There is something missing from our world. The amazing creatures that time has left behind. But what if we could bring them back?
What if extinction didn't have to be forever?
We're going back in time on a safari with a difference as wildlife adventurer Nigel Marvin plunges into prehistory to rescue creatures on the brink of extinction. His plan is to bring them back to the safety of the present and give them a second chance.
This time, Nigel goes back one million ears to Prehistoric South America to rescue Giant killer birds and savage sabre toothed cats.
Welcome to the ultimate wildlife sanctuary.
Welcome to Prehistoric Park.
Prehistoric Park is a huge wildlife preserve, with a wide range of habitats to house the animals that Nigel brings back. After several successful rescue missions, the park is filling up nicely with creatures that have not been seen for millions of years. Most of them have settled in quite nicely, but some have had... teething problems. At least the park's newest residents, a herd of titanosaurs, seem to be settling in well.
Now, though, Nigel has set his eyes on cats. Not the house hold ones like your average house tabby, big ones like the cheetah and the jaguar. Cats might be some of nature's most efficient killers, but even they need protecting. And that's got Nigel thinking on what he wants to save next.
"The sad thing is, the populations of big cats world wide are miniscule compared to what they used to be. They've been driven over hunted by humans, driven out of their territories, and the populations have plummeted. It's really important to establish breeding populations in captivity. In the past, though, there were more than thirty species of big cats, and I would to have one or two at Prehistoric Park. Maybe we could even have an extinct big cat."
At his den, Nigel is looking over various pictures of extinct cats.
Even with so many targets to choose from, it doesn't take long for him to settle on his target.
"There are so many species of big cats that I could rescue. One is a cheetah the size of a lion. Imagine seeing that running at full speed. There's Thylacoleo, the marsupial lion; a lion with a pouch. But (holds up a skull with two VERY large, bladelike teeth) for me, there's only one choice. The cat I must save is this one, Smilodon. This is the creature that got me into paleontology, and it's also the most famous prehistoric cat. Those teeth are awe inspiring and scientists are pretty sure they know how it used them. When it hunted prey, it knocked them over, got on top of them, then bit into their throats. The teeth cut through all of the major arteries and crushed the wind pipe, making for a quick kill."
To rescue the sabre-tooth, Nigel will have to go back one million years to South America. Back then, it was a different world. Saber toothed cats were the dominant predators of north America, but when they moved South, they were fast taking over from one of the strangest predators the world has ever seen: a ten-foot tall, flightless killer bird.
In another part of his den, Nigel has flattened out a picture of a giant bird. Lying down next to it, he came up just short of its giant, razor sharp beak.
"This is a terror bird. These were the dominant predators of South America in the Miocene, and when the cats came South, they moved North. Unfortunately, the climate changed, whipping out their food. Hopefully, I'll be able to save one."
While Nigel makes his final preparations, trouble is brewing elsewhere.
The titanosaurs, apparently looking for more food, have knocked down their fences and started roaming through the park.
For Bob, this is a big problem.
"Control, we have a problem. The titanosaurs have broken out. I need people working to round them up, as well as a team to fix the fence."
With all of the needed staff called, Bob tries to chase down the herd.
"I not really worried about these dinosaurs, they're too big for most of the predators and well away from the ones that can hurt them, but I am worried about them getting near the main gate, which is exactly where they're headed now.
As Bob follows them on a tractor, Nigel tries to call him.
"Bob, do you read?"
"Yes, Nigel, what do you need?"
"Besides the saber tooth, I need a bird cage. I'm bringing back a giant bird."
"Sorry Nigel, I can barely hear you. Me tractor's engine is actin' up."
"I need a bird cage. It's for a really big bird; it's ten feet tall."
"Could you say that again?"
"I need a bird cage."
"Bird cage, got it."
"It's ten feet tall."
"Okay, I got it."
Ahead of Bob, one of the titanosaurs is eating... and relieving himself.
"There's no need for that."
The titanosaurs seems to think otherwise.
"I knew that the Alamosaurus and Argentinosaurus couldn't be caged, they're too big, so I gave them free range over the park, but these guys, well, I guess I need to reevaluate my strategy."
A little ways ahead, Nigel is about to find out why Bob was having trouble hearing him. As he drives up the road, he is forced to stop for one of the titanosaurs.
"Well, how did you get here?"
Since the sauropod shows no indication it will move, Nigel drives around him. As he speeds away, he notices Bob heading after the dinosaur and can only laugh.
As Nigel makes his final preparations, Bob finally returns from his sauropod round up.
"Hold up Nigel, got that bird cage for you."
Bob's cage, while decently sized, is only half the size Nigel needs.
"What's that? I thought you didn't hear my request properly. You'd only be able to fit one of it's chicks in there; it's ten feet,three meters tall."
"Really. Ugh, this could be difficult."
"It's okay. Still, it's bigger than what I was expecting. I though you'd either bring back one that was just right or one that was for a normal bird."
"Well, you're going to ancient South America. I thought you'd be bringing back a rhea ancestor."
By going back one million years, Nigel will be arriving at a time when the Saber-tooths were thriving, but when the terror birds were on their last legs. What other strange creatures will Nigel encounter?
AN: So, let's get down to business.
1. Smilodon populator, which is the one used in WWB and Prehistoric Park, never lived with terror birds. I don't care and will use the shows anachronism because I like it that way.
2. This isn't really something that matters, but if this were a show, I'd have an evolving opening sequence featuring the creatures Nigel brought back each episode. For example, Episode 1 would have an opening the same as the vanilla one, episode two would add in the Edmontosaurus, Ankylosaurus and Denversaurus to the group, Episode 3 the Megaloceras and Coelodonta; and episode 4 the Jinzhousaurus and Chuanqilong. Tell me if you would like to get a tentative version of this as an omake.
3. Terror birds would never directly compete with big cats for prey, as they are built for hunting swift animals like horses, WHICH ARE WAY TOO FAST FOR SMILODON TO HUNT. Therefore, I'm changing their cause of extinction to climate change, which I think sounds more realistic.
4. Finally, I will need awhile to put in the creatures rescued lists, as I'm a little backed up on them, but they'll be out soon enough.
Read and review. This is Flameal15k, signing off.
