Name: Australopithecus (Aw-Strawl-Loe-Pith-The-Cus)

Which means: "Southern ape"

Australopithecus was an early hominid that roamed the plains of Africa during the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene (approximately 4.5-1.9 million years ago), making it one of the longest lived primates. These primates were our earliest ancestors, standing to about 3-5 feet in height.

Like most primates, Australopithecus likely lived in social groups, looking out and taking care of one another. They also likely used tools for getting food and fending off predators.

There are in fact several different species of Australopithecus. And one of the most well known specimens of Australopithecus was Lucy, a member of Australopithecus afarensis. Lucy was one of the first hominin fossils to become a household name and the most complete hominin to have been discovered, with roughly 40% of her remains uncovered.

#JurassicJune #mammals #humans #ancestors #science #paleontology #facts #education

Name: Pyroraptor (Pie-roe-rap-tor)

Which Means: "fire thief"

Pyroraptor was a small carnivorous theropod that lived what would be modern France during the Late Cretaceous (approximately 70 million years ago). This dinosaur was very similar to its Asian relative Velociraptor. It was about the same length (measuring 6 feet) and size (at least a meter in height), both were dromeosaurids as they both had the signature curved claw on each foot, and both were feathered.

This was the first dromeosaurid dinosaur to have been discovered in Europe, whereas most dromeosaurid remains were found scattered throughout Asia, North America, and South America. It lived alongside various species of dinosaurs such as the iguanodont Rhabdodon, the long-necked titanosaur Atsinganosaurus, and the carnivorous abelisaur Tarascosaurus.

Pyroraptor got its name after partially preserved remains of this dinosaur were discovered outside of Providence, France, after a forest fire swept through the area. Its scientific name is in fact Pyroraptor olympius, which translates to "olympic fire thief".

#JurassicJune #dinosaur #paleontology #science #education #facts

Be proud

Love all

Be loved

Say gay

Be you

Be cool

You rule

Love always

Happy Pride Month to all my friends here on Prose!

#LGBT #LGBTQ #PrideMonth #LoveisLove

Name: Kronosaurus (Krone-no-sawr-us)

Named after: The Greek titan, Kronos.

Kronosaurus was a large pliosaur that ruled the seas during the Early Cretaceous, approximately 100 million years ago. It was a massive reptile, measuring up to 36 feet from head to tail. Its skull alone measured up to 9 feet in length (approximately 3 meters).

This animal was the apex predator of the Cretaceous seas, feeding off of plesiosaurs, cephalopods, fish, sharks, and smaller pliosaurs. Hence why it was named after the king of the Greek titans, Kronos.

#JurassicJune #marinereptile #education #science #paleontology #facts

A man stood outside of a large red house, quietly staring from a distance. Ignoring the breeze that brushed against his long dark blonde hair and brown leather jacket he stared that its number: 999.

The numbers were there near the garage, greeting the neighborhood. This was the right house. He had memorized the address a thousand times. 999 Milton Avenue.

The man always thought about approaching it. Practiced it hundreds of times in his head. It's so simple. Walk up to the front door, knock, and wait for an answer. So simple, right? But he couldn't. He didn't have the strength to step onto his new property. This time, he knew it was going to be different. This time he was going to the front of the house to see someone he hasn't seen in a long time.

Name: Archelon (Ark-kay-lon)

Which Means: "Ruling turtle"

Archelon was the largest turtle to have ever been discovered. It swam the great seas during the Late Cretaceous Period, approximately 80-74 million years ago. This extinct species grew to about 16 feet in length from head to tail, and weighed about 4900 pounds.

This behemoth swam the shallow waters of the Western Interior Seaway, a large inland sea that once separated North America into two continents, Laramidia and Appalachia. It likely fed off of small fish, squid, and jellyfish like modern sea turtles. It also shared its habitat with other marine life, such as various species of sharks and fish, and even larger marine reptiles such as the long-necked plesiosaur Elasmosaurus and the fearsome mosasaur Tylosaurus.

It was originally believed that the leatherback sea turtle, which is the largest modern turtle, was this animal's closet living relative. It's hard not to see why. The resemblance to both Archelon and the leatherback sea turtle is uncanny. Later studies revealed that it was actually part of a separate extinct family called Protostegidae, which consisted of other extinct members such as Protostega and Desmatochelys.

