Despite getting a lot species many of us have requested, we are still missing certain iconic species in this game. I thought it might be cool if the developers made an Iconic Species Pack to add some of the missing species into the game. Some species I would recommend include:
Protoceratops: When people think of Asian dinosaur species or Mongolia in general, two of the first species to come to mind are Velociraptor and Protoceratops from the famous Fighting Dinosaurs specimen where the two were found buried together while in combat. Obviously if added to the game in would not get along with any of raptors as a result.
Ornitholestes: This is one of the small dinosaur species often associated with the Jurassic Period. Often times, Ornitholestes has been portrayed as having scaly skin with no feathers; although there have been some rare exceptions. While it is believed they mostly hunted small animals for food, they might have hunted larger prey, like a half-grown Camptosaurus, by hunting in packs. It would be nice to see this iconic species added to the game as a feathered species.
Microraptor and Archaeopteryx: Both of these dinosaur species are often associated with both the flying dinosaur species and feathered dinosaurs. They are also both believed to be important for understanding the evolutionary relationship between dinosaurs and birds. There is a possibility that Archaeopteryx might have been capable of powered flight based on the lack of tree fossils in the areas where their fossils have been found and CT scans of their skulls; although this is still being debated.
Plateosaurus: Two of the best known Prosauropods are Glacialisaurus and Plateosaurus. However, Glacialisaurus is only known from fragmentary remains. It is a genus of plateosaurid dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period, around 214 to 204 million years ago, in what is now Central and Northern Europe. Adults of this species grew between 4.8 to 10 meters (16 to 33 feet) in length, and ranged in mass from 600 to 4,000 kilograms (1,300 to 8,800 lb.). These animals are believed to have lived for at least 12 to 20 years, but the maximum life span is not known. The oldest individual found was around 27 years of age and was still growing. The meaning of its name is not clearly understood. In 1846, a geologist speculated that "(πλᾰτῠ́ς, breit)" [English: broad] was the origin of the name, German paleontologist believed its name was derived from the stem of πλᾰτέος (plateos), the genitive case of the masculine adjective platys in Ancient Greek. In the same year, another researcher proposed that the name derives from the Ancient Greek πλατη (platê – "paddle", "rudder"; the researcher translates this as Latin pala = "spade") and σαυρος (sauros – "lizard"). Correct me if I'm wrong, but aside from Lystrosaurus, we don't really have any herbivorous species from the Triassic period in the game.
Pliosaurus funkei: The sheer size of this animal attracted a large amount of media attention and earned it the nickname: Predator X, making it a major symbol of Pliosaurs. Given this species reputation and sheer size it would be nice to see it added to the game. If it is added it should be able to hunt Kronosaurus.
Dryptosaurus: While not frequently mentioned today, Dryptosaurus was at one point in time a well known species thanks to a famous painting of the genus by the famous paleoartist Charles Knight. The 1897 watercolor painting titled Leaping Laelaps is believed to represent the earliest depiction of theropods as highly active and dynamic animals. I believe this species is worthy of at least some recognition because of this.
Cymbospondylus: Cymbospondylus was a basal early ichthyosaur that lived between the early and middle Triassic period. It appeared in Sea Monsters: A Walking with Dinosaurs Trilogy. This species while not often mentions does represent some of the early Ichthyosaur species.
Thalassotitan: Thalassotitan is an extinct genus of large mosasaurs that lived during the late Cretaceous period in what is now Morocco, around 66 million years ago. It got a lot of media attention after it was described last year. Its name translates to Titan of the Seas.
Inostrancevia: Inostrancevia is an extinct genus of large carnivorous therapsids who lived during the Late Permian in what is now western Russia. The Gorgonopsid featured in the Walking with Monsters documentary series was likely this species based on the fact it was hunting Scutosaurus, which was a large herbivore that lived during the same time period. Due to the attention the Gorgonopsids have gotten as a group and its appearance in the Walking with Monsters Documentary series, I think it is an iconic species that people think of when they think of the Permian period or Gorgonopsids, even if most people don't know it by name.
