2015 Jack Hopson
Spinosaurus and Tyrannosaurus: The Scientific Accuracy of Jurassic Park
In 1993, one of the greatest film franchises in history, Jurassic Park, was brought to the big screen by filmmaker Steven Spielberg with help from the famous paleontologist Jack Horner. The series of four movies was based off of the books by science fiction writer Michael Crichton. Not only did the movies bring dinosaurs back to life, but they revolutionized the technology of special effects and changed the filming industry forever.
In 2001, the third film in the Jurassic Park series, Jurassic Park III, was released. In this installment, there was an infamous scene that changed the public perception of dinosaur behavior. In the movie, a Tyrannosaurus rex, portrayed as a weak scavenger, was undeniably defeated by a relatively unknown but more menacing dinosaur, Spinosaurus aegyptiacus. This giant monster, depicted as being capable of mass extinction and unregulated slaughter was soon revered as the true emperor of the archosaurs, while Tyrannosaurus was dethroned. Recently, however, new evidence on Spinosaur and Tyrannosaur biology suggests that this fight might have taken a different turn.
The theory that Tyrannosaurus was not a predator was based on assumptions that because of its small arms, good sense of smell, slow speed, and bone crushing bite it was better suited as a scavenger. There are several problems with this theory, however. One of the most predominant is the fact that the range of Tyrannosaurus contains no other large carnivores to keep the herbivores in check. In addition to this, multiple fossils have been found showing evidence of violent attacks on herbivores, some with healed wounds, and the occasional Tyrannosaurus tooth still imbedded. The bone crushing bite and good sense of smell, proposed to help find and devour carcasses, would be incredibly efficient at hunting down the large animals that this beast ate. New evidence also shows that it had binocular vision, the strongest bite force of any animal known, and could hear and communicate in infrasound. Even its comical short arms had a deadly secret in that they could lift up to 400 pounds each and were used to gore its unfortunate prey. Once the animal was dead, fossilized remains indicate that the tyrannosaur would likely decapitate the animal to get to the meaty neck area. As not every attack guaranteed a kill, Tyrannosaurus would likely have taken to scavenging if it had the opportunity. Click here to read more.
Click here to watch a video about the project, created by Jack Hopson.
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