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Over 66 million years ago...

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SCREECHING WAIL

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..our world...

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HIGH-PITCHED CLUCKS

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..was ruled...

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SHRIEKS

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..by dinosaurs.

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DEEP BELLOW

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HISSES

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GRUNTS

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The largest animals that
<font color="

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Today, dinosaur experts
across the globe

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are uncovering the bones
they left behind...

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..allowing us to imagine how
these extraordinary creatures

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may have lived...

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..so that we can tell
<font color="

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..and they...

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..can walk again.

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ROARS

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Utah - in the heart
of the American West.

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Home to some of the most
spectacular scenery on Earth.

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And the forces that shaped
the landscape

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<font color="

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..for dinosaur hunters.

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In a remote part of the desert,

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palaeontologists
Dr Jim Kirkland...

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..and Dr Josh Lively...

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..have made
a remarkable discovery.

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So we've exposed
<font color="

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Yeah.

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The bones of one of the most
heavily armoured dinosaurs...

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..that ever lived...

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Oh, that's cool.

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..a gastonia.

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Yeah, you might have a leg
there.

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Using their discoveries,

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<font color="
youngster lived and died...

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..113 million years ago.

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In the Early Cretaceous
period...

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..the land that will become Utah

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was warmer and wetter.

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BIRDSONG

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And what is desert today

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<font color="

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..and rolling meadows of ferns.

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DEEP ROAR

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Plentiful food...

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..for groups
of plant-eating gastonia...

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..including youngster...George.

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LOW BELLOWING

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Like all young gastonia,

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<font color="
parents...

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..because danger...

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..is never far away.

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CHITTERING

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CHITTERING

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Utahraptor.

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SNARLS

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A heavyweight cousin
of velociraptor,

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<font color="

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And they hunt
vulnerable young gastonia.

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The ferns providing ideal cover

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for a surprise attack.

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Just yards away,

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George and his family
are oblivious...

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..to the approaching danger.

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<font color="

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With the raptors
within striking distance,

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the gastonia get a lucky break.

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CRUNCH

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SHRIEKING AND ROARING

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Like many modern herd animals,

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the adults form a defensive
ring around their young.

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<font color="

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covered in thick armour...

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..a group of adult gastonia
is virtually invulnerable.

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With one of their group injured,

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the raptors cut their losses.

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But George can't rely on
the safety of the herd

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for much longer.

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<font color="
like all young male gastonia,

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it's thought he'll be pushed
out of the group.

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SOLITARY BELLOW

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George must now grow up

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without his family to protect him.

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We'll probably do Dakota,

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<font color="

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At the dig, the team is
starting to uncover evidence...

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Is there a bone there
coming up from somewhere?

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Try and get your fingers under
that if you can reach over.

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..that might explain
<font color="

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survived to adulthood...

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You got one over there.
There's a big guy here.

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Oh, OK.
Looks like a limb bone.

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Might connect to
some of this bone right here.

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..and the clues are coming
<font color="

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Beautiful! That's bone.

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Looks like the rib
might go into this one.

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Everywhere they dig,

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bone after bone emerges
from the ground.

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Found a couple of ribs right here,

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<font color="

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and then several pieces
of armour.

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A ton of bones
just in this small spot.

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It's too many to be
from just one individual.

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Got these
thin rib-like sections.

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<font color="
you know, right in here,

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there's probably parts
of two animals.

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And, intriguingly, all the gastonia
found across the site

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appear to be of a similar age.

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From looking at skeletal remains,

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<font color="
half-grown individuals,

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you know,
sub-adults to full adults.

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Kind of analogous to teenagers,
right? Yeah.

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All these teenagers found together

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suggests something unexpected.

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BELLOWS

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<font color="

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George has been living
on his own...

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..keeping deep in the forest...

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..where it's easier
to hide from predators.

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SNUFFLES AND GRUNTS

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But it's not long
before he comes face-to-face...

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<font color="

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GRUMBLING ROARS

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And it looks...

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..like he means business.

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Gastonia's skulls and necks
are specially adapted

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to act like shock absorbers.

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But this isn't a fight.

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This is how gastonia make friends.

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<font color="

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..they're one of
the only known social species.

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George has just joined a group.

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It's a huge step forward,

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dramatically increasing his chances

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of making it to adulthood.

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This gang of teenage boys
<font color="

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until they're tough enough
to fend for themselves...

