Michael Deak
@slothfultyrant.bsky.social
Adjunct professor at Youngstown State University who specializes in theropod and sloth thermoregulation and integument. He/Him, all opinions are my own.
Oh Deer: This was an intense game of cat and mouse between a #Megaloceros stag and a pack a cave hyenas. While plot armor kicked in too hardly in the end, it did give us the biggest fake out of the series with the male shedding his antlers (has this been done in paleoart?)
November 28, 2025 at 1:13 AM
Oh Deer: This was an intense game of cat and mouse between a #Megaloceros stag and a pack a cave hyenas. While plot armor kicked in too hardly in the end, it did give us the biggest fake out of the series with the male shedding his antlers (has this been done in paleoart?)
The Battle @tarpits.org: Given that La Brea holds some of the last known North American megafauna, I knew this was going to be in the last episode. Some big stakes with the female #Smilodon having to defend her cubs from #Direwolves with one paw in the tar.
November 28, 2025 at 12:59 AM
The Battle @tarpits.org: Given that La Brea holds some of the last known North American megafauna, I knew this was going to be in the last episode. Some big stakes with the female #Smilodon having to defend her cubs from #Direwolves with one paw in the tar.
Also, can we talk about how INCREDIBLE this shot is?
November 28, 2025 at 12:53 AM
Also, can we talk about how INCREDIBLE this shot is?
Mammoth Caravan: While I think the calf got a bit too much plot armor, seeing #woollymammoths in a dust storm was a fresh change of pace compared to the tundra environment.
November 28, 2025 at 12:48 AM
Mammoth Caravan: While I think the calf got a bit too much plot armor, seeing #woollymammoths in a dust storm was a fresh change of pace compared to the tundra environment.
The Lonely Giant: Hands down one of the best segments in all of PhP. The #Gigantopithecus design has the perfect blend of orangutan and gorilla-like features and seeing this species on its way out with no resolution was a change of pace from the other "happy endings".
November 28, 2025 at 12:44 AM
The Lonely Giant: Hands down one of the best segments in all of PhP. The #Gigantopithecus design has the perfect blend of orangutan and gorilla-like features and seeing this species on its way out with no resolution was a change of pace from the other "happy endings".
Birds of a feather: I never realized how big female #Moas were until now. This entire segment remined me of the #Carnotaurus mating display back in Season 1, albeit with the male being successful in this case.
November 28, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Birds of a feather: I never realized how big female #Moas were until now. This entire segment remined me of the #Carnotaurus mating display back in Season 1, albeit with the male being successful in this case.
Wandering Wombats: I could feel the heat from this segment. The vastness of the environment really sells the dire situation that the #Diprotodon herd finds itself in. Plus, the "harmless vegetarian" trope is thrown out the window yet again.
November 28, 2025 at 12:13 AM
Wandering Wombats: I could feel the heat from this segment. The vastness of the environment really sells the dire situation that the #Diprotodon herd finds itself in. Plus, the "harmless vegetarian" trope is thrown out the window yet again.
Big Brained Tiny Terrors: Seeing small #phorusrhacids represented in the form of Psilopterus was an unexpected treat. The cello score for the #Smilodon hunt was stellar, and it was great seeing PhP breaking another stereotype by showing the birds outfoxing the cat for once.
November 28, 2025 at 12:02 AM
Big Brained Tiny Terrors: Seeing small #phorusrhacids represented in the form of Psilopterus was an unexpected treat. The cello score for the #Smilodon hunt was stellar, and it was great seeing PhP breaking another stereotype by showing the birds outfoxing the cat for once.
A Tropical Titan: While #Eremotherium is not the primary focus of this segment, its introduction partnered with its bizarre calls gave it a huge presence. Seeing a sparsely fuzzy sloth in a documentary for the first time made this animal all the more alien in the best way.
November 27, 2025 at 11:50 PM
A Tropical Titan: While #Eremotherium is not the primary focus of this segment, its introduction partnered with its bizarre calls gave it a huge presence. Seeing a sparsely fuzzy sloth in a documentary for the first time made this animal all the more alien in the best way.
Saving Grandma: This is another sweet segment with an adorable #woollyrhino foal, an epic chase sequence with the #Homotherium pack, and an equally epic score from Hans Zimmer when the crash comes back to save the old female.
November 27, 2025 at 11:34 PM
Saving Grandma: This is another sweet segment with an adorable #woollyrhino foal, an epic chase sequence with the #Homotherium pack, and an equally epic score from Hans Zimmer when the crash comes back to save the old female.
Sloth Snow Day: Seeing the two young #Megalonyx bond in the snow almost brought a tear to my eyes. I also loved the music that plays when the mother is plodding around in the snow.
November 27, 2025 at 10:22 PM
Sloth Snow Day: Seeing the two young #Megalonyx bond in the snow almost brought a tear to my eyes. I also loved the music that plays when the mother is plodding around in the snow.
"But her real ice age superpower is taking life slowly. Because saving energy is vital when it's this cold." Best line of the first episode of #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge.
November 26, 2025 at 1:13 PM
"But her real ice age superpower is taking life slowly. Because saving energy is vital when it's this cold." Best line of the first episode of #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge.
