| There isn't a more iconic dinosaur than the T. rex, even people who don't know the difference between herbivore and carnivore know all about the Tyrannosaurus rex. And when you see her up close, feel her gaze... you understand why the T. rex was the ruler of the Cretaceous period. |
Tyrannosaurus, often referred to as Tyrannosaurus rex or simply T. rex, is a genus of tyrannosaurid dinosaur in the Jurassic World Evolution series. Originating from Late Cretaceous North America, this fearsome apex predator is the world's most famous dinosaur and among the largest species of carnivorous dinosaurs known.
In Evolution, Tyrannosaurus fossils are first unlocked on Isla Tacaño, and can then be excavated from the Frenchman, Hell Creek, and Lance Formations. Acquiring the complete genome of Tyrannosaurus and fusing it with Velociraptor genome allows for the creation of the Indominus rex. Additional Tyrannosaurus skins were added in Return to Jurassic Park, based on its appearances across the original Jurassic Park trilogy.
Tyrannosaurus then returned in the base game of Evolution 2. The Camp Cretaceous Dinosaur Pack and Park Managers' Collection Pack each later added a new skin for Tyrannosaurus based on its appearances in Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous, and the Dominion Biosyn Expansion added two skins based on Jurassic World Dominion. Tyrannosaurus then returned in the base game of Evolution 3.
History
During the Late Cretaceous period 65 million years ago, a Tyrannosaurus fought and was killed by a Giganotosaurus before a mosquito drank some of its blood.[1]
A Tyrannosaurus fighting a Velociraptor.
Tyrannosaurus was among the first species of dinosaur successfully cloned by InGen, intending to be displayed as the star attraction in Jurassic Park on Isla Nublar. During the 1993 incident, the female Tyranosaurus escaped and attacked the guests surveying the park, eventually getting into a confrontation with the island's Velociraptor population inside the park's Visitor Centre, allowing Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, Ian Malcolm, John Hammond, and his grandkids to escape the island, leaving the park abandoned, allowing the Tyranosaurus to roam free on the island for a time.[2]
During the 1997 incident, the InGen team sent to Isla Sorna encountered a family of Tyrannosaurus; a buck, a doe, and their infant. The buck and the infant were captured and shipped to San Diego as the intended main attractions for Jurassic Park: San Diego. In what became known as the San Diego Incident, the buck escaped onto the streets of the city, causing numerous fatalities before being lured back to the San Diego Docks by Ian Malcolm and Sarah Harding, where it was eventually transported back to Isla Sorna with the infant and reunited with the doe.[3]
During the 2001 Isla Sorna rescue mission, those involved encountered at least one Tyrannosaurus, which was a sub-adult bull that fought and was killed by a Spinosaurus.[4]
In 2002, InGen sent a recovery team to Isla Nublar, moving the Tyrannosaurus from the original Jurassic Park to an unknown location prior to its exhibition in Jurassic World many years later.[5] Following its opening in 2005 and until 2015, Jurassic World exhibited the Tyrannosaurus. During the 2015 incident, the Tyrannosaurus would be intentionally released by Claire Dearing to combat the rampaging Indominus rex. After the incident, which resulted in the abandonment of Jurassic World, the Tyrannosaurus became wild on Isla Nublar once more.[5][6] In 2016, Mantah Corp, a bioengineering and a genetic-oriented rival company to InGen, had cloned and experimented on at least two Tyrannosaurus, a mother and its sole offspring.
