Vastatosaurus rex

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Vastatosaurus rex
Name	Vastatosaurus rex
Abilities and Weapons	Strength, Feet, Speed, Stamina, Senses, Tail Whip, Sharp Teeth and Powerful Bite
Occupation	Ambush super-predator
Home	Skull Island
First Appearance	King Kong (2005)
Diet	Carnivore (Opportunistic scavenger and predator)
Notable V-rexes	Adult male, adult female, and a juvenile male
Physical Characteristics	Imposing Size, Grey, Pebbly Skin, Irregular/Ingrown Teeth
Status:	Became extinct when Skull Island sank into the ocean in 1948.
Size:	Length: 16.24 meters Height: 7.1 meters Weight: 15-20 tons

The Vastatosaurus rex ("ravager lizard king"), or V-rex, is a large, unique tyrannosaurine tyrannosaurid from Skull Island, descended from Tyrannosaurus. It measures 50 feet long (15.24 meters) with a height of 20 feet (6.1 meters). The animal is described in the book "The World of Kong: A Natural History of Skull Island" (2005).

Facts

The biggest terrestrial predator on Skull Island is the V-rex. Like their prehistoric fellow tyrannosaurs, Skull Island V-rexes have little competition for their spot as top apex predators. If anything, it would be more accurate to call V-rexes a super-predator. In spite of their size, they can turn on a surprising burst of speed for short periods, clocking up to 25 mph for limited stretches in pursuit of prey.

V-rexes have developed many unique features over the 66 million years since the Mesozoic Era, but they still bare several recognizable similarities to their Cretaceous ancestors. V-rexes have large heads, filled with long teeth that are constantly being regrown to replace those lost in conflict. Their heads are intensely reinforced with thick bone to protect their brains. As the primary weapon of the tyrannosaurine, an individual V-rex's head is often distinctive, being covered in scars and calluses. Abnormal bone growths form from old battles with prey, other predators, rivals, or even mates. Narrow, short ribcages and a large gap between the ribs and hips allow V-rexes surprising flexibility for animals of their size, a necessary adaptation to the broken terrain of Skull Island.

Their forelimbs are small in comparison with the rest of their bodies, not growing as fast as the rest of the animal so that by adulthood this disparity in spite of their size is strikingly evident. Early tyrannosaurids had only two fingers on their forelimbs but Skull Island V-rexes have three. When dragging carcasses, the tiny arms help pin the meat against the body and prevent it swinging around.

While juvenile V-rexes tend to cluster in the thick jungle interior, the large adults hunt mostly in the open areas of the lowlands where they can move freely. Large males seek the most open territories while mature females usually stake claim to areas on the fringes of the thicker forests where they can find hidden nesting sites.

Fiercely territorial, adult V-rexes suffer no rival encroachments on their hunting grounds. Territorial boundaries are regularly marked with feces, and dawn roaring will reinforce claims to land. Neighbors can tell much about the physical condition of the owner of a territory from the smell of its feces and the sound of a roar. Displays and scenting minimize potentially dangerous confrontations between individuals of different sizes. Occasionally disputes between evenly matched V-rexes can erupt. With the threat of serious injury, these confrontations are usually resolved with intense roaring matches in which each individual attempts to intimidate the other into giving way. However, when this fails, violence ensues. Older V-rexes bare the crisscrossing scars of many such fights.

Exceptions to their solitary existence are made in the breeding season. Males will leave their hunting grounds to seek out females in season. If the female is receptive, she will accept the male, and the couple might stay together, hunting in her territory for several days before she tires of him and sends him on his way. Adolescent V-rexes (seeking to hone their hunting skills) will sometimes follow adults at a safe distance during the mating season, watching and occasionally stealing meals from unguarded kills. Taking advantage of the season of nomadic adult males, bold adolescents might move in to claim currently undefended territory as their own.

V-rexes are capable of tackling very large prey species, but their massive size is often employed to intimidate smaller carnivores like Lycaesaurus and Venatosaurus into giving up their kills - they even sometimes eat these smaller predators as well. While effective hunters, a meal is safer to obtain by simply appropriating someone else’s carcass, bullying smaller scavengers like carrion parrots, carrion storks, Foeducrista and giant gray agama. V-rexes have intensely acidic stomachs, capable of processing even the most rancid rotting meat, a feature that serves the species well as heavyweight scavengers. Their massive jaws can exert astounding pressure, shattering bones to expose the rich marrow less robust predators are unable to reach.

