| The Australovenator has been labelled 'the cheetah of its time' and I can certainly see why. Here we have a hunter with terrific speed, power and focus; the makeup of perfect prehistoric predator, really. Just don't get spotted, because there's no way you're going to outrun this one! |
Australovenator is a genus of megaraptoran dinosaur in the Jurassic World Evolution series. Originating from Late Cretaceous Australia, this relatively small-sized yet agile hunter is known for its speed.
Australovenator was added to Evolution 2 as a part of the Late Cretaceous Pack, and its fossils can be excavated from the Winton Formation.
Characteristics[]
Having once occupied Australia during the Late Cretaceous period, about 95 million years ago, Australovenator is a bipedal theropod measuring six meters long, weighing 500 kg, and is a member of the family Megaraptora; a group of predatory theropods with controversial relationships not entirely understood at present. Even though it is of smaller size, it is similar in appearance to dinosaurs within the Allosauroidea. However, discoveries of close relatives, such as Maip macrothorax, suggest it is more closely related to tyrannosaurs. Its name translates to "Southern Hunter", in reference to its Australian habitat and carnivorous diet. Australovenator is a fast and agile medium-sized carnivore characterized by a relatively lightweight frame for a theropod dinosaur that allow it to move quickly, flexible arms used for grabbing, and a fearsome set of extremely sharp teeth that make it a formidable and daunting predator perfectly designed for stalking – and chasing down – prey quickly and effectively. In fact, the paleontologist who discovered the genus described it as "the cheetah of its time" due to its speed, agility and predatory instincts.
Gameplay[]
Evolution 2[]
Behaviour[]
Australovenator is a social animal that does best in groups, often engaging in multiple social interactions. Preferring to live in packs no smaller than three animals, it likes enclosures that have a significant amount of open space for running, and a relatively small water source from which to drink. Australovenator also likes some forest in which to hide and ambush prey, and it requires live animals to hunt in order to satisfy its needs. It won't say no to meat feeders that are also placed in with live prey in addition. Oddly, it will readily attack smaller dinosaurs, but will leave medium-sized and large herbivores like hadrosaurs, sauropods, large ankylosaurs, and ceratopsians alone. It is rated as 5 in regards to its security level, and can escape all but the strongest fences.
Skins[]
Paleontology[]
This genus is one of the most recent dinosaur discoveries – Australovenator was first described as recently as 2009. The first specimen was found in the Winton Formation in Queensland, Australia by paleontologist Scott Hocknull. The remains were buried alongside fossils of another dinosaur called Diamantinasaurus, an occurrence that had never been seen in Australia before. An estimated size for Australovenator is around 6 m (20 ft) long with a body mass of 500 kg (1,102 lb).
For a time, Australovenator was given the nickname the "Polar Allosaur", mostly due to its appearance in the famous dinosaur documentary "Walking With Dinosaurs", but also because it was thought to be a smaller relative of Allosaurus, coupled with its similar skeletal structure to the larger predator. However, in 2009 when it was formally named and discovered, a paleontologist who studied the dinosaur's ankle bones found that they were different from Allosaurus bones; they were more similar to those of the Neovenatorids, a closely related but distinct family.
Paleoecology[]
Australovenator pair
Most likely the apex predator of its ecosystem, Australovenator lived in Australia during the Late Cretaceous period, around 95 million years ago. It lived alongside several types of dinosaurs such as Muttaburrasaurus, Minmi, and other species of ornithopods, ankylosaurs, and a few species of sauropods (i.e. Austrosaurus, Diamantinasaurus, Savannasaurus, and Wintonotitan) as well as various crocodilians, fish and reptiles along with brachyopoid temnospondyl amphibian Koolasuchus. Its diet consisted of small and medium-sized animals, although some experts believe it may have hunted larger dinosaurs by working in packs.
Gallery[]
External Links[]
- Australovenator on Wikipedia