#PrehistoricPlanetIceAge accurately reflects the diverse array of hairstyles that ground sloths likely had throughout their range that we state in our paper, and I cannot wait to see more.
November 17, 2025 at 5:18 PM
#PrehistoricPlanetIceAge accurately reflects the diverse array of hairstyles that ground sloths likely had throughout their range that we state in our paper, and I cannot wait to see more.
A lot of things happened between the work for my thesis and the peer-reviewed version, as most things in science do. Our initial results presented at conferences suggested regional variation in integument (as per this illustration by
@fossilfracas.com)
@fossilfracas.com)
November 17, 2025 at 5:17 PM
A lot of things happened between the work for my thesis and the peer-reviewed version, as most things in science do. Our initial results presented at conferences suggested regional variation in integument (as per this illustration by
@fossilfracas.com)
@fossilfracas.com)
I feel the need to address some comments that have been popping up here and there regarding the #Eremotherium design for #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge. To people saying that our paper fully refutes a sparse coat of fur in this genus, here is what we actually say:
November 17, 2025 at 5:16 PM
I feel the need to address some comments that have been popping up here and there regarding the #Eremotherium design for #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge. To people saying that our paper fully refutes a sparse coat of fur in this genus, here is what we actually say:
Thank you, Reddit! #PrehistoricPlanet
November 6, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Thank you, Reddit! #PrehistoricPlanet
So surreal to see something that you proposed in your first paper being brought to life later that same year. Can't wait to see more from #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge!
November 6, 2025 at 4:40 PM
So surreal to see something that you proposed in your first paper being brought to life later that same year. Can't wait to see more from #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge!
Relevant to today's news #BackinHell
October 31, 2025 at 12:52 AM
Relevant to today's news #BackinHell
Happy #InternationalSlothDay! Crazy to think that our little paper has been all over the place in just a short span of time. From a write-up in the New York times, to consulting on a Nat Geo infographic, to possibly seeing behaviors that we proposed on AppleTV. Am dreaming?
October 20, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Happy #InternationalSlothDay! Crazy to think that our little paper has been all over the place in just a short span of time. From a write-up in the New York times, to consulting on a Nat Geo infographic, to possibly seeing behaviors that we proposed on AppleTV. Am dreaming?
With #Jaws50 falling on a #FossilFriday, the gaping jaws of 0. megalodon at
@ripleysaquariums.bsky.social of The Smokies is an appropriate showcase!
@ripleysaquariums.bsky.social of The Smokies is an appropriate showcase!
June 20, 2025 at 3:42 PM
With #Jaws50 falling on a #FossilFriday, the gaping jaws of 0. megalodon at
@ripleysaquariums.bsky.social of The Smokies is an appropriate showcase!
@ripleysaquariums.bsky.social of The Smokies is an appropriate showcase!
Yet more evidence against the scale/feather false dichotomy in the form of scaly hands and feet in #pterosaurs in addition to previous publications showing that they were fuzzy too!
www.scup.com/doi/10.18261...
www.scup.com/doi/10.18261...
June 10, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Yet more evidence against the scale/feather false dichotomy in the form of scaly hands and feet in #pterosaurs in addition to previous publications showing that they were fuzzy too!
www.scup.com/doi/10.18261...
www.scup.com/doi/10.18261...
The findings suggest that #sloths evolved into giants at least three times independently, and large body sized coincided with cold climates, and that humans were a likely cause of the extinction of ground sloths.
May 23, 2025 at 5:37 PM
The findings suggest that #sloths evolved into giants at least three times independently, and large body sized coincided with cold climates, and that humans were a likely cause of the extinction of ground sloths.
I've finally received my copy of @markwitton.bsky.social's King Tyrant! I've never been this excited to dive into a tyrannosaur book since @davehone.bsky.social's Tyrannosaur Chronicles as an undergrad. Here's hoping it feeds me more ideas to test in future papers. #FossilFriday
May 16, 2025 at 7:27 PM
I've finally received my copy of @markwitton.bsky.social's King Tyrant! I've never been this excited to dive into a tyrannosaur book since @davehone.bsky.social's Tyrannosaur Chronicles as an undergrad. Here's hoping it feeds me more ideas to test in future papers. #FossilFriday
Never in a million years did I think that my name would be in National Geographic this early in my career. Huge congrats and thanks to @fracas.bsky.social for bringing the #sloths of the past back to life in this incredible infographic and for having Dr. Butcher and I on board as consultants!
April 21, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Never in a million years did I think that my name would be in National Geographic this early in my career. Huge congrats and thanks to @fracas.bsky.social for bringing the #sloths of the past back to life in this incredible infographic and for having Dr. Butcher and I on board as consultants!
Legitimate question, Plos: Why are we randomly cited in papers that have next to nothing to do with molecular studies? It's not as bad as getting miscited in a paper about advanced vehicle classification, but......come on.
April 17, 2025 at 6:02 PM
Legitimate question, Plos: Why are we randomly cited in papers that have next to nothing to do with molecular studies? It's not as bad as getting miscited in a paper about advanced vehicle classification, but......come on.