In 2018, with the impending eruption of Mt. Sibo, Nublar's Tyrannosaurus was captured and transported to the Lockwood Manor in California. The Tyrannosaurus was later released from the manor and escaped into the wilds of Northern California.[7]
In 2022, four years after the incident at Lockwood Manor, the escaped Tyrannosaurus was captured by the Department of Fish and Wildlife and was transported to a sanctuary created by BioSyn. It would develop a rivalry with the resident Giganotosaurus before eventually killing it with the aid of a Therizinosaurus. Following that, it (with aid from the buck and doe Tyrannosaurs of Isla Sorna) saved the Nublar Six from a pack of Atrociraptors. The Tyrannosaurus pack then remained in the BioSyn sanctuary as the valley's apex predators.[1]
Characteristics
| A T. rex will always draw attention, but I shouldn't have to remind you how dangerous they can be. The world has never seen a more alpha predator. |
The most famous of all dinosaurs and among the largest theropod dinosaurs of all time, measuring at around 14.5 meters in length and over eight tons in weight, Tyrannosaurus is a species of tyrannosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous Period. The apex predator of its time, it lived throughout western North America at the end of the Cretaceous period alongside other dinosaurs such as the ceratopsians Triceratops and Torosaurus, the hadrosaur Edmontosaurus, the armored Ankylosaurus, the pachycephalosaurs Pachycephalosaurus, Stygimoloch and Dracorex, the smaller theropod Troodon, and the ornithomimid Struthiomimus, making it one of the latest species of non-avian dinosaurs to evolve prior to the great extinction 65 million years ago. Tyrannosaurus enjoys a fearsome reputation around the world thanks to its size, power and aggression – a status borne out by its name, which translates to "King of the Tyrant Lizards" – and to many, it represents the ultimate predator. The most familiar dinosaur in history, this magnificent bipedal carnivorous animal has long been at the heart of dinosaur attractions. Tyrannosaurus is known for its massive head with what is theorized have been the most powerful jaw known to science and rows of large, serrated teeth delivering the strongest bite to have ever existed on land. The base genome of the Tyrannosaurus is primarily dark brown.
Gameplay
Evolution
Behaviour
Tyrannosaurus is an extremely powerful carnivorous dinosaur representing one of the pinnacles of the Hammond Foundation's operations in the Muertes Archipelago. A temperamental species in comparison to other dinosaurs, Tyrannosaurus do not tolerate variations from their preferred environment, which should ideally consist of a mix between open grassland to roam, and open forests, from which they can ambush their prey. If their enclosure fails to meet these requirements, the Tyrannosaurus may become stressed and attempt to escape.
A Tyrannosaurus fights against a Spinosaurus.
Unlike most of the other large carnivores such as Carcharodontosaurus, Giganotosaurus, Acrocanthosaurus, and Spinosaurus, Tyrannosaurus is content with solitude and will become stressed when placed in an enclosure with another member of their species. This will result in an often fatal fight for dominance. Similar clashes, often to the death, can occur between similarly-sized carnivores such as Spinosaurus, while heavily armored herbivores such as Ankylosaurus, Stegosaurus, and Triceratops are more than capable of fighting back.[8]
Available genomes
| Fossil icon | Dig site | Quality | Number available |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Frenchman Formation | ★ ★★ ★★★ |
1 3 4 |
| Hell Creek Formation | ★ ★★ ★★★ ★★★★ |
1 3 4 4 | |
| Lance Formation | ★★★ ★★★★ |
4 4 |
Skins
Evolution 2
Behaviour
In Evolution 2, Tyrannosaurus is a highly aggressive species, although they can comfortably coexist with another member of their species in the same enclosure, engaging in social behaviours such as play fighting and sharing food from a carnivore feeder.[9] As apex predators, Tyrannosaurus can become stressed when denied an opportunity to hunt, and may attempt to escape if these needs are not met. Tyrannosaurus prefer large enclosures with areas of both forest and sand to remain comfortable.
Tyrannosaurus have the maximum security rating of 6, and can break out of their enclosures regardless of the strength of their fences. While they tolerate another member of their species, they dislike sharing their enclosure with other carnivores, with the exception of Compsognathus. They will engage in territorial fights with other carnivores, and can be defeated by smaller pack hunting predators such as Velociraptor.
