A massive asteroid impact 66 million years ago wiped out nonavian dinosaurs, but what if it had missed Earth? Paleontologists suggest that with enough time, dinosaurs could have continued to evolve and thrive. According to Steve Brusatte, a professor of paleontology at the University of Edinburgh, dinosaurs had already survived numerous challenges throughout their 165 million-year reign.
If the asteroid hadn’t struck, dinosaurs might have adapted to extreme conditions like ice ages. Some species with feathers or warm-bloodedness could have insulated themselves like mammals do. Additionally, research on mammoths suggests that dinosaurs may have evolved new defenses against cold temperatures during extreme weather.
However, whether dinosaurs could have become more intelligent is still a topic of debate. While some scientists propose that advanced dinosaur lineages might have emerged, others argue that it’s unrealistic and too anthropomorphic. However, modern birds – direct descendants of theropod dinosaurs – demonstrate impressive intelligence.
The absence of the asteroid impact would have severely impacted mammal evolution, with small mammals likely remaining small for millions of years. Humans, as we know them, may never have emerged without the extinction event that allowed our primate ancestors to thrive and evolve.
Source: https://www.livescience.com/animals/dinosaurs/what-if-a-giant-asteroid-had-not-wiped-out-the-dinosaurs