Birds and dinosaurs really do go together.
Nowhere is this more apparent than north of Gibbons, where Greg Suess is getting ready to open Jurassic Forest. Peeking inside the mouth of a robotic Styracosaurus, he's surprised to find a bird's nest. "Oh ho!" he laughs. "There's eggs in it."
A nearby Apatosaurus roars, presumably in approval.
Jurassic Forest, a new edutainment park just north of Gibbons, opened its gates yesterday. The park features realistic robot dinosaurs that rage and roar in amongst a living forest.
The edutainment park was built with nature in mind, said Suess, the park's general manager. "We've disturbed the forest floor as little as possible," he says, using elevated walkways and careful construction to preserve trees and plants. "We think touching this as little as possible just adds that much more to the experience."
The result is a sort of surreal beauty. Dragonflies frolic alongside Pteranodons, just as archaeologists believe they did millions of years ago. A killer Tyrannosaurus stalks across a field of magenta-hued fireweed. Birds build nests in dino-mouths.
Many people don't get a chance to explore a wild forest like this, Suess says, or to see dinosaurs. The park's meant to give them both. "Birds and dinosaurs can get along."
Dino fan's dream
The park itself is a 40-acre site with an interpretive centre, trails, and 40 life-size animatronic dinosaurs hidden amongst the trees. Motion sensors cue the dinosaurs to roar, chomp, flex and flap when people walk past.
The park caught the public's eye earlier this year when the dinosaurs were moved into position by helicopter. There's been a flood of interest since, Suess says, one he hopes will bring hundreds of visitors a day.
Suess credits Bret Walter for coming up with the project.
Walter, a shy Calgary businessman, says he's been working on the park for three years with two Calgary and one Edmonton investor.
The group was concerned about a lack of fun, educational facilities in Edmonton other than the Royal Alberta Museum and the Telus World of Science, Walter says. You could find dinosaurs in Edmonton, but you had to go to the Royal Tyrell Museum down south to learn about them. "We really wanted to do something for the county and the province."
The group spent million of dollars to build their park north of Gibbons. It's close to Edmonton and St. Albert, Walter explains, and it's next to the Goose Hummock Golf Course, which the group had investments in.
Education, not kitsch
The park's focus is education, Walter says — you won't find cute mascots or Flintstone cars here. "We're definitely an education and family based facility. We're not a theme park."
Staff plan to work closely with local archaeologists to run the exhibits and might fund a future scholarship.
Most of the dinosaurs modelled in the park roamed the Edmonton or Alberta region in the past, says Liz Martin, the park's palaeontologist. These dinosaurs are actually from the Cretaceous period, she notes, which came after the Jurassic.
"There's obviously no way we're going to be able to tell what colour a dinosaur was," she continues, but we do know the texture of their skin from fossils. Modern animals suggest dull, earthy colours that provide camouflage, with splashes of red or orange for eye-catching frills or horns.
We have a slightly better idea of what dinosaurs sound like, she continues. Some dinosaurs have long, hollow crests, for example, which researchers think were used for sound. Flying beasts might have had a loud, sharp call like today's eagles.
This park should become a major draw for dino-fans across western Canada, Walter says. "We've got quite a few field trips booked already." He planned to take his own kids — who have yet to see the finished park — on opening day. "I think they'll be blown away by it.
Tickets range from $8 to $13. For details, call 780-470-2446.