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..because until their armour
is fully developed,

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they're vulnerable.

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Just working our way around
these elements,

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trying to get around
<font color="

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At the dig, amongst
the gastonia bones....

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Hey, Josh?
Check this out. What is that?

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..the team makes
an unexpected discovery.

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Oh, wow.

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That's really neat.

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It's definitely not gastonia.

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<font color="

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Heather found
something interesting

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and, uh, I'm wondering
if you could tell me

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whether or not
it is what I think it is.

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A nice curve.

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Yeah, that's a small

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<font color="

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Could be a juvenile Utahraptor.

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Utahraptor bones found
alongside the young gastonia...

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All right, I was right!
It's a therapod metacarpal.

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Yeah, confirm.

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..suggest that throughout
<font color="

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CHUCKLES

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..Utahraptor what
an ever-present threat.

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TAPPING

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And Josh and Jim
have evidence that shows

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just how deadly they could be.

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A cast of a Utahraptor toe claw.

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<font color="
the claw itself - you know,

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this is the bone underlying it.

170
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Just to be conservative,
we could say it comes out

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to about there, you know,
in length. Yeah.

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30cm long,

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these killing claws were
<font color="

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This thing might be kicking
through inch-thick hide,

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so fast you can barely see it.

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Wam-wam-wam-wam! This thing's
just punching lots of holes,

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which would do a lot of damage.

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These claws are the perfect tool

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<font color="
of young gastonia.

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Maybe you have to think of it
more as a can-opener.

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Yeah, if it can flip it over,

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use that to slice open the belly.

183
00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:10,760
Yeah. These things are one of
the most formidable predators

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00:16:10,760 --> 00:16:12,520
<font color="

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00:16:24,040 --> 00:16:26,240
Holding their toe claws
off the ground

186
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to keep them razor-sharp...

187
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HISSES

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..Utahraptor...

189
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..is a finely tuned
killing machine.

190
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GRUNTS

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SCREECHES

192
00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:49,800
<font color="

193
00:16:52,640 --> 00:16:55,680
..and the group he leads

194
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have just entered the forest...

195
00:16:58,760 --> 00:17:00,840
LOW BELLOWING

196
00:17:00,840 --> 00:17:05,760
..following the trail of
George and the gastonia gang.

197
00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:18,840
But hidden beneath
the thick undergrowth...

198
00:17:20,760 --> 00:17:22,240
SCREECHES

199
00:17:22,240 --> 00:17:25,120
<font color="

200
00:17:33,960 --> 00:17:37,800
So the young raptors streak ahead...

201
00:17:37,800 --> 00:17:39,240
SQUAWKING

202
00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:41,080
..to try and flush them out...

203
00:17:48,120 --> 00:17:51,360
..while the adults follow behind,

204
00:17:51,360 --> 00:17:53,720
ready to make the kill.

205
00:18:08,640 --> 00:18:10,680
With Utahraptor's eyesight

206
00:18:10,680 --> 00:18:13,200
as sharp as modern birds of prey...

207
00:18:15,440 --> 00:18:17,040
<font color="

208
00:18:19,320 --> 00:18:20,840
..could be fatal.

209
00:18:20,840 --> 00:18:22,400
HISSES

210
00:18:29,360 --> 00:18:31,840
So when they hear
the raptors coming...

211
00:18:31,840 --> 00:18:33,720
SCREECH

212
00:18:35,080 --> 00:18:37,920
..the gastonia freeze.

213
00:18:44,840 --> 00:18:47,200
LOW GRUNTING

214
00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:03,720
The juveniles have missed them.

215
00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:06,160
PANTS

216
00:19:08,440 --> 00:19:12,040
<font color="

217
00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:14,920
because the deadliest threat
is still to come.

218
00:19:17,560 --> 00:19:19,400
SNUFFLING GRUNT

219
00:19:19,400 --> 00:19:20,840
THUDDING FOOTSTEPS

220
00:19:22,880 --> 00:19:24,560
The group leader.

221
00:19:38,320 --> 00:19:40,280
HISSES

222
00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:05,680
GRUNTS

223
00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:07,480
It's a close call.

224
00:20:17,320 --> 00:20:20,520
GRUNTS QUIETLY

225
00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:24,000
<font color="
George and the gang survive

226
00:20:24,000 --> 00:20:27,960
is a day closer
to the safety of adulthood.

227
00:20:36,560 --> 00:20:38,440
And emerging from the ground...