#JurassicJune #reptiles #science #education #facts #paleontology

Name: Majungasaurus (Ma-jung-ga-sawr-us)

Named after: the Mahajunga Providence of Madagascar

Majungasaurus was a bipedal theropod dinosaurs that ruled prehistoric Madagascar during the last days of the dinosaurs, roughly 70-66 million years ago. It grew to about 25-28 feet in length and 2 meters in height. It may not have been a very big carnivore, as compared to Tyrannosaurus Rex, yet it was the largest carnivorous dinosaur to have been found in Madagascar, meaning it was likely the region's apex predator at the time.

When it was first discovered only the top part of the skull was known. This initially led paleontologists to believe that this was the skull of a pachycelphalosaurid. However, upon further findings, it was revealed to carnivorous dinosaur with a small horn atop its head, above the eyes.

This is also (so far) one of the few dinosaurs to have fossil evidence that suggest this animal was known to have engaged in cannibalism, with teeth marks found on some specimens that matched the teeth of similar to its own.

#JurassicJune #dinosaurs #paleontology #dinosaurs #education #science #facts

The end of a saga 65 million years in the making.

Jurassic World Dominion is the third installment in the Jurassic World trilogy and the sixth installment in the overall Jurassic Park franchise. Colin Trevorrow returns as director and writer along with Jurassic World/Jurassic Park alumini Christ Pratt, Bryce Dallas Howard, BD Wong, Isabella Sermon, Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum.

Set four years after the events of Fallen Kingdom, humans are forced to share a world where dinosaurs roam once again. Owen Grady (reprised by Chris Pratt) and Claire Dearing (reprised by Bryce Dallas Howard) are now the adoptive parents of Maisie Lockwood (reprised by Isabella Sermon) and are trying their best to protect her from the world. Things change when they find that their old friend Blue the Velociraptor has an offspring of her own that is taken. Grady and Dearing do all they can to try and get the little dinosaur back.

Elsewhere, the survivors of the original Jurassic Park, paleontologist Doctor Alan Grant (reprised by Sam Neill); paleobotanist Doctor Ellie Sattler (reprised by Laura Dern); and mathematician Doctor Ian Malcolm (reprised by Jeff Goldblum); are brought to a facility owned by BioSyn, the rival company of Ingen. There they discover that they have been making new dinosaurs of their own such as the fierce Pyroraptor, the odd looking Therizinosaurus, and the extremely dangerous Giganotosaurus.

The Jurassic Park franchise has always been special to me. It's the whole reason I'm obsessed with dinosaurs. It's because of the first film it's why I wanted to be a paleontologist. And these Jurassic World movies have been a hit or miss with me. The first Jurassic World was a surprising fun thriller that took home over a billion dollars at the box office. And Fallen Kingdom was a piece of shit.

So the first positive I want to get out of the way is the cast. Having the original cast back is a sight to behold. Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum were great. It was so fun seeing them together and interacting again. Plus, it was fun seeing the OG cast interact with the new cast. Everybody was great in this. Although if I had to pick which group is my favorite, I'm going with the OG group. Maybe that's a personal bias for the original film but, then again, why wouldn't I pick the original cast members, right?

And of course where would the franchise be without its groundbreaking effects. The special effects were top tier in this film. I haven't seen a splendid use of both visual and practical effects since the original film. Emphasis on the practical side. I feel that's something that the other two Jurassic World movies were missing out on.

As a dinosaur fanatic I did enjoy seeing the dinosaurs, especially the new ones. After six films we finally have feathered dinosaurs in a Jurassic movie. My favorites being the Pyroraptor and the Therizinosaurus. And let me just say that the Therizinosaurus is an absolute badass. While it only had a small amount of screen time and I'm in love with this dinosaur. I cannot wait to add it to my parks in Jurassic World Evolution 2.

But now is is the time to talk about all the bad. First up, the writing. This is the third film director Colin Trevorrow has also served as one of the lead writers for this new series of Jurassic Park movies. And this is also the third time he's proven that is not a good writer, and it shows with the main story. The main story is all over the place. First the got the stuff regarding Blue and Beta, the Velociraptors. Then there's Maisie, the human clone (and most unlikable character in the franchise). Then there's Grant, Sattler, and Malcolm fucking around at Biosyn. Then you got Dr. Henry Wu (reprised by B.D. Wong) and his conflicts with Biosyn CEO Lewis Dodgson (played by Campbell Scott). Yeah, that's right. Dodgson! Dodgson! We got Dodgson here! Eh, nobody cares.

