What term describes the inclusion of scavenging into the diet of Xenotarsosaurus?
Answer
Dietary flexibility
The interpretation that Xenotarsosaurus fed on beached carcasses points toward the concept of dietary flexibility. This term describes an animal's ability to incorporate different feeding tactics, such as scavenging in addition to active hunting, into its repertoire. Such flexibility is often considered a hallmark of highly successful dinosaur groups because it allows them to persist across geological time frames by capitalizing on fluctuating resource availability, ensuring caloric intake even when active hunting success rates are low.
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