228
00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:43,240
..clues that reveal
even young gastonia...

229
00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:47,040
..would have been no pushover.

230
00:20:47,040 --> 00:20:48,840
BLOWS

231
00:20:49,920 --> 00:20:51,880
<font color="
getting close, I think.

232
00:20:51,880 --> 00:20:53,760
Hey, Josh.

233
00:20:53,760 --> 00:20:57,040
Get in my section,
tell me what you think.

234
00:20:57,040 --> 00:20:59,000
So...

235
00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:03,880
There's so much here.

236
00:21:03,880 --> 00:21:06,160
Plenty of osteoderms.

237
00:21:06,160 --> 00:21:08,720
And they're coming out
<font color="

238
00:21:10,880 --> 00:21:14,880
Osteoderms are the bones that
made up the gastonia's armour.

239
00:21:16,160 --> 00:21:18,000
That's a real nice one.
Oh, yeah.

240
00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:22,080
So you can kind of see on this one
that kind of ridge right there,

241
00:21:22,080 --> 00:21:25,200
that keel, that would point up.

242
00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:28,440
<font color="
It really does, yeah.

243
00:21:29,760 --> 00:21:34,600
In life, each osteoderm was
covered by a thick scale...

244
00:21:35,640 --> 00:21:39,200
Now, this is one of the nicest
ones we've had so far.

245
00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:41,120
This would have been
on the back of the animal.

246
00:21:42,080 --> 00:21:44,480
..which would have
<font color="

247
00:21:47,120 --> 00:21:49,880
Where you see the hollow
base that these have,

248
00:21:49,880 --> 00:21:51,480
they're for blood vessels,

249
00:21:51,480 --> 00:21:53,760
bringing nutrients up
into this bone,

250
00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:56,120
to grow that big scale
that was on top.

251
00:21:57,360 --> 00:22:00,400
There's a lot of armour
<font color="

252
00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:08,880
It's a discovery that reveals
the gastonia's armour

253
00:22:08,880 --> 00:22:10,960
was nearly fully formed.

254
00:22:25,520 --> 00:22:27,240
But the team has evidence

255
00:22:27,240 --> 00:22:30,800
Utahraptor was one step ahead.

256
00:22:37,720 --> 00:22:42,680
Revealed by an astonishing
fossil found near the site

257
00:22:42,680 --> 00:22:45,320
<font color="

258
00:22:46,240 --> 00:22:48,800
Ah, it's a gold mine.

259
00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:50,160
Yeah. It really is.

260
00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:54,880
Entombed in this nine-ton
block of sandstone...

261
00:22:56,480 --> 00:22:59,920
..the team has discovered
the remains of an entire group

262
00:22:59,920 --> 00:23:01,560
of Utahraptors.

263
00:23:02,960 --> 00:23:04,080
<font color="

264
00:23:04,080 --> 00:23:08,120
we've got the string
of articulated vertebrae.

265
00:23:08,120 --> 00:23:10,960
Yeah. I mean,
that's just beautiful.

266
00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:12,960
And hidden amongst the hundreds

267
00:23:12,960 --> 00:23:17,280
of perfectly preserved
teeth and claws and bones...

268
00:23:17,280 --> 00:23:19,560
Yeah, that's the great thing
<font color="

269
00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:21,000
We'll have so much material.

270
00:23:21,000 --> 00:23:24,640
..curator Don DeBlieux has
found something that could be

271
00:23:24,640 --> 00:23:26,960
Utahraptor's deadliest weapon.

272
00:23:28,080 --> 00:23:31,120
We got this beautiful
little top of a skull,

273
00:23:31,120 --> 00:23:32,760
and then we flipped it over.

274
00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:38,520
Right here is the impression
<font color="

275
00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:41,520
For a dinosaur,

276
00:23:41,520 --> 00:23:45,440
this young Utahraptor brain
is very large.

277
00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:48,360
Yeah, certainly remarkable,
given the size.

278
00:23:49,400 --> 00:23:51,520
Yeah, that would be
a very intelligent animal.

279
00:23:51,520 --> 00:23:55,080
They would have been the most
<font color="

280
00:23:55,080 --> 00:23:59,360
Oh, of course. Utahraptor
would have been capable of

281
00:23:59,360 --> 00:24:01,120
some pretty complex behaviours.

282
00:24:12,680 --> 00:24:16,600
Spring has turned to summer.