Available genomes
| Fossil icon | Dig site | Quality | Number available |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Frenchman Formation B | ★ ★★ ★★★ |
1 2 1 |
| Hell Creek Formation C | ★★ ★★★ |
1 1 | |
| Lance Formation Site C | ★ ★★★ |
1 1 |
Skins
Evolution 3
Behaviour
Available genomes
Skins
Paleontology
Tyrannosaurus skeleton
Tyrannosaurus fossils have been found across the once island continent of Laramidia – now western North America. Teeth were the first fossil find in 1874 near Golden in Colorado. American geologist Arthur Lakes laid claim to the discovery of Tyrannosaurus when he unearthed multiple teeth in the Morrison Formation, Colorado. The teeth were initially believed to belong to Ornithomimus, but the subsequent discovery of a partial skeleton by Barnum Brown while investigating a site in Wyoming in 1900 was classified as Tyrannosaurus (full name Tyrannosaurus rex or simply T. rex for short) five years later, with Lakes' find later attributed to the same genus. There are two specimens of Tyrannosaurus that are the largest found thus far – one was discovered by Sue Hendrickson in August 12, 1990 at the Hell Creek Formation in South Dakota and was named "Sue" in Hendrickson's honor; the other, named "Scotty", was unearthed a year later in Saskatchewan, Canada by Eastend school teacher Robert Gebhard leading a team of paleontologists on a local expedition. Since its first discovery, Tyrannosaurus has grown to become arguably the most famous and well-studied dinosaur in the world as well as one of the best-known prehistoric animals, giving rise to its reputation and famousness as the king of the dinosaurs.
Although other species of theropod dinosaurs (i.e. Carcharodontosaurus, Giganotosaurus, and Spinosaurus) were roughly the same size as Tyrannosaurus, if not larger, it is still one of the largest known terrestrial carnivores of all time as well as the namesake and by far the largest member of the tyrannosaur family. Large individuals could reach 13 m (43 ft) long, grow to 4 m (13 ft) tall, and weigh 7 t (15,432 lb); with the average still being a respectably huge 12.3 m (40 ft) long, 3.7 m (12 ft) tall, and 5 t (11,023 lb). However, new research estimates that Tyrannosaurus may have grown larger than previously thought, potentially reaching sizes of 14.5 to 15.3 m (47 to 50 ft) in length, growing 4.6 to 5 m (15 to 16 ft) tall, and weighing more than 8 t (17,637 lb). With its massive skull alone measuring 1.54 m (5 ft), Tyrannosaurus had a bite force of almost 6,000 kg (13,227 lb) of pressure, giving it arguably the strongest jaws ever seen amongst terrestrial carnivores with only extremely large crocodilians (i.e. Deinosuchus) and marine predators, such as Mosasaurus and Megalodon, have rivaled or surpassed it in sheer bite force. Its teeth, while very sharp and serrated, are actually blunt and relied more on the bite force than a serrated edge like other theropods. Possessing 50 to 60 large, robust teeth – which on average measured 20 cm (8 in) long and some measured 30 cm (12 in) long, root included – aligned in its 1 to 1.3 m (3 to 4 ft) powerful jaws, this was an adaptation to crush bones and bite through body armor, allowing adult Tyrannosaurus to both bring down armored prey such as ankylosaurids and ceratopsians, as well as process a carcass efficiently by crunching bones and tougher tissues to eat. Coupled with this, some paleontologists have theorized that Tyrannosaurus potentially was equipped with a deadly bacterial bite, not unlike the original theory of a Komodo dragon. Tyrannosaurus is also believed to have been the physically strongest theropod dinosaur known.
A pair of Tyrannosaurus.
