Jurassic World Evolution Wiki
Jurassic World Evolution Wiki

Now what we have here is a Herrerasaurus. It's a carnivore and a spectacular addition to our dinosaurs. It just requires a little TLC.

Herrerasaurus is a genus of theropod dinosaur that originated from Late Triassic South America. One of the earliest dinosaurs that ever lived, it is discovered at the Ischigualasto Formation. Herrerasaurus is included in the Carnivore Dinosaur Pack and unlocked at Isla Tacaño by progressing through the Science Division.


Herrerasaurus was one of the species which InGen had planned to feature at the original Jurassic Park on Isla Nublar. At least four Herrerasaurus were created by InGen inside their compound on Isla Sorna and shipped to Isla Nublar where they lived in their own paddock. On the map, the Herrerasaurus enclosure was located at the far northwestern end of the island where the tourist route does not connect. This population went extinct between the 1993 incident and the 1994 cleanup. InGen did, however, save 60% of its genome.[1]


According to Dr. Laura Sorkin, a scientist working for InGen during the Jurassic Park incident, Herrerasaurus were created as a 'safe' alternative to the Velociraptors as they seemed to be not as intelligent and were easier to contain compared to the raptors.[2]

End of information based on Jurassic Park: The Game.

The species appears to have been present in Jurassic World and as of 2018, it has been revealed that the Herrerasaurus population was the victim of an unconfirmed form of cruelty.[3]


A Herrerasaurus hunts down a Homalocephale.

Herrerasaurus is a relatively medium sized, stocky and powerfully built carnivore. The base genome of the Herrerasaurus is green, with yellowish stripes across its body. Unlike the other species of small carnivores (except Compsognathus), Herrerasaurus locks its jaws on small prey (especially goats) and uses its body momemtum to wrestle it to the ground.


Herrerasaurus is a medium-sized carnivore which eats from both the Carnivore and Live Bait Feeders. They can hunt small and medium herbivores such as Gallimimus and Homalocephale, fight with larger pachycephalosaurids, and other small carnivores such as Velociraptor and Proceratosaurus. They can however live alongside armoured and giant herbivores such as Ankylosaurus and Brachiosaurus. Herrerasaurus is a relatively social dinosaur, preferring social groups of between one and five individuals, as well as a population of up to twenty two other dinosaurs.


One of the earliest dinosaurs known, Herrerasaurus was also one of the largest carnivorous dinosaurs of its formation, measuring 6 m (20 ft.) in length and weighing close to 800 pounds. Despite its size though, it was dwarfed by large rauisuchians, land-dwelling relatives of the crocodiles, which were the apex predators. Herrerasaurus is a primitive animal compared to later dinosaurs and, despite similarities, it may not a theropod. Instead, it and its kind, the Herrerasauridae, are basal saurischians and may have been the start of both theropod and sauropod lineages.

A pair of Herrerasaurus.

All Herrerasauridae have so far been found in North and South America, however, the relationship these dinosaurs have with others is a mystery. Herrerasaurus already displayed some traits and features which would be seen in later dinosaurs, such as the pubic bone in the pelvis pointing backward, as seen in dinosaurs and birds. Its long narrow skull had a flexible joint in the lower jaw, so it could slide back and forth to deliver a grasping bite. This trait is unique among dinosaurs but can be found in some types of lizards.

Herrerasaurus was found by accident by an Andean goat farmer named Victorino Herrera, who saw the bones jutting out from an outcrop and reported it to paleontologists. The dinosaur was named in his honor. Later studies of this outcrop, the Ischigualasto Formation, later yielded a diverse array of animals including another far more basal dinosaur, Eoraptor.

Some scientists have hypothesized that Herrerasaurus may have had more in common with sauropods than theropods.[4]


Herrerasaurus was discovered in Late Triassic Ischigualasto Formation which was a volcanically active floodplain covered by forests with a moist and warm climate. It lived alongside another early dinosaur, Eoraptor, as well as Saurosuchus, a giant land-living rauisuchian.

Available genomes

Fossil icon Dig site Quality Number available
Ischigualasto Formation




  1. What Killed the Gene Guard Act?. (February 23, 2018). Dinosaur Protection Group. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  2. Jurassic Park: The Game [Video game]. (2011). Telltale Games.
  3. Dinosaur Protection Group. (2018). Dinosaurs Are Mortal. Cruelty Is Timeless. [Poster]. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28332513

External links