Dragons cold blooded?

[Arnizipal]

Ok, let's try this again...

Shall we keep this on topic maybe?

Arnizipal,

++ The Warseer Moderation Team ++

[Verm1s]

Ouch my BSc.

Are there any proven example of a warmblooded creature with scales?

In RL or Madeupistan? Plenty of real scaly dinosaurs among all those noisy kids and their dang-blasted feather fashion.

Ok, let's try this again...

Shall we keep this on topic maybe?

Arnizipal,

++ The Warseer Moderation Team ++

I like your style.

[Urgat]

Birds have scales on their feet, so yep.

[The bearded one]

I guess the biologist-zoologist fella's amongst us (those things never really were my style) need to classify them based on the broad info we have on them. What we know, historically, is that dragons ruled the world, and then the old ones came and warmed up the place. The dragons, hating the warmth of the sun that the old ones brought, retreated to the cold or to slumber.

ULF noted that the inability to adapt to the climate change and inability to regulate their bodyheat is more characteristic of cold blooded creatures. On the other hand he also noted that this contradicts the notion that they prefer colder temperatures and disliked the warmth the old ones brought, which is not characteristic of cold blooded creatures. This is the contradiction that must be solved.

As them disliking the warmth (a major issue/feature/theme in the dragons' history) does not cope with them being cold blooded, I think you can handwave the characteristics that point to them being cold blooded (inability to regular bodyheat efficiently and adapt to climate change) away by virtue of them having an atonomy we do not understand nor have a very viable comparison to.

[TheDungen]

as someone said a cold blooded creature cannot regulate its own body heat, if the dragons generate large amounts of heat, either by breathing fire or by being a large creature with high metabolism (and for a creature that size to fly its metabolism needs to be sky high), then it cant properly shed itself of the heat. A colder climate would thus be preferable to it. Although i dont se why they dont just dive into the sea and use its cold to cool themselves, also why they live so close to the equator.

[Urgat]

as someone said a cold blooded creature cannot regulate its own body heat

Some can, like some fishes or sharks, thanks to constant motion.

[Arnizipal]

Although i dont se why they dont just dive into the sea and use its cold to cool themselves, also why they live so close to the equator.

The most obvious reason would probably be that not all creatures can swim, especially if you have hug leathery wings that hinder you in the water.

[TheDungen]

I'm pretty sure they would work pretty well as fins and if you are able to fly with that body mass swimming should be no problem. Also I think i remember that they sued to live on Ulthuan when it was nothing more than rock s in the sea. Seems stupid place to live if you cant swim.

[Verm1s]

ULF noted that the inability to adapt to the climate change and inability to regulate their bodyheat is more characteristic of cold blooded creatures. On the other hand he also noted that this contradicts the notion that they prefer colder temperatures and disliked the warmth the old ones brought, which is not characteristic of cold blooded creatures. This is the contradiction that must be solved.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estivation

as someone said a cold blooded creature cannot regulate its own body heat, if the dragons generate large amounts of heat... by being a large creature with high metabolism

Which would pretty much make it 'warm-blooded'.

I'm pretty sure they would work pretty well as fins and if you are able to fly with that body mass swimming should be no problem. Also I think i remember that they sued to live on Ulthuan when it was nothing more than rock s in the sea. Seems stupid place to live if you cant swim.

Yeah. Can't keep those island-dwelling bats out of the water. How else are they going to travel from one land mass to the other...?

[TheDungen]

Most warm blooded creatures have other means to lower their body temperature like for an example sweating.


and i remember reading somewhere that the dragons are related to merwyrms, that would make it very likely that they can swim.

and bats are mammals, dragons clearly aint.

[Urgat]

and i remember reading somewhere that the dragons are related to merwyrms, that would make it very likely that they can swim.

Then does that mean that merwyrm are very likely to be able to fly? We're related to apes, we can swim, apes can't. Alligators can swim, lizards can't. Sea snakes can swim, cobras can't. You're making very brutal shortcuts in the name of logic, friend. Logic tells me that such large wings under water would generate such a huge drag that dragons are most certainly dead weights in the water.

[Verm1s]

Most warm blooded creatures have other means to lower their body temperature like for an example sweating.

I'm not sure what your point is. Dragons are cold blooded because they can't sweat?

and i remember reading somewhere that the dragons are related to merwyrms, that would make it very likely that they can swim.

What Urgat said. After a quick google*, I'm also having trouble finding pics of merwyrms or any WH sea dragons/serpents - official or converted - with wings.

*Google 'dreadfleet merwyrm' and the second result is Urgat's post, there.

and bats are mammals, dragons clearly aint.

RL bats have wings most closely resembling fictional dragon wings, which might be useful in guessing how well giant bat-wings can be used for swimming. As for other winged animals: most swimming birds use their feet. I can think of only two birds groups that use their wings for prolonged underwater swimming: penguins and auks. Only one of those also uses their wings for flight (guess which) and neither set has wings anything like bat wings. Or a body shape anything like warhammer dragons.
Again, what Urgat said. It can be fun to... debate the biology of fantasy creatures - dragon metabolism, orc skin, etc. - but it helps if your points aren't based on leaps and assumptions about RL biology.

[N810]

(mamals with scales)
pangolin, and armadillos.