest against [[HumanAliens [[HumanoidAliens Dinosauroids]] (to the point where the group of dinosaurs to whom Dale Russel's absurdly humanlike Dinosauroid belonged is almost extinct!)
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** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved, and the URL in the page intro is no longer valid. [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page This]] is the new homepage, but there are still many articles/links that have to be transplanted and/or fixed up before the site is updated.
to:
** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved, and the URL in the page intro is no longer valid. [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page [[[[spoiler: Due to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]] This]] is the new homepage, but there are still many articles/links that have to be transplanted and/or fixed up before the site is updated.
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Found the spoiler tag.
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Best thing you can do is just [[start reading]]*.
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Best thing you can do is just [[start reading]]*.
wait... [[spoiler: Due to a possible malware bug in the wiki, the link is withheld until the problem is fixed.]]
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I\'m the webmaster of the Specworld site, I\'m having a little security issue, for for safety\'s sake, I took the link down. I\'ll put it back when the problem is fixed. -Wag
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Best thing you can do is just [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page start reading]].
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Best thing you can do is just [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page start reading]].
[[start reading]]*.
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SpecWorld, or TheSpeculativeDinosaurProject, is a massive, ''massive'' world-building work in progress. It's basically an attempt to imagine how the world would be if the K/Pg Extinction Event hadn't happened 65 million years ago as seen from the perspective of dimension-hopping explorers and scientists from our world ("Home-Earth").
Best thing you can do is just [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page start reading]].
Specworld was almost nearly finished, but then, new palaeontological discoveries ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tianyulong especially this little feller]]) changed a ''lot'' of what we know about dinosaurs. The project has [[DeadFic stalled out since 2008]], and there are many lost illustrations and broken links. But the imagination, wonderful creature designs, good biology (hallelujah!) and offbeat humor more than make up for it.
The project isn't entirely dead, as the Yahoo club below shows. Also, some DA pictures from the staff like [[http://pristichampsus.deviantart.com/art/Terrorsaur-139874737 this]] suggest that, [[LeftHanging once the main site is updated, things will get very interesting...]] (A summary including some of the new ideas can be found [[http://speculativebiology.wikia.com/wiki/The_Speculative_Dinosaur_Project here]].)
----
!!Tropes Used:
* [[MikeNelsonDestroyerOfWorlds Adorable Fluffy Heterodontosaur, Destroyer of Worlds]]: No work of paleofiction better demonstrates just how game-changing the discovery of Tianyulong was.
-->'''Dave Marjanović''': "Mostly, our reaction to ''Tianyulong'' was just 'oh, shit' and nothing further."
* BigBadassBirdOfPrey: Avisaurids. Dromaeosaurids and oviraptorosaurs could arguably count, too, though they're not avialians.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Species are named after Earth animals, fictional Earth animals, fictional characters...
* DeadFic: Not entirely though; the [[http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/DinosaurMailingList-KilledThreads Yahoo club]] is still functional. Its activity fluctuates, however, and at one point it was uncertain if it was still active, but it returned with a vengeance.
** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved, and the URL in the page intro is no longer valid. [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page This]] is the new homepage, but there are still many articles/links that have to be transplanted and/or fixed up before the site is updated.
* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: They're the main focus of the site, with other, less spectacular groups like mammals being ignored in their favour.
* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: Penguins of DEATH!!!, ninja penguins, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and just plain old penguins]].
* EverythingsBetterWithPlatypi: There are some platypi and platypus cousins, including big ones that are a danger to human feet.
* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: Salmonites.
* ExcusePlot: The bit about scientists crossing from Home-Earth to Specworld. How they did it isn't important, just that they got there.
* {{Expy}}: Some animals are analogues of RealLife modern ones.
* FeatheredFiend: Any of the predatory or aggressive coelurosaurs, particularly the penguins of death!!! and the cityfinches.
* FrogsAndToads: They don't appear to have come very far with their amphibians, but they do have a cookie-cutter tadpole that chomps on the behinds of wading dinosaurs.
* LeftHanging: There are still several incomplete pages, incomplete descriptions and illustrations, and dead links that haven't been fixed.
* [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters Loads And Loads Of Hypothetical Creatures]]
* NinjaPirateZombieRobot and RuleOfCool: The Spec ecosystem seems to run on these tropes. The thing is, it's still believable.
* ScienceMarchesOn: Due to the main site not being updated since late 2008. That said, the authors are well-verse in life in the late Cretaceous, so nearly all of the concepts are still quite plausible and accurate.
** The site refers to a branch of the Therizinosauria as the Ceratonychidae. However, the name ''Ceratonykus'' is now used for a RealLife member of the Alvarezsauridae.[[hottip:*:Luckily, this is barely even a borderline case, as the spelling difference means that there's no name conflict even if they're pronounced the same way.]]
*** More HilariousInHindsight are the hesperonychid dromaeosaurids. There's now a real dromaeosaurid named ''Hesperonychus'', though fortunately it appears that none of the Spec hesperonychids actually use that as a genus name. Ironically, ''Hesperonychus'' was a small relative of ''Microraptor'', while the hesperonychids (with one exception, the small and slender djanada) are some of the largest and most robust of the Spec dromaeosaurids.
** The magnoraptor, a giant dromaeosaurid, was intended to be a descendant of what was once thought to be a real life giant dromaeosaurid, ''Megaraptor'', which is now known to have been a carnosaur.
* ShownTheirWork: And how!
* ShoutOut: There are many pop culture references intermingled in the creature names and descriptions, most obviously the Alfred Hitchcock's Thebirds.
* SpeculativeDocumentary: Err, website.
