Tyrannosaurus rex

Tyrannosaurus rex is a species of large theropod dinosaur, often shortened to T. rex or colloquially t-rex. It lived throughout what is now western North America, on what was then an island continent known as Laramidia. Tyrannosaurus had a much wider range than other tyrannosaurids.

Like other tyrannosaurids, Tyrannosaurus is a bipedal carnivore with a massive skull balanced by a long, heavy tail. Relative to its large and powerful hind limbs, the forelimbs of Tyrannosaurus are short but unusually powerful for their size, and they had two clawed digits.

Adult Tyrannosaurs can reach 40–43 ft in length, 12–13 ft in hip height, and 8.8 t (8.7 long tons; 9.7 short tons) in mass. Although some other theropods might have rivaled or exceeded Tyrannosaurus in size, it is still among the largest known land predators, with its estimated bite force being the largest among all terrestrial animals. By far the largest carnivore in its environment, Tyrannosaurus rex was an apex predator, preying upon hadrosaurs, juvenile armored herbivores like ceratopsians and ankylosaurs, and even sauropods.

Biology

Brain and Senses

Tyrannosaurus rex was one of the most intelligent dinosaurs of its time. With Intelligence levels similar to that of modern-day Chimpanzees. They also possessed highly accute senses including vision that outranked Eagles in accuracy and the best sense of smell of any land animal. Not to mention sensitive ears that could pick up a wide range of low-frequency sounds that the animals could use to communicate with one another.

The face of a Tyrannosaurus is covered in a high number of small openings that contained sensory neurons. Which made the face of a Tyrannosaurus incredibly sensitive to pressure and touch, a useful tool to measure the temperature of their nests and to gently pick up eggs and hatchlings. as well as accurately sense slight differences in material and movement, allowing it to utilize different feeding strategies on different parts of its prey's carcasses depending on the situation

Ecology

Tyrannosaurus lived during what is referred to as the Lancian faunal stage (Maastrichtian age) at the end of the Late Cretaceous. Tyrannosaurus ranged from Canada in the north to at least Sonora, Mexico in the south of Laramidia. During this time Triceratops was the major herbivore in the northern portion of its range, while the titanosaurian sauropod Alamosaurus dominated its southern range. Tyrannosaurus were able to thrive in different ecosystems, including inland and coastal subtropical, and semi-arid plains.

Many Tyrannosaurs were found in what is currently the Hell Creek Formation. During the Maastrichtian this area was subtropical, with a warm and humid climate. The flora consisted mostly of angiosperms, but also included trees like dawn redwood (Metasequoia). Archosaurs discovered from this formation include the ceratopsians Leptoceratops, Torosaurus, and Triceratops, the hadrosaurid Edmontosaurus annectens, the parksosaurid Thescelosaurus, the ankylosaurs Ankylosaurus and Denversaurus, the pachycephalosaurs Pachycephalosaurus and Sphaerotholus, the paravian theropod Pectinodon, other maniraptoran theropods Anzu, Eoneophron and Trierarchuncus, and the pterosaur Infernodrakon.

Another formation with Tyrannosaurus remains is the Lance Formation of Wyoming. This area was a bayou environment similar to today's Gulf Coast. The fauna was very similar to Hell Creek, but with Struthiomimus replacing its relative Ornithomimus.

In its southern range, Tyrannosaurus rex lived alongside the titanosaur Alamosaurus and the ceratopsids Torosaurus and Bravoceratops, and the pterosaurs Quetzalcoatlus and Wellnhopterus. Its southern range is was dominated by semi-arid inland plains, following the probable retreat of the Western Interior Seaway as global sea levels fell.

It is possible that tyrannosaurs were originally Asian species, migrating to North America before the end of the Cretaceous period

Tyrannosaurus also frequently interacted with Maniraptoran Society, and were well known for their habits of hunting down and eating those who ventured out of their cities.

Tyrannosaurs are highly flexible when it comes to sociality, being comfortable hunting in packs, in pairs or alone.

Cultural Significance

Tyrannosaurus was easily the most fearsome and powerful animal in its home environment, one they shared with Dakotaraptor, Saurornitholestes and Troodon, who revered and even worshipped these animals throughout their individual histories. Tyrannosaurs were well known among Maniraptorans for their habits of hunting down and eating those who ventured out of their cities, though that did not stop the respect held for this species.

Once fossils of these animals were discovered by Humans in 1905, T. rex has become the most widely recognized dinosaur species in popular culture. It is the only dinosaur that is commonly known to the general public by its full scientific name (binomial name) and the scientific abbreviation T. rex has also come into wide usage

Modern History

The 8th mission of the Greene Foundation Temporal Wildlife Rescue Missions, sent Thaddeus Greene to an alternate Hell Creek Formation, where he was able to bring a population of 6 Tyrannosaurus rex to the Modern-day West Florida Keys. However, one of these animals was taken by John Beery and shipped to Isla Estafa, to be used as a source of DNA. GenenTech scientists modified the Tyrannosaur genome to be more marketable to consumers and give the general public the kind of animal they expected to see, as well as other modifications to make the animals more spectacular including larger sizes, louder roars, higher aggression and extra spikes and osteoderms. The subspecies, Tyrannosaurus rex estafaensis, was then bred on the island, with 8 individuals being born.

Unfortunately following the Oklahoma City Incident, GenenTech's plans of creating Dinosaur Theme Parks fell through and GenenTech resorted to selling T.r.estafaensis within the confines of CryptoZoo Traders Global, to the highest bidders.

In 2022, a 17 year old Rolf Maxwell was exposed to Primordial Ooze, which caused him to mutate into a mutated Tyrannosaurus rex that was able to retake his previous human form.