283
00:24:27,360 --> 00:24:29,640
And as the dry season sets in...

284
00:24:29,640 --> 00:24:31,560
GRUNTING

285
00:24:31,560 --> 00:24:35,720
..George and the gastonia gang
<font color="

286
00:24:45,680 --> 00:24:48,640
They're still unruly teenagers...

287
00:24:48,640 --> 00:24:49,800
GRUNTING

288
00:24:53,480 --> 00:24:56,520
..but now in near-adult bodies.

289
00:25:10,120 --> 00:25:12,360
And at the edge
of the water hole,

290
00:25:12,360 --> 00:25:15,240
clay-rich soil provides the gang

291
00:25:15,240 --> 00:25:17,120
with essential minerals...

292
00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:22,920
..vital for strengthening
<font color="

293
00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:33,600
And now the gastonia
are tougher,

294
00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:36,120
they're no longer an easy kill.

295
00:25:41,120 --> 00:25:43,840
So the raptors change tactics.

296
00:25:43,840 --> 00:25:47,760
DEEP BELLOWING

297
00:25:47,760 --> 00:25:50,600
The group leader
attracts their attention.

298
00:25:53,240 --> 00:25:55,320
HISSES

299
00:25:57,720 --> 00:26:00,680
..and uses his brightly
<font color="

300
00:26:05,480 --> 00:26:06,960
..to create...

301
00:26:09,000 --> 00:26:10,800
..a diversion.

302
00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:31,920
Like a fox in a henhouse...

303
00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:37,080
..the kill triggers the leader's
predatory instinct.

304
00:26:38,400 --> 00:26:40,080
SCREECHES

305
00:26:49,560 --> 00:26:52,120
Trapped at the water's edge...

306
00:26:54,240 --> 00:26:58,360
..it looks like George's luck
<font color="

307
00:26:58,360 --> 00:27:00,120
GRUNTS

308
00:27:06,040 --> 00:27:08,080
INDISTINCT CONVERSATION

309
00:27:14,480 --> 00:27:15,760
But at the dig,

310
00:27:15,760 --> 00:27:18,600
Josh and the team
have made a discovery.

311
00:27:23,200 --> 00:27:25,400
They've come to retrieve a fossil

312
00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:28,200
that may shed light on
events that happened here

313
00:27:28,200 --> 00:27:31,080
130 million years ago.

314
00:27:33,040 --> 00:27:34,600
<font color="
I was originally thinking

315
00:27:34,600 --> 00:27:36,000
it was down this drainage,

316
00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:37,680
but looking at it now,
I actually think

317
00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:40,480
it's further over that way.
Yeah, I think you're right.

318
00:27:40,480 --> 00:27:44,200
But collecting it
from the steep cliff face...

319
00:27:44,200 --> 00:27:46,640
<font color="

320
00:27:46,640 --> 00:27:48,120
..won't be easy.

321
00:27:51,080 --> 00:27:54,560
It might be further that way,
that's the thing.

322
00:27:58,720 --> 00:28:02,840
Oh, there it is.
Yeah, that's totally it.

323
00:28:02,840 --> 00:28:05,200
Yeah. So, Don, I think

324
00:28:05,200 --> 00:28:08,400
if you want to bring
the back board over here

325
00:28:08,400 --> 00:28:10,680
<font color="
and start strapping it down.

326
00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:14,920
With your legs.
Do it.

327
00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:17,920
This is a fossilised foot cast.

328
00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:20,960
Big man on campus.
All right.

329
00:28:20,960 --> 00:28:23,880
All right, you got it. March on.
Got it.

330
00:28:28,080 --> 00:28:30,280
It formed when
<font color="

331
00:28:30,280 --> 00:28:33,080
filled with silt and dust,

332
00:28:33,080 --> 00:28:37,400
but over millions of years was
compressed into solid rock...

333
00:28:38,680 --> 00:28:40,480
Like that, OK? Just like that.

334
00:28:41,640 --> 00:28:43,400
Luckily,
it's not super fragile.

335
00:28:45,040 --> 00:28:48,520
..creating a cast
of the foot that made it.

336
00:28:52,080 --> 00:28:53,480
<font color="

337
00:28:53,480 --> 00:28:57,160
One, two, three.
It definitely gets easier up here.

338
00:28:57,160 --> 00:28:58,520
OK.

339
00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:00,080
OK.

340
00:29:00,080 --> 00:29:03,680
But which dinosaur does it
belong to?