As hunters, V-rexes tend to employ ambush tactics, using cover in and around waterholes or forested areas to surprise prey, like Malamagnus and even Foetodon. Ligocristus are the primary prey of adult V-rexes, being the most abundant. Ferrucutus, Pinnatono, and Brontosaurus are more dangerous prospects; however, if a young or sick individual can be separated from the protection of the herd it can be an easy kill. Any smaller species are likely game, though most are too small to provide more than a snack. The greatest challenger for the hunters lies in not being spotted by prey. Adult V-rexes are dark in coloring and, despite their size, can be surprisingly stealthy, using shadows near the fringes of scrub, rocky outcroppings, or ruins to hide their approach. As shown in the film, they're able hunt in packs as a family unit.

Their black scales also aid V-rexes in warming up quickly in the mornings, boosting their energy levels to gain an advantage over still sluggish herbivores (despite many being warm-blooded).

Abilities and Weapons

Strength, Durability and Stamina

Their large size contributed to their paramount strength, enabling them to withstand and match King Kong's strength. Their stout build and frame had made them extremely durable, able to shake off King Kong's powerful punches several times as well as his grapples and throws. They were also capable of surviving falls from great heights and were quite capable in traversing vertical landscapes for such large animals. The most fearsome aspect of theirs however was their seemingly limitless stamina, able to achieve a burst of acceleration and maintain speed, covering distance tirelessly and lasting several minutes in a full-fledged fight with an adult Megaprimatus. Quick on their feet, they were shown to at least be able to keep up with Kong. They also seem to be more than capable of keeping up with human beings who are in a reasonable state of fitness such as Ann Darrow and likely the natives on Skull Island had they ever ventured from the Wall. Most notable is that despite their massive bulk these animals were capable of leaping onto prey or foes as shown when a full-grown female V. Rex leapt onto Kong's back. They are virtually impervious to bullets from pistols, rifles, machine guns, and even shotguns, though these were from the 1930s, in fact, it seems like several rounds of fire only agitated the beasts with no signs of injury, pain, nor any sign of fatigue or withdrawal of its assault. Spears also cannot hurt them at all.

Weapons

The V-rex's heads were very large in proportion to their overall body, with powerful jaws lined with brutish teeth ready to shred any and all that it targeted. Its head was also incredibly thick and capable of taking multiple blows from a full grown Megaprimatus and was probably also used as a ram against enemies. As with their Mesozoic ancestors Tyrannosaurus rex, V-rex's jaws were their main form of attack, capable of killing prey with ease. The jaws of the V-rex were shown to be even more robust in comparison to the Tyrannosaurus. They were known to have bone shattering bites just like their predecessor and the bite force of a V-rex could perhaps be due to possible evolution advancement exceed the Tyrant Lizard King's. The tail was also extremely durable, capable of whipping motion that could easily shatter bones or outright kill their target. Its hind legs were also very capable and sturdy, lined with rough but sharp claws. The feet also appeared capable of gripping objects similar to a raptorial bird, as shown when one leapt onto Kong.

Senses

The true extent of their sense is debatable at most as their behavior seems to change dramatically from searching their prey to pursuing them. Their sense of smell, while in a less aggressive state seemed to be limited to a certain extent, much akin to their vision as they were shown to have difficulty in locking onto minuscule preys on said instance. Nevertheless, once they have acquired their prey, they would pursue them endlessly with great precision to the tiniest of cracks.

Intelligence

The V-rex's intelligence seemed to be somewhat limited; but not entirely primitive. They were shown to be quite capable of simple deduction via instinct as evident in how one V-rex was able to understand its dual standpoint with Kong the ultimate price of winning that duel. Furthermore, they were shown to be very cooperative with their own species under certain instances, capable of hunting together with great synergy. But ultimately, they were driven by their insatiable hunger and predatory instinct and in normal circumstances this sort of behavior was not usually typical.

