"Resting " sauropods

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

No not dead ones or RIP long necks lol   

I'm looking for ideas on the probability of sauropods sitting or laying down, what position is most likely that sort of thing, specifically in regard to adult brachiosaurs.     I started a 1:1 Brachiosaurus head this past Spring with designs on constructing a full body at some point.  Examining the problem for almost a year I fear the most awesome thing about this project is likely to be it's undoing.  namely the height and the equipment/funds/personnel needed to achieve it.   So I'm gathering info and considering other options.   

[Joey]

I've seen this reconstruction a couple times before, I'd say it's kind of plausible

This one's also similar

[stargatedalek]

A truly lying sauropod probably would have looked dead is the only problem I'm foreseeing with the idea. You'd need to come up with some way to make it very visibly alive and healthy (which shouldn't be too hard given what we've all seen you pull off in the past).

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Yeah that last image, the one in front does look quite dead.  Most pics I've seen they just really uncomfortable and not at all natural in appearance.  I could just do another head/partial neck looking over a wall but..well that has big illusion problems with so large an animal.

maybe a mud bath?  lol

[tyrantqueen]

This reminds me of the Psittacosaurus from the NHM



Maybe you can put some sort of animatronic (dunno if that's the right word) in the animal's chest to make it rise and fall? People won't think it's dead then.

[Bowhead Whale]

Maybe sauropods were like giraffes or horses and could sleep upright. Horses and giraffes don't lye down every time they have to sleep. Maybe sauropods were like that too. What do you think?

[Loon]

Maybe you can put some sort of animatronic (dunno if that's the right word) in the animal's chest to make it rise and fall? People won't think it's dead then.

I like Tyrantqueen's idea, some kind of breathing affect would be good. I don't know what kind of settup would be usable, a pump mayhaps? If the sauropod is laying on its side, maybe some kind of rubber skin on the belly/ribs regions? I don't know, but having just gone to Disneyland, I would say avoid just having the animal lay on its side, it really does make for a very dead look.

[Jose S.M.]

This reminds me of the Psittacosaurus from the NHM

That is so cute!

Staying on topic, the breathing effect is a good idea, but it doesn't have to be necessarily laying down completely or sleeping right? It can be resting but with with it's head a bit raised, looking at it's surroundings. This can be hard to figure out, sauropods rarely are portraying doing something else besides walking or eating.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Really appreciate the feedback guys/gals!  Hmm... a breathing effect while not impossible, would be very difficult with how we build them.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obDQkACloq4&t=27s

On an adult brachiosaurus that's a HUGE motor. 

Exactly my problem Jose_S.M.  , what pose would look good but also make sense/work within reason?

[Brocc21]

I always like the idea of sauropods sleeping standing up. Your wandering through the Jurassic jungle and come to a clearing and see giant creatures standing like statues.

[IrritatorRaji]

Honestly don't know much about this, but would a Sauropod actually be able to lay on its side? Would the weight of its organs not crush it, kinda like horses? I kinda like Brocc21's idea of them sleeping whilst standing.

[Sucho-Matty-mus]

Me personally would assume that if a Sauropod was to be resting on the ground, it would be similar to how Rino's do, but with their heads and neck still upright like a Giraffe when they are resting.

[ceratopsian]

By the way, horses can and do sleep lying on their sides in the normal way of things. There is however a time limit on how long a horse can stay down. I'm not sure when the danger point is reached in terms of hours or minutes. But my pony enjoys being fully flaked out after a hard night in the field!

[postsaurischian]

  I'm loving the Dinone Studio Chuanjiesaurus, originally posted by acro-man.

[IrritatorRaji]

By the way, horses can and do sleep lying on their sides in the normal way of things. There is however a time limit on how long a horse can stay down. I'm not sure when the danger point is reached in terms of hours or minutes. But my pony enjoys being fully flaked out after a hard night in the field!

Typically the horses I've worked with never stay down more than 3 or 4 hours, but usually I see them do half hour bursts of REM sleep. That being said I've only ever worked around drafts (big ol' Belgians) or horses around 18 hands, so yeah, I guess since ponies are lighter they can stay down longer But I was just thinking that since horses, which weigh far less than 10% of a large sauropods weight, can't lay down without the threat of crushing their own organs then I couldn't imagine a sauropod pulling it off. Maybe lying down on their stomachs, but definitely not on their sides.

[amargasaurus cazaui]

what if they slept standing in water....

[ceratopsian]

I wouldn't expect my pony to be down any longer than that either, and she tends to shift from flaked out on her side to lying on her stomach and then maybe back again to stretched out. 

I just wanted to be sure that non-horsey people here didn't get worried as the result of our conversation if they saw a horse lying flat out in a field!

I too have great difficulty imagining a fully grown large sauropod lying down on its side.  The weight on their organs would indeed be tremendous.   Surely it would be difficult to get its legs back under it too in order to stand up.   Plus there's the whole issue of organising the length of its neck in the upwards movement.

Typically the horses I've worked with never stay down more than 3 or 4 hours, but usually I see them do half hour bursts of REM sleep. That being said I've only ever worked around drafts (big ol' Belgians) or horses around 18 hands, so yeah, I guess since ponies are lighter they can stay down longer But I was just thinking that since horses, which weigh far less than 10% of a large sauropods weight, can't lay down without the threat of crushing their own organs then I couldn't imagine a sauropod pulling it off. Maybe lying down on their stomachs, but definitely not on their sides.

[Neosodon]

What about elephants? Do they spend much time lying down. And if so, in what position?

[IrritatorRaji]

@Neosodon

Elephants sleep standing up but, every few days (3 or 4, depends on which study you read), they sleep on their sides and engage in REM sleep. I think they only sleep for a few hours every night, and I'm not entirely sure how long their REM sleep lasts.

EDIT: Also, and again this depends on which studies you read, Elephants have been observed to sleep every few days, Matriarchs typically going long stretches without any sleep