341
00:29:10,520 --> 00:29:12,120
Wow.

342
00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:13,760
That's really cool.

343
00:29:13,760 --> 00:29:17,440
We've got three big, wide toes
<font color="

344
00:29:17,440 --> 00:29:19,640
so that eliminates a couple
dinosaurs right off the bat.

345
00:29:19,640 --> 00:29:20,960
Yeah.

346
00:29:20,960 --> 00:29:24,320
If it was gastonia,
it'd have four toes.

347
00:29:26,600 --> 00:29:28,840
And it's unlikely to be a predator

348
00:29:28,840 --> 00:29:31,400
because there are no claws.

349
00:29:31,400 --> 00:29:33,160
Most likely a plant-eater.

350
00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:36,920
<font color="
could be some sort of bipedal

351
00:29:36,920 --> 00:29:40,360
plant-eating dinosaur,
kind of like planicoxa.

352
00:29:40,360 --> 00:29:42,000
Right, we're at
the right level for those guys.

353
00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:43,600
Or close. Absolutely.

354
00:29:46,080 --> 00:29:50,120
Planicoxa were beaked, stocky
<font color="

355
00:29:51,320 --> 00:29:53,480
You can imagine them
travelling together

356
00:29:53,480 --> 00:29:55,080
and moving long distances.

357
00:29:55,080 --> 00:29:57,280
For sure.
Maybe gastonia was year-round

358
00:29:57,280 --> 00:29:59,560
and these dinosaurs
were more seasonal.

359
00:30:03,040 --> 00:30:04,200
All right.

360
00:30:05,800 --> 00:30:07,600
<font color="

361
00:30:07,600 --> 00:30:10,480
Finding planicoxa footprints here

362
00:30:10,480 --> 00:30:12,280
is an important discovery...

363
00:30:15,680 --> 00:30:20,000
..because it suggests they migrated
through this landscape.

364
00:30:20,000 --> 00:30:22,040
BELLOWING

365
00:30:37,040 --> 00:30:38,880
SNARLS

366
00:30:45,880 --> 00:30:47,440
BELLOWS

367
00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:50,080
As the group leader closes in
<font color="

368
00:30:51,080 --> 00:30:53,000
HIGH-PITCHED ROARING

369
00:30:54,480 --> 00:30:59,040
..a herd of planicoxa pass close by.

370
00:30:59,040 --> 00:31:01,400
HIGH-PITCHED ROARING

371
00:31:05,800 --> 00:31:08,880
And without any armour,

372
00:31:08,880 --> 00:31:11,120
they're a much easier kill...

373
00:31:11,120 --> 00:31:12,880
GRUNTING

374
00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:25,320
..handing George...

375
00:31:29,720 --> 00:31:31,400
..a very lucky escape.

376
00:31:40,800 --> 00:31:43,640
<font color="

377
00:31:43,640 --> 00:31:46,320
the planicoxa herds will move on.

378
00:31:50,880 --> 00:31:55,680
So, as George and the gastonia
gang return to the forest,

379
00:31:55,680 --> 00:31:57,760
they know it won't be long

380
00:31:57,760 --> 00:32:02,240
until the raptors are hunting
them down once more.

381
00:32:15,560 --> 00:32:17,440
But coming out of the ground...

382
00:32:17,440 --> 00:32:19,480
<font color="

383
00:32:19,480 --> 00:32:22,360
..further evidence
the gastonia buried here...

384
00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:26,680
We're looking at about 31.5cm long.

385
00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:29,120
..were more than capable
of defending themselves.

386
00:32:29,120 --> 00:32:33,160
The proximal width,
where it attaches to the tail,

387
00:32:33,160 --> 00:32:37,680
<font color="
Yeah.

388
00:32:37,680 --> 00:32:41,440
So, yeah, this is one of
these specialised spikes

389
00:32:41,440 --> 00:32:44,560
along the tail.
Like, sticking out?

390
00:32:44,560 --> 00:32:46,400
Yeah, yeah.
So it'll be sticking out

391
00:32:46,400 --> 00:32:47,760
from the sides of the tail.

392
00:32:47,760 --> 00:32:52,840
<font color="
a big scale over top of it,

393
00:32:52,840 --> 00:32:54,440
a bit piece of keratin,

394
00:32:54,440 --> 00:32:57,360
so this would have come to
a very sharp point.

