Proof of possible existence
Since the 1960's, a rising number of crypto zoologists have been researching and exploring the possible existence of dinosaurs. Considering dinosaurs were known to become extinct sixty-five million years ago, it comes as quite a shock when people hear of this possibility. So why are people, particularly in America and Canada, believing such a thing? The basis of this belief is based on the fact that there is so much land on earth that has yet to be explored, and sightings of dinosaurs have been seen in these areas. For example, regions in central Africa, specifically in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, have had several sightings of dinosaurs. This country, and the areas surrounding it, have dense land that has yet to be discovered. More specifically, the Likouala Swamp (also where several reports have been cited) remains 80% unexplored. “Reports of dinosaurs continue to pour out from these locations, and until we have adequately searched throughout this land of the unknown, this land located on the "Dark Continent," we may never know if the dinosaur world's most popular figure still walks the earth today" (True). In fact, a search of "Likouala Swamp" on the internet has several links to dinosaur information.
Disproving information
On the other hand, there are also skeptics who laugh at the idea of dinosaurs still being around today. And for good reason, seeing as the scientific facts and evolution strongly suggests that they indeed became extinct sixty-five million years ago. Some of these dinosaurs are said to inhabit deep lakes, but most of these lakes have been around for only ten thousand years, so it is unlikely that a sixty-five million year old water creature could be living in them. If there were fossils discovered with carbon dating more recently than sixty or so million years, then one may conclude this possibility. Given that this is not a currently existing factor and that there are not “new” fossils, the idea is implausible. Another theory that supports a skeptic’s belief involves the concept of evolution. Evolution, by theory and definition, states that it is highly unlikely that a creature that old could be seen today.
The overall belief on whether or not the existence of modern dinosaurs can ultimately not be proven, it is a matter of opinion at this point in time. One may argue they exist due to the vast land that has yet to be discovered in Africa, while others may disagree saying evolution completely cancels out the mere possibility.
Birds are the only animals that can be scientifically proven to be modern dinosaurs
On the other hand, there is proven existence of modern dinosaurs. In fact, we see them almost on a daily basis, birds. Scientists have proven that birds are descendants of dinosaurs based on their hollow bones and upright hips that allow for walking upright, wings that allow for flying, and also fossils of nesting grounds and feathers. Other linked characteristics consist of a new discovery of a dinosaur found with bird-like eggs inside, the discovery that birdlike dinosaurs had feathers, and that the earliest bird had dinosaur-like feet. There was also a discovery found within the soft tissue of a sixty-eight million year old Tyrannosaurus Rex leg bone dug up in Montana. This bone had the same tissue of collagen proteins which can also be found in most bird bones, which also suggests that birds are decedents of dinosaurs. This concept has been being studied for about 125 years now, and more research is currently underway. It is believed that birds are decedents of the maniraptoran theropods, which are small meat eating dinosaurs, and archaeopteryxs, a dinosaur with toothed jaws, a long lizard-like tail, and wings.
In contrast, many people believe that reptiles are a descendant of dinosaurs, but this fact is actually a myth. Scientists have been making the assumption for years that dinosaurs must have been cold blooded, since they look so much like the reptiles today. But a new paper published in the journal PLoS, one argues that dinosaurs must have been warm-blooded like birds and mammals--and not cold-blooded like reptiles, as many scientists believed in years past (Huffington). The author of this article, Dr. Roger S. Seymour, argues that if the dinosaurs were cold blooded, they would not have had the muscle strength and density to capture their prey which they were able to catch. In a statement, Seymour said "To do that they must have had more muscular power and greater endurance than a crocodile-like physiology would have allowed."
In contrast, many people believe that reptiles are a descendant of dinosaurs, but this fact is actually a myth. Scientists have been making the assumption for years that dinosaurs must have been cold blooded, since they look so much like the reptiles today. But a new paper published in the journal PLoS, one argues that dinosaurs must have been warm-blooded like birds and mammals--and not cold-blooded like reptiles, as many scientists believed in years past (Huffington). The author of this article, Dr. Roger S. Seymour, argues that if the dinosaurs were cold blooded, they would not have had the muscle strength and density to capture their prey which they were able to catch. In a statement, Seymour said "To do that they must have had more muscular power and greater endurance than a crocodile-like physiology would have allowed."
It's not the only recent study to suggest that dinosaurs weren't the slow-moving, cold-blooded creatures many scientists once believed them to be. The authors of a paper published in the journal Nature in 2012 found evidence of so-called "lines of arrested growth" (LAGs) in the bones of warm-blooded animals--features that that had been believed to develop only in cold-blooded animals. The scientists said in a written statement that their finding "conclusively closes the debate" over dinosaur metabolism (Freeman).