I want to emphasize that these are just the ones I thought of. This is not a definitive list of all of them. Please share your opinions and suggestions bellow.
Protoceratops: When people think of Asian dinosaur species or Mongolia in general, two of the first species to come to mind are Velociraptor and Protoceratops from the famous Fighting Dinosaurs specimen where the two were found buried together while in combat. Obviously if added to the game in would not get along with any of raptors as a result.
Ornitholestes: This is one of the small dinosaur species often associated with the Jurassic Period. Often times, Ornitholestes has been portrayed as having scaly skin with no feathers; although there have been some rare exceptions. While it is believed they mostly hunted small animals for food, they might have hunted larger prey, like a half-grown Camptosaurus, by hunting in packs. It would be nice to see this iconic species added to the game as a feathered species.
Microraptor and Archaeopteryx: Both of these dinosaur species are often associated with both the flying dinosaur species and feathered dinosaurs. They are also both believed to be important for understanding the evolutionary relationship between dinosaurs and birds. There is a possibility that Archaeopteryx might have been capable of powered flight based on the lack of tree fossils in the areas where their fossils have been found and CT scans of their skulls; although this is still being debated.
Plateosaurus: Two of the best known Prosauropods are Glacialisaurus and Plateosaurus. However, Glacialisaurus is only known from fragmentary remains. It is a genus of plateosaurid dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period, around 214 to 204 million years ago, in what is now Central and Northern Europe. Adults of this species grew between 4.8 to 10 meters (16 to 33 feet) in length, and ranged in mass from 600 to 4,000 kilograms (1,300 to 8,800 lb.). These animals are believed to have lived for at least 12 to 20 years, but the maximum life span is not known. The oldest individual found was around 27 years of age and was still growing. The meaning of its name is not clearly understood. In 1846, a geologist speculated that "(πλᾰτῠ́ς, breit)" [English: broad] was the origin of the name, German paleontologist believed its name was derived from the stem of πλᾰτέος (plateos), the genitive case of the masculine adjective platys in Ancient Greek. In the same year, another researcher proposed that the name derives from the Ancient Greek πλατη (platê – "paddle", "rudder"; the researcher translates this as Latin pala = "spade") and σαυρος (sauros – "lizard"). Correct me if I'm wrong, but aside from Lystrosaurus, we don't really have any herbivorous species from the Triassic period in the game.
Pliosaurus funkei: The sheer size of this animal attracted a large amount of media attention and earned it the nickname: Predator X, making it a major symbol of Pliosaurs. Given this species reputation and sheer size it would be nice to see it added to the game. If it is added it should be able to hunt Kronosaurus.
Dryptosaurus: While not frequently mentioned today, Dryptosaurus was at one point in time a well known species thanks to a famous painting of the genus by the famous paleoartist Charles Knight. The 1897 watercolor painting titled Leaping Laelaps is believed to represent the earliest depiction of theropods as highly active and dynamic animals. I believe this species is worthy of at least some recognition because of this.
Cymbospondylus: Cymbospondylus was a basal early ichthyosaur that lived between the early and middle Triassic period. It appeared in Sea Monsters: A Walking with Dinosaurs Trilogy. This species while not often mentions does represent some of the early Ichthyosaur species.
Thalassotitan: Thalassotitan is an extinct genus of large mosasaurs that lived during the late Cretaceous period in what is now Morocco, around 66 million years ago. It got a lot of media attention after it was described last year. Its name translates to Titan of the Seas.
Inostrancevia: Inostrancevia is an extinct genus of large carnivorous therapsids who lived during the Late Permian in what is now western Russia. The Gorgonopsid featured in the Walking with Monsters documentary series was likely this species based on the fact it was hunting Scutosaurus, which was a large herbivore that lived during the same time period. Due to the attention the Gorgonopsids have gotten as a group and its appearance in the Walking with Monsters Documentary series, I think it is an iconic species that people think of when they think of the Permian period or Gorgonopsids, even if most people don't know it by name.
I want to emphasize that these are just the ones I thought of. This is not a definitive list of all of them. Please share your opinions and suggestions bellow.
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