List of locations in Prehistoric Park
This is a list of locations in the fictional show Prehistoric Park
Main complex
The park appears to have a central base, not far from the entrance, on a grassy hill. The main road appears to lead to the Main complex and is surrounded by trees next to an ornate lake. The main complex appear to be a many buildings next to each other. The design is wooden supports with asymmetrical thatch roofs. This may have been a deliberate design choice, as the enclosure fences also appear to be made of wood in an attempt to make the park seem as natural as possible. This complex is actually Didima camp in front of Cathedral Peak in the Drakensberg mountains in South Africa.
Time portal site
The time portal is near a set of barracks. The portal is inside a strong stockaded corridor which channels the creatures coming through down into the many (roofless) containment chambers along its length. The containment chambers are built alongside the main corridor and are connected to it via sliding doors that herd the animals into different sections of the barracks, like a labyrinth.
The compound has walkways all along the main corridor and the containment chambers to let park workers look down at the animals, with metal ladders for climbing up and down into the corridor and chambers. Each chamber has a back door for trucks and containment vehicles to move back and forth and its own stone water trough and appears designed to hold the animals for extended periods until transportation can be sent to pick them up.
Nigel's base
Nigel’s base appears to be separate from the main complex, which means it deserves special mention. Like the main complex it appears to be a wooden structure with a thatch roof (which the escaped titanosaurs seem to find tasty, as seen in one of the episodes). Unlike the main complex it is a two-storey structure with balconies connecting the rooms. The ground level was never seen, although below one balcony there appears to be an aviary, which is probably where the Microraptor were put, given that one of them was seen with Nigel on a balcony at the end of the third episode. The Base is definitely home to Nigel’s pets and maybe the tame cheetah (and Microraptor) which have free run of his office and the facility.
Alongside one balcony there is a small veranda with a drinks table, chairs, and a hammock that overlooks the park, presumably where Nigel entertains important visitors. Nigel’s office is surprisingly small, although it is made to look that way because Nigel rarely puts anything away and leaves books and bones all over his desk and shelves, clearly more interested in rescuing more and more animals than the day-to-day running of his park (which falls on Bob's shoulders). But it has telephones, computers, and the latest equipment, and a pin-up map of the park. The park conferences are convened in his office. An interesting piece of trivia is that the only employees given free access to his base are Bob and Suzanne, which shows just how important they are in the parks command hierarchy.
Animal Enclosures
Mammoth Mount
Mammoth Mount is in the upland regions of the park and has a home for the park's resident woolly mammoth and a small herd of modern African elephants. The terrain is dry, made up mostly of Serengeti-like open grassland with a few trees and shrubs. Its one of the few exhibits that is not suited to its residents, as the climate is far too warm for an Ice Age mammal; building the park in a warm country was necessary for the park's growing reptile and dinosaur population which make up the bulk of the park's inhabitants, so this problem was rectified by making sure Martha's hair is regularly cut to prevent overheating.
Unlike the other exhibits, Mammoth Mount only has small wooden barriers, which appear to keep the animals caged despite their paltry appearance. There is also a small holding paddock within the enclosure where Martha was kept before releasing her into the main enclosure because they were unsure of how the elephants would react. Mammoth Mount recently endured a serious Tyrannosaurus rex invasion, which broke barriers and almost caused the death of the elephant herd's only calf, which given their slow reproductive rate would have been a major blow. Fortunately Martha repelled the attack and the damage to the enclosure was quickly repaired by the new employees.
Triceratops Creek
Located in a region of the park with little grass, Triceratops Creek is on the banks of a creek which flows through it, presumably under the fence, and is probably the most visually attractive enclosure in the park. Because of the Triceratops' diet it has a thick forest of low shrubs and small trees. The enclosure is surrounded on all sides with tall wooden fences and a dirt road leading up to a bare region near the enclosure's main entrance (which is big enough to drive a tractor through) and sign. The wooden fences are surprisingly strong, as they withstood the temper tantrums of a five-ton Triceratops. It was also spared destruction during the mass breakout, which Theo did not take part in, although the T-Rex did pass his enclosure whilst chasing Nigel.
Big Cat climb
The Smilodon enclosure is surrounded on all sides with tall wooden fences, as Smilodon, like most cats, appear to be excellent climbers. The terrain is open grass with little foliage. There is a partition, with a door that can be raised, separating the two Smilodon from each other. When the two mated the door was presumably left open letting them wander between both sides. It has two small wooden bunkers on both sides for the cats to sleep in and find shade and numerous climbing frames to keep the Smilodon happy.It is stated that it is just a breeding enclosure in episode 4.
