Valley of the T.rex

***Valley of the T. rex*** is a documentary hosted by paleontologist Jack Horner. The program shows Horner and his team digging up dinosaur fossils in the Hell Creek Formation in Montana, while also following Horner's quest to prove Tyrannosaurus as a scavenger rather than a predator, as it is often portrayed in popular culture. It premiered on the Discovery Channel on September 10, 2001.

## Plot

The program shows Jack Horner and his digging team as they travel to the Hell Creek Formation in Montana, United States, and dig up dinosaurs.

The program also follows Horner as he presents arguments for his case of Tyrannosaurus as a scavenger, rather than a predator. Horner argues that there is not the slightest evidence that Tyrannosaurus hunted its prey, and that the evidence should be clear of that it was a scavenger, lamenting "no one likes that idea". Some of Horner's arguments for a scavenger-only Tyrannosaurus are:

* **Forelimbs**: Tyrannosaurus' short forelimbs seem like they could not hold on to struggling prey. Horner argues that predators have well-developed forelimbs with claws to hold prey down while the jaws do the killing, while Tyrannosaurus could not use its forelimbs for much more than "scratch its belly". Horner believes that Tyrannosaurus' upper arms would have been embedded in muscle, and not externally visible in life. And if Tyrannosaurus stumbled and fell while trying to run, the small forelimbs would not be enough to break the fall, and it would get fatal injuries.
* **Speed**: Horner notes that some specimens of Tyrannosaurus had longer thighbones and shorter shinbones, which was the complete opposite of faster-running animals like Saurornitholestes, which have longer shinbones than thighbones. Horner argues that this proves Tyrannosaurus to be unable to catch prey, and describes it as "either a slow runner, or just a walker".
* **Brain and senses**: Horner suggests that Tyrannosaurus had poorly developed sense of sight, and would not be a good predator. On the other hand, the huge olfactory bulb indicates a "tremendous sense of smell", used to find carcasses like a turkey vulture.
* **Jaws and teeth**: Tyrannosaurus had powerful jaws and robust teeth. Horner argues that the jaws would be powerful enough to crush bone, like hyenas do to feed on the marrow after flesh on a carcass has rotted away. Predators have normally thin and sharp teeth for slicing flesh.

Tyrannosaurus becomes depicted as Horner envisions it: a big, slow-moving animal that travels across the landscape in search of carcasses to eat. Horner thinks Tyrannosaurus would have looked repulsive: a dark body, red head, and emoting a terrible smell to frighten away other meat-eaters from their kills. His description of T. rex is "big, nasty, and stinky."

Horner mostly examines the specimen MOR 555 ("Wankel rex") as reference for his claims in examining Tyrannosaurus' anatomy. This specimen, found by Kathy Wankel in 1988, was the first to be found with a well-preserved forelimb.

The program features Horner and his team digging up five new T. rex specimens.

Many of the computer animations presented in the program are taken from *When Dinosaurs Roamed America*, albeit with a slightly different Tyrannosaurus model and some new animations provided as well.

## Criticism

*Valley of the T. rex* has been met with much criticism since its release, particularly from paleontologists. Many scientists examined Horner's arguments and stated that none of them even remotely support his claims of Tyrannosaurus being a scavenger and are in fact the complete opposite of said claims.

The program has gained a reputation as one of the most hated or disliked dinosaur documentaries, along with *Monsters Resurrected*, *Clash of the Dinosaurs*, and *Dinosaur Revolution*.

## Home media

Main article: *Valley of the T. rex (Home video)*