Dinosaurs were neither cold nor warm blooded

[HD-man]

I remember a study a while back where scientists took some samples from the teeth of Camarasaurus, saying they were endothermic. I don't remember how though.

Here it is (I think): http://blog.everythingdinosaur.co.uk/blog/_archives/2011/06/20/4845668.html

That's the same problem I'm basically addressing. If dinosaurs were "mesotherms" and modern birds are endotherms then where was the transition made? I'm really not up to speed on the science here. I read Scott Sampson's book but that was back when it came out, I think early 2010 so my memory of it is hazy. Without knowing the different hypothesis I personally feel like the transition was made earlier on in theropods but you're clearly more well versed than me in this topic. That said, all we really know is that at some point, proper warm-blooded dinosaurs emerged and we only know this because they're alive today. That is the only certainty here.

You can re-read Sampson's book online (See my post on page 1). I think you're right in that Sampson makes a good case for non-coelurosaurian dinos being mesothermic, non-bird maniraptorans being endothermic, & non-maniraptoran coelurosaurs being somewhere in-between.

BTW, what's weird about Werner & Griebeler 2014 is that it doesn't cite Erickson et al. 2009 ( http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0007390 ), which showed that oviraptorsaurs, deinonychosaurs, & early birds (including Archaeopteryx) grew at rates comparable to endothermic marsupials. I don't have access to Grady et al. 2014, so IDK whether it cites Erickson et al. 2009.

[stoneage]

Leatherback Sea Turtles seem to keep their temperatures up in cold water by constantly being active.