Parasaurolophus

## General

* Alt
* JP Institute

*Parasaurolophus* is a hadrosaurid (sometimes referred to as the duck-billed dinosaurs) from approximately 76.5–73 million years ago (late Cretaceous). It is a herd animal feeding on the park’s rich vegetation. The most stunning feature of the Parasaurolophus is the crest on its head. Scientists were unsure of its function until today. Some believed it was a snorkel for when the animal was in the water, others felt that it was used in combat. We now know that it serves for display and for communication, allowing the animals to remain in contact over distance by amplifying their haunting, beautiful cries.

## Description

*Parasaurolophus* are a faculative biped species of hadrosaur, similar to *Corythosaurus*. They have long, narrow crests at the back of they're skulls. Their heads end in broad beaks used for stripping plant matter. The coloration and ontogeny differed between variants.

### Variant 1

This variant was green, with a red stripe going down the side. The young had short crests that slowly grew into the famous crests of the adults.

### Variant 2

These *Parasaurolophus* are brown, with some individuals having red running along the back. Unlike the other two variants, the young developed their crests at an early age.

### Variant 3

This variant is very similar to the 2nd variant, with the only differences being them being green and their young developing their crests slower.

## Behavior

*Parasaurolophus* are very skittish animals, with no current data on them fighting back, even against much smaller predators such as *Velociraptors*. *Parasaurolophus* will occasionally fight other members of the herd, but this is likely just them setting up a pecking order.

## History

### Jurassic Park

38 *Parasaurolophus* were bred on Isla Sorna, 15 of which were transported to Isla Nublar to serve as an attraction for InGen's Jurassic Park. They lived in the Brachiosaurus Enclosure, although there was an enclosure for them. After the park was abandoned attacks from the parks *Tyrannosaurus Rex* had brought the population down to nine. Thirteen *Parasaurolophus* lived on Isla Sorna, all of which were released on the island after Hurricane Clarissa hit the island. One population was seen during the 1997 Incident living alongside *Gallimimus*, *Pachycephalosaurus*, and *Mamenchisaurus*. One individual was briefly captured by Ingen, but later released by Hammond's Gathers. One young individual was held by Simon Masrani in 1999, likely illegally created. Another herd was encountered during the 2001 Incident living alongside some illegally created *Corythosaurus*. They likely survived the Chaos Effect, but were moved to Isla Nublar for Jurassic World just in case.

### Jurassic World

*Parasaurolophus* were used in most attractions for the park, including the Gyrosphere Valley and Cretaceous Cruise. But after the 2015 Incident forced the park to close, they were released into the wild.

### Post Jurassic World

The *Parasaurolophus* populations have remained consistent throughout the three-year time span Isla Nublar was abandoned, but were later threatened by Mount Sibo's erupt. At least six were captured before the Mt. Sibo erupted. No *Parasaurolophus* were known to have been sold and the known individuals are later freed by Maisie Lockwood and have escaped the Lockwood Manor in a stampede with other dinosaurs. A Parasaurolophus was encountered drinking from a river in a swamp, from an unknown US state.