Curiously this is not true with young Tyrannosaurus who had a much leaner, thin build and narrow, serrated teeth. This suggests the young of the species chased down prey more actively and likely ate different animals than the adults. Of course, alone, they would never attack a healty adult herbivore, but instead, attack juveniles. A family group, however, could attack a sick or an old individual herbivorous dinosaur. While the Jurassic franchise portrays Tyrannosaurus as having considerably limited depth perception, therefore only "attacking when seeing movement", a study of brain scans at Ohio University indicate that Tyrannosaurus possessed hypersensitive hearing (attuned to hear low frequency sounds) and an enhanced sense of smell, both of which allowed it to track prey movements over long distances, as well as powerful binocular vision that rivaled, if not surpassed, a modern eagle's and enabled Tyrannosaurus to see as far as almost four miles away in addition to thermal vision, which helped it track prey even at night. Additionally, scientists believe that Tyrannosaurus was a fairly intelligent dinosaur, more so than most other species – enough to potentially solve problems.
Tyrannosaurus was the perfect predator for armored prey even up to equal size to itself, if not larger. However, their blunter teeth and narrower jaw gape would have made hunting sauropods difficult. In the past, juvenile and adolescent specimens of the genus T. rex were mistaken for different species or genera; Nanotyrannus being a notable example, as it was until recently believed by most paleontologists to be an adolescent Tyrannosaurus. More recently, a second and earlier species – known as T. mcraeensis – was discovered in the Hall Lake Formation in New Mexico in 2024. Additionally, a possible third species exists in Mongolia in the form of the almost equally huge Tarbosaurus, which if true would be reclassified as Tyrannosaurus bataar. Two additional species – T. imperator and T. regina – have been proposed, however, paleontologists almost worldwide agree upon their invalidity.
Paleontologists suggested a wide range of maximum running speeds for Tyrannosaurus. For a time, given the size of its legs, it was speculated that Tyrannosaurus could run 45 mph (72 km/h). Later from 2002 to 2017, applying Tyrannosaurus physiology to modern reptiles and birds and given its heavy-size, they downsized its top speed between 25-35 mph (40-56 km/h). In 2019, studies officially declared Tyrannosaurus maximum speed at 11 mph (18 km/h). It has been suggested that if an adult Tyrannosaurus even tried running faster than 11 mph, their bones would shatter and break. However, while the adults were slow, it is possible that the juveniles could run at greater speeds. The arms of Tyrannosaurus, despite their small size (only a meter long – small compared to other theropod dinosaurs, let alone their overall body size), not only had two fingers ending in sharp claws which were potentially used to harm prey, but they were surprisingly functional and possessed considerable strength, enough so lift nearly 200 kilograms in weight as well as push off the ground when standing up and grasp struggling prey when hunting or female Tyrannosaurus during mating season.
A pair of Tyrannosaurus feeding on goats.
While skin samples of Tyrannosaurus rex do show the genus having small scales, it is considered likely the species was unique amongst large theropods in that it sported primitive feathers of some sort somewhere on the body or during its lifetime. It wasn't as heavily feathered as early members of its family such as Yutyrannus, so any feathers were likely along the back or when the animal was young and might need extra insulation to regulate its body temperature. For much of the twentieth century, Tyrannosaurus was regarded as a primitive, murderous beast that roamed the jungle as a solitary hunter. However, this concept has since been dropped, as deep lacerations in the skulls of many specimens suggest the animal fought others of its own kind on a regular basis, a common trait of a social species defending territory and young from rivals, and likely hunted in small groups, probably family packs. Despite this, Tyrannosaurus on occasion fought other members of their species. With that, while herbivorous dinosaurs such as Triceratops and Ankylosaurus would have posed as challenges, the only thing Tyrannosaurus was truly afraid of – if not, cautious around – was a larger individual Tyrannosaurus.