History

While Ann Darrow was being chased by a Foetodon, a juvenile Vastatosaurus rex appeared and killed the Foetodon by crushing it in its jaws. Upon seeing Ann, the V-rex chased after her. Ann managed to hide on a fallen tree, but a second V-rex, a matriarch, appeared and attacked her. Thankfully, Kong arrived and rescued Ann. The matriarch attacked Kong and was soon joined by the juvenile. Kong took on both V-rexes, only to find himself attacked by a third one, a bull. Kong quickly killed the juvenile by smashing its head with a boulder. Kong then threw the V-rexes off a cliff, but the matriarch grabbed Kong by the foot with her jaw, causing Kong to lose his grip and fall with Ann. Kong battled the V-rexes through the mess of vines and tried to reach Ann. Eventually, Ann and the matriarch fell, dropping to the ground below. Kong then kills the male by bashing his head against a canyon wall which violently snaps his neck. The matriarch cornered Ann and prepared to kill her, but Kong landed behind her. After an intense struggle, Kong grabbed the V-rex's jaws and pried them apart until they snapped, cracking the V-rex's skull and immediately killing the mighty dinosaur. After Kong left Skull Island, the V-rexes become the new top predator on Skull Island.

Inbreeding

Due to the ever shrinking landmass they live on and the dwindling population numbers, the V-rexes were forced into incestuous inbreeding. This act went on for generations resulting in the more monstrous deformed appearances of the V-rex's as well as the snaggleteeth, asymmetrical body proportions, ridged back and less ribs/vertebrae, it's also resulted in heightened aggression, as seen when the juvenile chases after Ann Darrow despite feasting on a Foetodon, it chased her purely just to kill her. The generational inbreeding made the genetic pool incredibly unhealthy, in fact the three V-rexes seen in the film are an inbred family, with the Bull being the Juvenile's father and uncle, the Matriarch being his mother and aunt, as well as the Bull and Matriarch being inbred siblings/cousins themselves.

Known Victims

• Ann Darrow (attempted; but failed; due to Kong's intervention)
• Tour Tram (attempted; but failed; due to Kong's intervention; King Kong 360)
• Most likely an unknown number of Megaprimatus kong individuals (both juveniles and adults)
• Foetodon ferrus
• Lumpy (Game)
• Brontosaurus (Game only)
• Ben Hayes (Game only)
• Venatosaurus (King Kong 360, Reign of Kong and Game)
• Unknown if it killed Choy and Preston (Game only)
• Will kill Jack if too close or Carl, Hayes and Ann; if unprotected (Game only)
• It will kill Kong if it manages to grap its jaws around his neck (Game only)
• Terapusmordax (Game only)

Appearances

• King Kong (2005)
• Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie (2005)
• King Kong 360 (Universal Studios Hollywood)
• Reign of Kong (Islands of Adventure Orlando)

Game Levels Appearances

• Hayes (sound only)
• V-rex
• Brontosaurus (level)
• On The Raft (sound only)
• Rapids
• Fight
• Chased by V-rex
• Skull Islanders
• To Save Ann
• Venatosaurus (level) (juvenile only)
• Call Kong
• Kong to the Rescue
• To the Lair (juveniles only)
• Chased by Kong (juvenile only)

Trivia

• According to the creators of the 2005 film, King Kong; the Vastatosaurus rex are direct descendants of the Tyrannosaurus; but they are much larger than their ancestors.
• The Vastatosaurus rex was fictionally hypothesized to be what the T-Rex would have become if it were allowed to evolved unabated for millions of years after the original extinction of the dinosaurs; the animal's design was also meant to make it the "scariest thing Kong could fight".
• The Vastatosaurus rex trio are the replacements of the Tyrannosaurus from the 1933 film.
• Due to the location of Skull Island, it is more likely that V-rex descended from Tarbosaurus; instead of the Tyrannosaurus.
• Like all other animals from Skull Island, it is unknown what the Vastatosaurus rex faced during the sinking of the island. Given the multiple expeditions, there may be a chance that; a few surviving populations was saved off-land to a more stable enclosure.

External links

• Vastatosaurus rex at Speculative Evolution Wiki
• Vastatosaurus rex at Wikizilla.org
• Vastatosaurus rex at Non-Alien Creatures Wiki