Bottom line, the story is all over the place and it is such a mess to follow. Personally, I don't think Trevorrow understands balance, which might explain why the plot keeps jumping around. It's funny how people bitch about never getting a chance to see how his version of Star Wars Episode 9 would have turned out when they forget that he fucked up the Jurassic franchise with Fallen Kingdom.

More so, the other issue I have is when he tries to insert quirkiness into the story. That seems to be habit in each Jurassic World movie. Everyone has to make some sort of joke or somebody has to do something that seems out of the norm in an attempt to seem quirky. Trevorrow is trying to apply the same formula from Marvel into Jurassic Park, which is seriously unnecessary. I mean, it's fucking Jurassic Park. We want to see dinosaurs eat people for crying out loud not Owen Grady justify why he's carrying a baby Velociraptor on his back.

Overall, Jurassic World Dominion is a fine popcorn flick. I think this movie is better than Fallen Kingdom. It's certainly an improvement. However, it falls short from being good due to its poor writing. But I definitely had more fun watching this than Fallen Kingdom and I wouldn't mind seeing it again... when it hits Redbox.

There's been speculation that this will be the last Jurassic Park film in the franchise. It's certainly promoting itself as such. I don't believe that this is the last Jurassic Park movie, and honestly, I hope the franchise never ends. If the first Jurassic Park got me interested in dinosaurs and paleontology, then Jurassic World is probably doing that for this new generations of children. That's one of the spectacles of the franchise. If a kid somewhere wants to learn more about prehistoric life in the past and maybe make a career out of it that is awesome. So I say keep making movies. One day Universal Pictures might make their Fast & Furious/Jurassic Park crossover... in the next 65 million years or so.

Positives:

-The OG cast & New Gen cast

-Outstanding visuals & practical effects

-New (feathered) dinosaurs

-Fun action

Negatives:

-Attempt at quirkiness

-Colin Trevorrow's writing

-2 1/2 hours? Really?

Final Grade: C+

So those are my thoughts on Jurassic World Dominion. Have you seen it? What were your thoughts on it? What's your favorite moment from the Jurassic Park franchise? Please be kind, leave a like and comment, and check out more reviews here on Prose!

Best Quote:

Dr. Ian Malcolm: "Jurassic World? Not a fan."

#harrysituationreviews #film #opinion #dinosaurs #scifi #action #thriller #paleontology #JurassicJune

Name: Minmi (Min-My)

Name after: the Minmi crossing, Australia

Minmi was a small armored herbivore of the Early Cretaceous (133-120 million years ago). It was no bigger than a dog, growing about ten feet in length. This dinosaur belonged to a the ankylosaur family, and like most ankylosaurs they had bony armor that protected them from predators. It was one of the few dinosaur fossils that is found in Australia.

Its full name is Minmi paravertebrae. The reason for its name is that, unlike other ankylosaurs, it had thin bony rods going along its spine. Why these bony rods are like this is unclear. It is suggested that, along with its unusually long legs, they helped Minmi outrun predators rather than solely rely on its armor for protection.

For a while this dinosaur held the record for having the shortest dinosaur name in discovery until it was surpassed by the discovery of the dinosaurs Mei and Yi.

#JurassicJune #dinosaur #paleontology #facts #science #education

Name: Quetzelcoatlus (Ketz-zell-coe-ought-lus)

Named after: Quetzelcoatl, the Aztec feathered serpent god of the winds

Quetzelcoatlus was the largest pterosaur that ever soared across the skies during the final days of the Late Cretaceous, 68-66 million years ago. This giant was as tall as a giraffe and had the wingspan of 40 feet. That's about as long as a Cessna 172 light aircraft.

Due to its size it would likely had to jump at least 2 meters into the air in order to take flight. Once in the air it likely flew like modern vultures or condors, gliding rather than flapping its enormous wings.

Quetzelcoatlus fossils can be found throughout North America from Texas to Montana. It lived along the last of the dinosaurs such as the horned Triceratops, the duck-billed Edmontosaurus, and the apex predator Tyrannosaurus. Its fossil may have influenced the myth behind the Thunderbird, a mythological creature among certain Native American cultures.

This pterosaur will make its first big screen debut in Jurassic World Dominion where one Quetzelcoatlus is attacking a plane operated by Owen Grady (played by Christ Pratt), Kayla Watts (DeWanda Wise), and Claire Dearing (played by Bryce Dallas Howard).

#JurassicJune #pterosaur #paleontology #science #education #facts