Paleoecology
Tyrannosaurus in the Late Cretaceous, 65 million years ago
By far the largest and apex predator in its time and environment, Tyrannosaurus roamed western North America during the Late Cretaceous period, approximately 83–66 million years ago, living in a variety of different ecosystems including inland and coastal subtropical regions, and semi-arid plains. There, it lived alongside a wide array of dinosaurs; known carnivorous reptiles included basal eutyrannosaurian Dryptosaurus, troodontid theropod Pectinodon, large dromaeosaurid called Dakotaraptor, the azhdarchid pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus, and smaller Dromaeosaurus as well as dubious tyrannosaur theropod Nanotyrannus (debated either as its own species or a juvenile Tyrannosaurus). Known oviraptorsaurian dinosaurs were Ojoraptorsaurus and Anzu. Herbivores included small ornithopods (Thescelosaurus), ornithomimids (Struthiomimus and Ornithomimus), hard-headed pachycephalosaurs (Pachycephalosaurus, Stygimoloch, and Dracorex – the last two could be juvenile specimens of the namesake species), hadrosaurs (Edmontosaurus, which likely was a regular prey item for the active hunter), ankylosaurs (Ankylosaurus), ceratopsians (Triceratops, Torosaurus, and Leptoceratops), and even large sauropods (such as a large sauropod about the size of an Argentinosaurus called Alamosaurus). Tyrannosaurus used its excellent hearing, heightened sense of smell, and powerful binocular vision to hunt down targets.
Behind the scenes
The Tyrannosaurus was one of the first dinosaurs to be developed for Jurassic World Evolution. The development team used the 3D model that was created for the films by Industrial Light & Magic, as well as audio files to create the most authentic representation of the dinosaur.[10] Its inclusion in the game was first revealed in the announcement trailer that was released at Gamescom 2017.[11] It received a Species Profile on May 15, 2018.[8]
At launch, Tyrannosaurus was considerably larger than both Spinosaurus and Giganotosaurus. In response to community feedback, it was downscaled from 14 meters (45.93 feet) to 13.5 meters (44.29 feet) in Update 1.4.[12] The Wetland cosmetic skin was added to the game with Update 1.6 on December 13th, 2018.[13]
For the Return to Jurassic Park expansion pack, Tyrannosaurus was given a makeover with six additional cosmetic skins that are based on its various depictions in the Jurassic series. In addition to the new cosmetic variants, the Tyrannosaur model was given a new texture map to make it look closer to its depiction in the earlier films.
Gallery
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Trevorrow, Colin. (Director). (2022). Jurassic World Dominion [Film]. Universal Pictures.
- ↑ Spielberg, Steven. (Director). (1993). Jurassic Park [Film]. Universal Pictures.
- ↑ Spielberg, Steven. (Director). (1997). The Lost World: Jurassic Park [Film]. Universal Pictures.
- ↑ Johnston, Joe. (Director). (2001). Jurassic Park III [Film]. Universal Pictures.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 What Killed the Gene Guard Act?. (February 23, 2018). Dinosaur Protection Group. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
- ↑ Trevorrow, Colin. (Director). (2015). Jurassic World [Film]. Universal Pictures.
- ↑ Bayona, J. A. (Director). (2018). Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom [Film]. Universal Pictures.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Frontier Developments. (May 15, 2018). Species Profile - Tyrannosaurus Rex [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
- ↑ Vaaler, J. E. [Jens Erik]. (September 15, 2021). Species Field Guide - Tyrannosaurus Rex [Online forum post]. Frontier Forums. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
- ↑ Krupa, Daniel (May 16, 2018). HOW JURASSIC WORLD EVOLUTION MADE ITS T.REX - IGN FIRST IGN. Retrieved June 14, 2018
- ↑ PlayStation Europe. (August 21, 2017). Jurassic World Evolution | Announcement Trailer | PS4 [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
- ↑ Marit, Bo. [Bo_Frontier]. (August 16, 2018). Important News about Dinosaur Sizes [Online forum post]. Reddit. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
- ↑ Steggall, Mark. [Steggs]. (December 13, 2018). Update 1.6 and Jurassic World Evolution: Cretaceous Dinosaur Pack Out Now! [Online forum post]. Frontier Forums. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
External links
- Tyrannosaurus on Wikipedia
