Proceratosaurus

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***Proceratosaurus*** is a genus of proceratosaurid dinosaur that originated from Middle Jurassic Europe. Originally thought to be related to *Ceratosaurus* and later discovered to be a primitive tyrannosaur, *Proceratosaurus* is included in the *Carnivore Dinosaur Pack* and unlocked at Isla Matanceros by progressing through the Security Division.

## History

*Proceratosaurus* was one of the species which InGen planned to feature at the original Jurassic Park on Isla Nublar. Viable embryos were created, through the animal itself was never hatched. However, a paddock was created before the 1993 incident.

*Proceratosaurus* was among the many dinosaur embryos that Dennis Nedry stole from the Cold Storage Room at the beginning of the 1993 Isla Nublar Incident. A report from the Dinosaur Protection Group states that the viable embryos on Nublar were all destroyed due to water damage to the cool room during the incident, and so all of InGen's DNA samples were lost during the evacuation of Site B. Its status was set to 'terminated' until new DNA samples were recovered.

## Characteristics

One of the earliest tyrannosauroids, *Proceratosaurus* is a relatively small carnivorous dinosaur from the Middle Jurassic period and is notable for the distinctive characteristic nasal crest down its snout. Due to this, *Proceratosaurus* was mistakenly identified as an ancestor of *Ceratosaurus*, due to its distinctive nasal crest. This crest gave it its name, meaning "*Before Ceratosaurus*". As only a fragment of the crest is intact on the one known specimen, it is possible the crest could have been much larger, relative to skull size, than the *Ceratosaurus'* horn. However further research has found that it is in fact a cousin of the infamous *Tyrannosaurus*, albeit much smaller at around four meters in length.

### Behaviour

*Proceratosaurus* is a sociable dinosaur which needs to be kept in small groups. Despite their small size, they are dangerous to hadrosaurs and other docile herbivores and will fight with other small carnivores. They can live together with armoured herbivores and sauropods.

## Paleontology

*Proceratosaurus* was a mystery for much of the course of its history. The sole known *Proceratosaurus* fossil was discovered by F. Lewis Bradley in 1910 at the White Limestone Formation in Gloucestershire near the English town of Minichinhampton on the south coast of England. Like many dinosaurs, modern advancements in fossil analysis have revealed the mistakes and mis-classifications of the past. Initially, examination of the specimen (a single, partially complete skull) led paleontologists like Arthur Smith Woodward and Friedrich von Huene to believe it was an ancestor of *Megalosaurus*. However, in 1926, further studies of the skull found it was a completely different genus.

Initially, after this study, it was concluded that *Proceratosaurus* was thought to be an ancestral relative of the North American *Ceratosaurus* (hence the name) due to the assumed presence of a nasal crest, but later studies in the 1980s disproved this. It was then suggested to be a relative of *Ornitholestes*, a small North American theropod which was also believed to have a nasal horn. However, later studies in the early 2000s showed that the 'nasal horn' of *Ornitholestes* was actually the result of damage during fossilization and the two dinosaurs weren't closely related. *Proceratosaurus* was thus left as an enigma or maverick, with theories suggesting it was either an offshoot evolution that never developed into anything else or was part of a yet unknown theropod family.

    Then, it wasn't until a decade later that studies confirmed *Proceratosaurus* was a relative of the tyrannosaurs of the Late Cretaceous period. In 2010, a major re-evaluation of *Proceratosaurus* and its relations to other theropods was published, placing it in the tyrannosaur lineage. As a result, *Proceratosaurus* was re-classified a tyrannosauroid after CT scans revealed internal air spaces in the skull, a feature shared with dinosaurs in this group. This study came four years after the discovery of *Guanlong*, a similar Middle Jurassic theropod from China. Both genus shared an ornate nasal display. For much of its history, *Proceratosaurus* was reconstructed with a horn, but *Guanlong* revealed this was actually an elaborate crest formed from the premaxilla nasal bones. This crest was most likely used for display purposes. The breakthrough study of *Proceratosaurus* and *Guanlong* lead to the formation of the Proceratosauridae family, basal relatives of tyrannosaurs that would eventually dominate the Late Cretaceous. There are several other Proceratosauridae, including *Yutyrannus*, *Sinotyrannus*, and *Kileskus*. All genus in this family have crests, ranging from the large impressive crests of *Kileskus* and *Guanlong*, to the smaller horns and bumps of *Yutyrannus*.

### Paleoecology

*Proceratosaurus* itself is currently the oldest known tyrannosaur. Not much is currently known about it or its ecology, as no other dinosaur fossils have been found in Minchinhampton. Therefore, information about *Proceratosaurus* is limited, as only one partial specimen has ever been found. However, research has shown that it lived along the south coast of England around 165 million years ago during the Middle Jurassic period. Other dinosaurs shared *Proceratosaurus'* habitat, including *Metriacanthosaurus*. Little is also known about *Proceratosaurus'* natural environment, but it likely contained a mix of floodplain and woodland.

## Skins

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## Gallery

VideosSpecies Profile - Proceratosaurus
Images
## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Spielberg, Steven. (Director). (1993). *Jurassic Park* [Film]. Universal Pictures.
2. ↑ *Investigation: The Old Park*. (June 11, 2018). Dinosaur Protection Group. Retrieved March 21, 2021.