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Carnotaurus was a species of small carnivorous dinosaur that lived on Isla Sorna that was unique for its highly developed camouflage. Its highly developed camouflage made it the most deadly predator on the island during the night, with Velociraptor and Tyrannosaurus refusing to go in its territory at nighttime. The dinosaur was never brought to Isla Nublar, likely because of its camouflaging abilities.
Description[]
The InGen Carnotaurus were smaller than their real life counterparts, measuring at 7 feet tall and resembling small Tyrannosauruses but with more bulldog-like snouts, bony protuberances above the eyes, and more stubbier forelimbs.
Camouflage[]
The InGen Carnotaurus had a highly developed form of camouflage well beyond that of any other animal. It was never known if this is a natural feature or a product of genetic tampering. By changing of color of their scales, the Carnotaurus could replicate complex patterns in the environment to such a degree that it made them extremely difficult to observe. They were nocturnal because their system of camouflage was most effective at night. Thanks to this ability, they were expert ambush predators, but were too slow to give chase to prey, relying on speed and the element of surprise to make a kill.
Role in the Ecosystem[]
The Carnotaurus pair made their territory in the area surrounding the Laboratory and the Worker Village. Few other animals would venture into their territory during the nighttime. Both the feared Velociraptors and Tyrannosauruses were observed to be wary in the vicinity of their territory, refusing to venture in at night. This meant that, within their territory, they were most likely the apex predator during the night. Once it became day, however, the Velociraptors and Tyrannosaurus would venture in, although the Tyrannosaurus would not stay in the vicinity for long.
History[]
The Lost World[]
A Carnotaurus pictured in a special edition novel. It has some inaccuracies, like color changing teeth.
At the outset of Doctor Levine’s ill-fated venture onto the shadowed expanse of Isla Sorna, he and his guide, Diego, were set upon by a pair of Carnotaurus—specters of predatory design cloaked in the foliage's deceptive embrace. The attack came with swift brutality: Diego was snatched into the ferns, his cries vanishing as the jungle consumed him whole. Meanwhile, the second Carnotaurus descended upon Levine, its feral cunning focused on the professor’s meager belongings. In the scuffle, it wrenched his backpack free, a token of its dominance, before melting back into the obscurity of the underbrush.
Much later, the same predators emerged again, this time prowling near the worker village's dilapidated shed where Levine, Arby, Kelly, Thorne, Sarah Harding, and Ian Malcolm had taken uneasy refuge. Their presence was heralded not by sight but by sound—a guttural breathing that drifted to Thorne as he prepared to step outside. A flicker of movement, a transient shimmer as their camouflage rippled, betrayed them only briefly.
The dinosaur's picture in a special edition novel.
Levine’s eyes, sharp with paranoia, caught the fleeting disturbance, prompting him to flood the shed with light. For an instant, the Carnotauruses were revealed, their bodies etched against the gloom in sharp relief, monstrous and alien. Undeterred, they advanced toward the shed, their massive forms testing its confines, but the structure’s narrow frame held them at bay.
In a desperate bid to exploit the creatures’ peculiar invisibility, Sarah and Levine waved their flashlights around in the darkness. The dinosaurs had a small delay in their color changing ability, and this revealed them for a second. This forced the predators' camouflage into a frenzied flux as their skins shifted, pattern after pattern dissolving into chaos. Stripped of their stealth, the Carnotauruses faltered. Their predatory advantage shattered, they slunk back into the jungle’s abyss, abandoning their siege as abruptly as it began, never to trouble the survivors again.
References[]
- ↑ Page 234 of The Lost World https://i.imgur.com/ywMMuaH.png
- ↑ Page 235 of The Lost World https://i.imgur.com/YKMk9w1.png
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