Dinosaurs seemed to have generally been so much larger than animals today. Huge dragonflies that dwarf their modern counterparts, turtles 10ft long. What is the mechanism that allowed them to be so large, or conversely makes modern ones smaller? Is it about Oxygen levels, or efficiency, or something else?
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Larger animals generally require exponentially more calories. A large group of huge animals will decimate all food sources in an area. This results in a few evolutionary behavioral changes.
Larger animals will generally have fewer offspring and will typically be more solitary(or at least maintain smaller groups). The downside of these changes is that they will be more vulnerable to predation, and have fewer breeding options. Losing a single female in a small group will have a greater negative impact than a larger group.
Smaller animals have a competitive advantage in this regard as they can maintain larger populations by having more offspring, and be less concerned with decimating an areas food sources. Safety in numbers, and increased breeding opportunities.
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