Are there more creatures in addition to Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops?
Yes – but limiting the focus to T. rex and Triceratops was made for both scientific and educational reasons. Scientfically, ceratopsians like Triceratops horridus and T. prorsus made up over 60% of all the animals in the ecosystem. Tyrannosaurus rex made up about 4%-16%. Hadrosaurs like Edmontosaurus, the other major species in the Be the Dinosaur™ simulation, made up approx. 20% of the population (White, Fastovsky and Sheehan (1998), Russell and Manabe (2002), Other dinosaurs are known from sparse fossil evidence (only isolated teeth). The Be the Dinosaur™ simulation therefore includes over 90% of the dinosaurs present in this ancient ecosystem. Educationally, the exhibit is focused on the two dinosaurs to allow visitors to experience each animal multiple times and have the opportunity to try different behaviors and compare and contrast these behaviors in their minds. During remedial evaluation we discovered that less was indeed more. Too many dinosaurs and the message becomes lost –