395
00:32:57,360 --> 00:33:00,520
And these, we think,
were used as a weapon.

396
00:33:04,040 --> 00:33:07,200
These blade-like spikes

397
00:33:07,200 --> 00:33:09,680
were positioned
<font color="

398
00:33:09,680 --> 00:33:11,360
of the gastonias' tails.

399
00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:20,040
And Jim and Don
have uncovered something

400
00:33:20,040 --> 00:33:23,920
that shows just how
these weapons were used.

401
00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:26,680
And then, as I was trying
to work on that,

402
00:33:26,680 --> 00:33:29,680
I hit something over here.

403
00:33:29,680 --> 00:33:32,920
<font color="
the upper-leg bone.

404
00:33:32,920 --> 00:33:34,800
That's a pretty sizeable femur.

405
00:33:34,800 --> 00:33:36,600
And then as I dug around,

406
00:33:36,600 --> 00:33:38,920
I see we have a complete tibia,
lower-leg bone.

407
00:33:38,920 --> 00:33:40,280
Yeah.

408
00:33:40,280 --> 00:33:43,120
You can see how short,
you know, the lower leg is,

409
00:33:43,120 --> 00:33:46,280
<font color="
about half the length...

410
00:33:46,280 --> 00:33:49,800
Right. ..which is, you know,
the exact opposite

411
00:33:49,800 --> 00:33:52,080
than what you see
in a running animal.

412
00:33:54,040 --> 00:33:58,560
Gastonia had a top speed
of around 5mph...

413
00:34:00,720 --> 00:34:03,680
..because their hind legs
<font color="

414
00:34:05,240 --> 00:34:08,200
They were adapted for
a very different purpose.

415
00:34:10,040 --> 00:34:13,400
Certainly, these things
are not just simple bones.

416
00:34:13,400 --> 00:34:16,000
They have huge
muscle attachment points,

417
00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:19,280
so they've developed
powerful legs for serious,

418
00:34:19,280 --> 00:34:21,560
<font color="
Stocky guys,

419
00:34:21,560 --> 00:34:23,000
just standing their ground.

420
00:34:23,000 --> 00:34:26,120
You just see these things
just holding on the ground

421
00:34:26,120 --> 00:34:29,760
and swinging their tail
with those big blades,

422
00:34:29,760 --> 00:34:32,440
just like the one over there
they already pulled out.

423
00:34:32,440 --> 00:34:33,680
<font color="

424
00:34:33,680 --> 00:34:35,000
Yeah. Slashing across,

425
00:34:35,000 --> 00:34:38,760
and probably reach
head-high easily,

426
00:34:38,760 --> 00:34:43,280
and literally slap a Utahraptor,
you know, right in the face.

427
00:34:46,280 --> 00:34:50,120
Gastonia's powerful hind legs
and spiked tails...

428
00:34:54,960 --> 00:34:59,080
..mean George and the gang
<font color="

429
00:35:04,120 --> 00:35:06,400
RUNNING STEPS

430
00:35:09,200 --> 00:35:12,400
But with the dry season
now at its height,

431
00:35:12,400 --> 00:35:14,160
and the planicoxa gone...

432
00:35:17,680 --> 00:35:20,400
..the raptors are starving.

433
00:35:27,040 --> 00:35:30,880
Desperate for food, they must
take any opportunity...

434
00:35:36,960 --> 00:35:38,960
..to make a kill.

435
00:35:49,880 --> 00:35:51,880
<font color="

436
00:35:51,880 --> 00:35:56,000
the gastonia gang
will stand and fight.

437
00:35:58,320 --> 00:36:01,160
HISSES

438
00:36:01,160 --> 00:36:03,080
BELLOWING

439
00:36:05,600 --> 00:36:07,640
HISSES

440
00:36:12,560 --> 00:36:14,680
And this time,

441
00:36:14,680 --> 00:36:17,840
they've got the weapons
to defend themselves.

442
00:36:30,800 --> 00:36:34,840
The gastonia now have
<font color="

443
00:36:39,440 --> 00:36:41,600
But driven by hunger,

444
00:36:41,600 --> 00:36:45,560
the raptors have no choice
but to attack.

445
00:36:45,560 --> 00:36:47,600
HISSES

446
00:37:05,160 --> 00:37:07,160
BELLOWS

447
00:37:08,880 --> 00:37:11,320
With the group leader
fatally wounded...

448
00:37:15,440 --> 00:37:18,520
..the remaining raptors back down.

