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Iguanodon (meaning "iguana tooth") is an extinct genus of ornithopod iguanodontian dinosaur that lived in Europe during the Early Cretaceous period. It is currently assumed to stand on its hindlimbs, and yet normally walk on all fours. If attacked, it could dissuade a predator with its powerful thumb spike.[1]

Iguanodon was the second dinosaur ever discovered, and this allowed scientists who had never seen a complete dinosaur, to figure out what it would have looked like in life. In fact, the first time this common dinosaur was found as just a partial skeleton, scientists put its thumb spike on its nose thinking it was a horn.

This was only the second dinosaur to be described, after Megalosaurus. Its teeth were discovered in the early 1820s in England - these original fossils were "rediscovered" in the British Museum in 1977. As nothing like it had ever been described in scientific literature, the teeth of this creature were a puzzle that an amateur paleontologist named Gideon Mantell solved by comparing them to the teeth of living animals. Mantell found that the teeth looked like those of a modern iguana and named it Iguanodon. He speculated that it was a huge extinct version of this modern reptile. It was in 1878 in a coal mine in Belgium that 24 fairly complete and articulated specimens were found. Although they were of a larger species, they clearly showed what this creature looked like in life.[2]


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Wikipedia has a more detailed and comprehensive article on Iguanodon



Characteristics[]

The Iguanodon resemble their prehistoric counterparts greatly. Their backs and tail are dark brown while the rest of their bodies are earth colored, with white stripes running down their backs.

Behavior[]

The Iguanodon is shown to be a docile herbivore that appear to be a relatively solitary creature compared to the original animal (the largest herd consists of four). It was seen coexisting with other herbivores like Dreadnoughtus, Triceratops and Parasaurolophus. Like other ornithopods in the franchise, the Iguanodon seem to be afraid of predators like the Giganotosaurus. However, it is unknown if it was able to defend itself from predators as it wasn't shown using its thumb.

History[]

Past[]

During the Cretaceous, an Iguanodon was grazing before being disturbed and scared off by a Giganotosaurus and a Tyrannosaurus rex.

Jurassic World: Dominion[]

Iguanodon was created by Biosyn sometime prior to 2022. They are first seen drinking in a river with Parasaurolophus and Triceratops before being scared by burning Giant Locusts. Eventually, the dinosaurs can be seen escaping the forest fire in the movie’s climax. An Iguanodon was seen grazing nearby a Dreadnoughtus and a flying Pteranodon, only to run from an approaching Rexy and Giganotosaurus. It can be assumed that Biosyn’s Iguanodon now reside in the wild or might be continuing their lives in the abandoned sanctuary, which is now a global reserve.

Gallery[]

Jurassic World: Dominion[]

Promotional Images[]

Vocalization[]



Behind the Scenes[]

  • In Malaya Scotch Marmo’s draft for Jurassic Park, Hammond, in an effort to persuade Grant from leaving, tells him that he was hatching Iguanodons the following Tuesday.
  • Iguanodon was planned to appear in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, but Colin Trevorrow confirmed there were no plans for it to be added in the final cut.
  • It can be noted that the Iguanodon’s color scheme resembles that of its Walking With Dinosaurs counterpart, which was based on remains of a North American species of Iguanodon now identified as Dakotadon, which is brown with white stripes. Most fans say they resemble one of the early animated models from Disney’s Dinosaur that were tested in March & October during the year of 1996.
  • Iguanodon is one of the many dinosaurs that appeared in the Dinopedia section of Jurassic Park Institute.

References[]

  1. Jurassic Park DNA, TM & (c) 1994 CIC Video International. All text approved by Dr. Angela Milner, The National History Museum, London.
  2. Dinopedia on the JPI site

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