AboutArctica Expertise I can answer a broad range of questions about the history of life on Earth, from the origins of single-celled organisms to the evolutionary history of plants, invertebrates and, particularly, vertebrates. I am also experienced in debating creationists and can provide rebuttals of many common creationist arguments. I cannot, however, answer questions about archaeology, and I generally cannot answer technical questions about rocks, bone structures or fossils - I am a reader, not a digger.
Experience Many years of research into the history of life on Earth. I have no formal qualifications, but what I lack in technical expertise I make up for in range. I have spent many months debating creationists on the BBC''s science forum, and have consequently thoroughly researched a great deal of creationist and anti-creationist material.
Question what functions did the crest of a Parasaurolophus have?
Answer Hi Kat! Thanks for your question. The crest of a Parasaurolophus was probably used for several reasons. The major reason may have been for communication over long distances - the crest was hollow and could amplify sound. Scientists have even passed air through the crest in order to reproduce the sounds Parasaurolophus might have made. Whether they were successful in doing so is impossible to know, but the experiment did effectively demonstrate the acoustic properties of the crest.
Another reason may have been for display - it is possible that a flap of skin connected the crest to the neck, and this (especially if brightly coloured) would have made the crest a striking visual signal to other members of the herd.
A third possible reason is thermoregulation - the ability to regulate body temperature (and, in particular, brain temperature). Blood passing through the crest, close to the skin, would be cooled by the surrounding air and would help to keep the rest of the animal cool.
All of these are hypotheses, but (unlike other hypotheses, such as that the crest was used as a snorkel), they have not yet been discounted by palaeontologists.