449
00:37:21,960 --> 00:37:23,720
BELLOWS

450
00:37:27,800 --> 00:37:32,240
<font color="
will be short-lived.

451
00:37:39,960 --> 00:37:44,480
The hot summer months
bring a new danger.

452
00:37:51,360 --> 00:37:53,000
Something revealed by

453
00:37:53,000 --> 00:37:56,080
a completely different type
of evidence...

454
00:37:57,840 --> 00:38:00,960
..found alongside
the gastonia bones.

455
00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:12,520
<font color="

456
00:38:12,520 --> 00:38:16,400
is an expert in ancient pollen.

457
00:38:22,680 --> 00:38:25,360
Howdy, Carol.
Hey, Jim, take a look.

458
00:38:25,360 --> 00:38:28,320
There's some interesting grains
right in the centre.

459
00:38:29,440 --> 00:38:32,680
So, if you see
those little round grains

460
00:38:32,680 --> 00:38:34,960
that look like flat tyres,

461
00:38:34,960 --> 00:38:39,040
<font color="
from an extinct conifer.

462
00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:43,920
And, um, there's another grain.

463
00:38:45,920 --> 00:38:49,360
That's a member
of the cypress family.

464
00:38:49,360 --> 00:38:50,760
Hmm.

465
00:38:50,760 --> 00:38:53,520
That was well adapted
to dry conditions.

466
00:38:57,480 --> 00:39:00,160
All the pollen
Carol has identified

467
00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:05,040
<font color="
in a parched, arid environment.

468
00:39:10,160 --> 00:39:12,440
130 million years ago,

469
00:39:12,440 --> 00:39:17,520
the forest that covered the dig site
was a tinder box.

470
00:39:20,440 --> 00:39:23,120
You can see
all through the field

471
00:39:23,120 --> 00:39:26,120
black pieces.
Yeah, little shards.

472
00:39:26,120 --> 00:39:29,000
<font color="
Twiggy-looking things

473
00:39:29,000 --> 00:39:30,560
that are pretty small for twigs.

474
00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:34,760
Right. In all probability,
they represent charcoal.

475
00:39:34,760 --> 00:39:37,400
It's unlikely to be anything else,

476
00:39:37,400 --> 00:39:40,920
and I see that
in all my pollen samples.

477
00:39:43,600 --> 00:39:45,840
There's only one thing

478
00:39:45,840 --> 00:39:49,000
<font color="
so much charcoal.

479
00:39:53,640 --> 00:39:55,680
THUNDER ROLLS

480
00:39:59,600 --> 00:40:01,960
The long, dry summer months

481
00:40:01,960 --> 00:40:06,280
have created a time bomb.

482
00:40:11,280 --> 00:40:14,240
As wildfire rages through
the parched forest...

483
00:40:19,960 --> 00:40:22,440
..it threatens the gastonia

484
00:40:22,440 --> 00:40:24,840
and the surviving raptors.

485
00:40:24,840 --> 00:40:26,600
<font color="

486
00:40:26,600 --> 00:40:28,280
SCREECHES

487
00:40:44,440 --> 00:40:46,160
BELLOWING

488
00:40:46,160 --> 00:40:49,840
But George is slow
to react to the danger.

489
00:40:53,280 --> 00:40:55,240
BELLOWS

490
00:41:01,320 --> 00:41:02,920
SQUAWKS

491
00:41:13,680 --> 00:41:16,640
With a top speed around 20mph,

492
00:41:16,640 --> 00:41:20,360
the raptors soon reach
a clearing in the forest.

493
00:41:28,360 --> 00:41:30,880
SQUAWKS

494
00:41:30,880 --> 00:41:34,840
<font color="
between the flames

495
00:41:34,840 --> 00:41:37,560
and a treacherous marshy swamp.

496
00:41:44,280 --> 00:41:48,600
And George and the gastonia
gang aren't far behind.

497
00:41:57,040 --> 00:42:01,520
The flames driving the two
mortal enemies together...

498
00:42:04,520 --> 00:42:09,760
..for one final showdown.

499
00:42:17,040 --> 00:42:18,920
GRUNTS

500
00:42:23,120 --> 00:42:24,640
<font color="

501
00:42:24,640 --> 00:42:26,520
But back at the lab...

502
00:42:26,520 --> 00:42:28,240
Oh, that's just...