Crocodile lake/Deinosuchus dip
In the park, a crocodile lake has been made near the Time Portal site. The lake appears artificial with small islands and a foot suspension bridge across it, the simple sort where the footway follows the catenary. The Deinosuchus pond is nearby and is almost identical. It could be the same location, although this is unlikely given that the Deinosuchus is aggressive and would most likely eat the resident Nile crocodiles if left unattended. Although both have jeep roads running alongside, there are no visible barriers or fences around either lake, although the storyboard sequences shows Nigel jumping over a chain link fence, showing that both lakes have fences to contain the animals, but the fences were never shown.
T. rex Hill
The Tyrannosaurus enclosure is at the base of a hill and is filled with thick forest for shade with open areas for the dinosaurs to run around in and a lake with a small footpath cutting through it.
The enclosure has a derrick used to feed the animals inside. The derrick probably remains on site, as it would be illogical and unnecessary to bring it back and forth every day. The Tyrannosaurus enclosure is surrounded on all sides with tall wooden fences and a dirt road leading up to a bare area near the enclosure's main entrance and sign. The wooden fence near the entrance is made up of slats with gaps between them, for viewing the animals, but the fence at the back is made up of wooden slats with no gaps as a solid wall.
As the Tyrannosaurus got older, they began to fight, so Bob built a partition across their enclosure, and put one of them on each side. The first partition was not strong enough and Matilda broke through. The repaired partition worked better, and now Matilda, while still keeping on threatening Terence, cannot reach him nor do anything to him except roar with impotent rage. During the mass breakout Matilda’s side of the enclosure was breached and she promptly escaped. Terence's side of the cage was untouched and he played no part in the rampage.
Ornithomimus pond
The Ornithomimus paddock is a converted ostrich paddock and was seen as an ideal place to keep them. The terrain is mostly large open areas with woodland around a central lake. The lake was added after the Ornithomimus were put into their new home when it was realized that they cannot eat the grass. They may look like ratites but "they have more in common with Daffy Duck than Emu".
Bob also built a small hide on the lakeside where he could observe what appear to be his favourite dinosaurs. It was in the foliage near there where the broody Ornithomimus nested. The fences are waist-high and wooden made up of slats with gaps between them. Unlike most other enclosures, the main entrance door is kept shut with rope rather than with metal locks. The Ornithomimus Paddock was damaged during the mass breakout but none of the flock was hurt and the damage was repaired.
The Bug House
The Bug House is a concrete and brick structure with two adjoining rooms, each with a dome on its roof. They resemble the biomes used in the Eden Project and are presumably constructed in the same way, with tubular steel frames with hexagonal transparent panels made from a triple layer of thin UV-transparent ETFE film, inflated to create a large space between the two sides and trapping heat like double-glazed windows. (Glass is too heavy and potentially dangerous). The occupants include an Arthropleura, a Meganeura and a Pulmonoscorpius.
During the construction, the site was plagued by the free-roaming herd of titanosaurs, which were probably searching the site for gastroliths. This may have been a minor problem for the dinosaurs, but they would frequently knock over the walls and generally cause havoc. Fortunately, this restless behavior stopped soon after its completion.
The entrance has two air-tight doors with a long corridor between, serving as an airlock. The two adjoining rooms have walls made mostly out of transparent bubbles, presumably for viewing the animals inside. Inside there appears to be no partition separating the species. It is filled entirely with tropical plants, but does not have a pond: this may be why Nigel was reluctant to bring back large amphibians. The Bug House was only seen in the titular episode, so little is known about its construction besides the above mentioned. A demonstration with a lighted taper showed that the structure, due to its high oxygen atmosphere (35% nitrox), is vulnerable to fire; so it presumably has adequate fire alarms and sprinkler systems. It was spared destruction during the mass breakout, which is fortunate, as the inhabitants would probably suffer hypoxia if exposed to the modern-day atmosphere with its 20% oxygen level, if they were not crushed by the heavy walls and roof collapsing in on them.
Other locations
These locations were seen only briefly, only mentioned, or have been abandoned.
- Titanosaur Treetops. Titanosaur Treetops was made of thick wooden walls, some parts had gaps and some parts did not. Soon after Nigel brought them back, however, the titanosaurs reared up and smashed down their fence, and the titanosaurs now roam free. It is possible that another enclosure was built for them after the mass breakout (which was caused by a spooked titanosaur). Name of enclosure can be seen faintly in the foreground of the special features menu in the DVD.
- Elasmotherium Paddock. This is where the Elasmotherium is kept. This enclosure is composed mostly of muddy grassland. Its fence was broken during the mass escape, but was presumably mended by the end of the episode.
- Terror Bird Paddock. The Terror Bird Paddock is composed mostly of sandy grassland due to the Phorusrhacos's need to dust bathe. The fences were tall but did not go deep enough into the ground, so the Phorusrhacos undermined it when digging dust-bathing holes. It was broken during the mass escape and supposedly rebuilt with fence posts buried four feet deep.
- Troodon Captivity. This is where the Troodon is kept.
- Microraptor Fortress. Microraptor Fortress is a place for the Microraptors to fly around.
See also
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