A Dinosaur's Neighborhood Geographic Groceries Wonderworld Activity Index

<< What if a dinosaur, like this one, lived in your neighborhood? Photograph by Todd Gipstein

Find the right ecosystem for a Tyrannosaurus rex. Prowl the resources at right to learn what a T. rex needs to be happy at home, then pick one of the three options below.

Remember Jurassic Park? Using DNA preserved in amber, scientists cloned dinosaurs, who then stole the screen from hapless humans. Imagine having the dream—or nightmare—job of finding a home for T. rex. (We'll assume your client doesn't eat you. Actually, humans and dinos never coexisted.)

A few hints: Paleontologists believe that T. rex lived in an environment like the floodplains of eastern North Carolina, where pine forests rise from much of the sandy soil. Other vegetation can include cypress, cedar, ferns, Spanish moss, and Venus's-flytraps. The subtropical climate features hot summers, mild winters, and nearly 50 inches (127 centimeters) of precipitation each year.

Option A: Desert Dream House

What could be better for a cold-blooded critter than a nice warm desert? (Yes, we know some deserts are cold, but they're not on the market right now.) When sunbathing gets too boring, your big-mouthed client could stretch those legs by sprinting across expanses of sand or rock. Do desert, and your client will love you. I'll buy it!

Option B: Riverside Residence

Doesn't everyone want a hideaway in the woods? Lurking among the pines and cedars, your client can easily sniff out other critters when those snack attacks strike. And with a river running by the forest, getting water is a snap. Run with the river and make your dino's day. I'll buy it!

Option C: Tundra Townhome

Give your extraordinary dinosaur an extraordinary ecosystem! Tundra is truly cool, with some stunning vistas. And it's not too crowded. Your T. rex can be king of it all. Try tundra, and give your client a taste of life on the edge. I'll buy it!

Younger Xpeditioners: Make a picture of your T. rex enjoying its new home.

Older Xpeditioners: Identify real-world ecosystems where a T. rex could live and find them on a map or globe.

Parents: Anyone who's been in the real estate market for more than, say, ten minutes has heard the classic mantra "Location, location, location!" If it's true for Homo sapiens—our incredibly adaptable species—it's even more true for the other inhabitants of our planet.

This Family Xpedition drives the point home by using the gleefully unreal image of a T. rex who's gone house hunting. Behind the fun lurks a key geographic skill: the ability to look at a place and see what's special about it.