503
00:42:28,240 --> 00:42:31,600
..the sandstone block
filled with raptor bones...

504
00:42:31,600 --> 00:42:33,720
Now, this one here...

505
00:42:33,720 --> 00:42:36,360
..has one last secret to reveal.

506
00:42:36,360 --> 00:42:37,520
..right size...

507
00:42:37,520 --> 00:42:39,600
Nice little jaw right there.

508
00:42:39,600 --> 00:42:42,560
<font color="

509
00:42:42,560 --> 00:42:45,560
The amazing thing is that
all these delicate little teeth

510
00:42:45,560 --> 00:42:47,640
are all still in place
in their sockets.

511
00:42:47,640 --> 00:42:50,640
Oh, it's really remarkable
to have it so well preserved.

512
00:42:51,920 --> 00:42:54,280
Such high levels of preservation...

513
00:42:54,280 --> 00:42:56,440
<font color="
And certainly this,

514
00:42:56,440 --> 00:42:58,880
you know,
still has the teeth included.

515
00:42:58,880 --> 00:43:03,240
..tell the team the bones
have not been disturbed.

516
00:43:03,240 --> 00:43:08,720
The block captures the very
moment the raptors died.

517
00:43:09,920 --> 00:43:11,880
And interesting that

518
00:43:11,880 --> 00:43:15,200
<font color="
all seem to be in this sand.

519
00:43:15,200 --> 00:43:19,800
Yeah. It suggests that sand
is part of why they died,

520
00:43:19,800 --> 00:43:21,440
why they're so well preserved.

521
00:43:23,800 --> 00:43:26,440
Although the sand is solid today,

522
00:43:26,440 --> 00:43:29,840
Jim believes
that when the raptors died,

523
00:43:29,840 --> 00:43:31,360
it was liquid.

524
00:43:33,200 --> 00:43:36,080
<font color="
is what buried them.

525
00:43:36,080 --> 00:43:38,160
Given the geology of the setting,

526
00:43:38,160 --> 00:43:43,280
most likely we're looking at
a mass mortality tied to quicksand.

527
00:43:53,680 --> 00:43:55,240
SQUAWKS

528
00:43:58,680 --> 00:44:00,200
BELLOWS

529
00:44:05,200 --> 00:44:07,480
HISSING

530
00:44:14,720 --> 00:44:16,240
SHRIEKS

531
00:44:17,560 --> 00:44:19,360
SQUAWKING

532
00:44:24,960 --> 00:44:28,080
<font color="
the raptors run into trouble.

533
00:44:35,320 --> 00:44:37,400
BLEACH

534
00:44:56,080 --> 00:44:58,000
With the raptors out of the way...

535
00:44:59,320 --> 00:45:02,000
..George has the chance to escape.

536
00:45:24,920 --> 00:45:26,800
LOW BELLOWING

537
00:45:26,800 --> 00:45:28,320
But they're struggling.

538
00:45:31,320 --> 00:45:34,520
The very things that protected
them from the raptors...

539
00:45:36,120 --> 00:45:40,240
<font color="
and short, stocky legs...

540
00:45:45,360 --> 00:45:47,760
GRUNTS AND PANTS

541
00:45:49,400 --> 00:45:51,920
..mean George and the gang

542
00:45:51,920 --> 00:45:55,200
are too slow to escape the fire.

543
00:45:55,200 --> 00:45:57,720
PANTS

544
00:46:09,520 --> 00:46:11,200
One by one...

545
00:46:13,400 --> 00:46:16,520
..the smoke takes its toll.

546
00:46:30,000 --> 00:46:32,000
Buried where they fell...

547
00:46:35,040 --> 00:46:38,440
<font color="
around them.

548
00:46:45,680 --> 00:46:48,920
Layer upon layer of rock
builds up...

549
00:46:51,000 --> 00:46:52,800
..as the aeons pass...

550
00:46:54,200 --> 00:46:59,040
..and the continents silently drift
across the face of the Earth...

551
00:47:05,120 --> 00:47:08,920
..until George and the gang
are finally found...

552
00:47:11,440 --> 00:47:15,120
<font color="

553
00:47:31,280 --> 00:47:32,600
Next time...

554
00:47:33,720 --> 00:47:36,360
..T-Rex's lethal, faster cousin.

555
00:47:42,120 --> 00:47:45,840
A young hunter
fighting for her place

556
00:47:45,840 --> 00:47:48,400
in the most ferocious pack on Earth.