* TakeThat: Not on the main website, but in the spinoff The Saga of the Caripoo, Brian Choo mentions that he'd "rather watch Highlander II than meet another caripoo."
** This is also the reason why you won't find anything even remotely similar to a sapient creature on Spec; it's a silent protest against [[HumanAliens Dinosauroids]] (to the point where the group of dinosaurs to whom Dale Russel's absurdly humanlike Dinosauroid belonged is almost extinct!)
* ToothyBird: Certainly, as several varieties of toothed birds have survived on Spec.
* TurtlePower: Including a lineage of turtles with breathing organs growing out of their butts.
* ZergRush: Cityfinches do this.
----
Best thing you can do is just [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page start reading]].
Specworld was almost nearly finished, but then, new palaeontological discoveries ([[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tianyulong especially this little feller]]) changed a ''lot'' of what we know about dinosaurs. The project has [[DeadFic stalled out since 2008]], and there are many lost illustrations and broken links. But the imagination, wonderful creature designs, good biology (hallelujah!) and offbeat humor more than make up for it.
The project isn't entirely dead, as the Yahoo club below shows. Also, some DA pictures from the staff like [[http://pristichampsus.deviantart.com/art/Terrorsaur-139874737 this]] suggest that, [[LeftHanging once the main site is updated, things will get very interesting...]] (A summary including some of the new ideas can be found [[http://speculativebiology.wikia.com/wiki/The_Speculative_Dinosaur_Project here]].)
----
!!Tropes Used:
* [[MikeNelsonDestroyerOfWorlds Adorable Fluffy Heterodontosaur, Destroyer of Worlds]]: No work of paleofiction better demonstrates just how game-changing the discovery of Tianyulong was.
-->'''Dave Marjanović''': "Mostly, our reaction to ''Tianyulong'' was just 'oh, shit' and nothing further."
* BigBadassBirdOfPrey: Avisaurids. Dromaeosaurids and oviraptorosaurs could arguably count, too, though they're not avialians.
* CallASmeerpARabbit: Species are named after Earth animals, fictional Earth animals, fictional characters...
* DeadFic: Not entirely though; the [[http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/DinosaurMailingList-KilledThreads Yahoo club]] is still functional. Its activity fluctuates, however, and at one point it was uncertain if it was still active, but it returned with a vengeance.
** As of the current time, the site itself has been moved, and the URL in the page intro is no longer valid. [[http://specworld-project.com/index.php?title=Main_Page This]] is the new homepage, but there are still many articles/links that have to be transplanted and/or fixed up before the site is updated.
* EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs: They're the main focus of the site, with other, less spectacular groups like mammals being ignored in their favour.
* EverythingsBetterWithPenguins: Penguins of DEATH!!!, ninja penguins, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and just plain old penguins]].
* EverythingsBetterWithPlatypi: There are some platypi and platypus cousins, including big ones that are a danger to human feet.
* EverythingsSquishierWithCephalopods: Salmonites.
* ExcusePlot: The bit about scientists crossing from Home-Earth to Specworld. How they did it isn't important, just that they got there.
* {{Expy}}: Some animals are analogues of RealLife modern ones.
* FeatheredFiend: Any of the predatory or aggressive coelurosaurs, particularly the penguins of death!!! and the cityfinches.
* FrogsAndToads: They don't appear to have come very far with their amphibians, but they do have a cookie-cutter tadpole that chomps on the behinds of wading dinosaurs.
* LeftHanging: There are still several incomplete pages, incomplete descriptions and illustrations, and dead links that haven't been fixed.
* [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters Loads And Loads Of Hypothetical Creatures]]
* NinjaPirateZombieRobot and RuleOfCool: The Spec ecosystem seems to run on these tropes. The thing is, it's still believable.
* ScienceMarchesOn: Due to the main site not being updated since late 2008. That said, the authors are well-verse in life in the late Cretaceous, so nearly all of the concepts are still quite plausible and accurate.
** The site refers to a branch of the Therizinosauria as the Ceratonychidae. However, the name ''Ceratonykus'' is now used for a RealLife member of the Alvarezsauridae.[[hottip:*:Luckily, this is barely even a borderline case, as the spelling difference means that there's no name conflict even if they're pronounced the same way.]]
*** More HilariousInHindsight are the hesperonychid dromaeosaurids. There's now a real dromaeosaurid named ''Hesperonychus'', though fortunately it appears that none of the Spec hesperonychids actually use that as a genus name. Ironically, ''Hesperonychus'' was a small relative of ''Microraptor'', while the hesperonychids (with one exception, the small and slender djanada) are some of the largest and most robust of the Spec dromaeosaurids.
** The magnoraptor, a giant dromaeosaurid, was intended to be a descendant of what was once thought to be a real life giant dromaeosaurid, ''Megaraptor'', which is now known to have been a carnosaur.
* ShownTheirWork: And how!
* ShoutOut: There are many pop culture references intermingled in the creature names and descriptions, most obviously the Alfred Hitchcock's Thebirds.
* SpeculativeDocumentary: Err, website.
* TakeThat: Not on the main website, but in the spinoff The Saga of the Caripoo, Brian Choo mentions that he'd "rather watch Highlander II than meet another caripoo."
** This is also the reason why you won't find anything even remotely similar to a sapient creature on Spec; it's a silent protest against [[HumanAliens Dinosauroids]] (to the point where the group of dinosaurs to whom Dale Russel's absurdly humanlike Dinosauroid belonged is almost extinct!)
* ToothyBird: Certainly, as several varieties of toothed birds have survived on Spec.
* TurtlePower: Including a lineage of turtles with breathing organs growing out of their butts.
* ZergRush: Cityfinches do this.
----
