Isla Nublar

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Isla Nublar is the fictional island on which dinosaurs were held in Jurassic Park. It was said to be 120 miles off the coast of Costa Rica, but is shown at the film's start on a map as La Palma island, in the Canary Islands (in Spain and Africa, not in Costa Rica). Isla Nublar was also the 'showroom' for Jurassic Park (that is, significant bio-engineering did not take place there; rather, it is simply the place where the dinosaurs are displayed for visitors).

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[edit] Name

Isla Nublar is intended to mean "Island of Clouds" in Spanish. Nublar [1] is not a Spanish noun, but a verb ('to cloud'). Correct Spanish would be Isla de las Nubes, Isla Nublada, Isla Nubosa or Isla Nebulosa.

[edit] Geology

Isla Nublar was not considered a true island; rather, it was described as a seamount, a volcanic upthrusting of rock from the ocean floor; however, that description does not quite fit. The island of Hawaii was formed the same way. The heat that is still produced from the old volcano provides geothermal power to the park's electricity generating systems; because of this the island is still hot in some areas and often even hot under foot. The island lies covered in fog due to this heat and the prevailing currents.

The climate is tropical, with dense jungles and two rivers running across the island to the East & Northern Coasts. The island is described in the novels as being tear drop shaped, thicker at the north than at the south.

The island measures 8 miles long and 3 miles wide at the widest point, making about a total area size of about 22 square miles. There also is a large lake to the north and massive aviary toward the center of the island. The highest peak of the island is roughly about 2,100 feet. The island is close to, but not a part of an island chain which according to the movie,was originally called "Las Cinco Mujeres" ("The Five Women"), but, in the story, in recent years danger from the dinosaurs gave the islands a bad reputation among fishermen and the name was distorted to "Las Cinco Muertes" ("The Five Deaths"). Isla Sorna is a member of it. But another source says that they were called "Las Cinco Muertes" from the beginning. The trailer's map in the second film labels the five islands as Isla Mazanceros, Isla Muerta, Isla Sorna, Isla Tacano, and Isla Pena. The map does not show the location of Isla Nublar, implying it may be closer to Panama than the island chain.

[edit] Jurassic Park

On Isla Nublar is Jurassic Park, a zoo-like attraction filled with genetically engineered dinosaurs created by John Hammond and the InGen corporation. Hammond intended the island to be visited by millions from around the world, bringing delight to children in addition to impressive profits. However, while he was showing the island to people whom he intended to endorse it, the dinosaurs got loose and terrorized the park. According to the novel, the island was then chemical-bombed by the fictional Costa Rican Air Force; in the movie, its fate is unknown. The Nublar animals may well have been similarly exterminated in the movie storyline. This is hinted at in a cut scene from The Lost World: Jurassic Park where new InGen leader Peter Ludlow, Hammond's nephew discusses the cost of having to demolish Jurassic Park.

The Lysine Contingency may also have taken place in the possible demise of the dinosaurs. The genetically altered dinosaurs relied on the dosage of lysine from the caretakers of Jurassic Park, as a contingency plan in the case that the dinosaurs would escape.

[edit] The Park

[edit] Jurassic Park Visitors Center

The hub of the park was the Jurassic Park Visitors Center, which seen from the outside had stone walls with fossil designs engraved into it, flowing water ducts framing both sides of the steps and had a thatched roof. Inside, the main hall featured skeletons of a sauropod being attacked by a tyrannosaur. Other parts of the center included a cafe with dinosaur murals on it, a scientific lab (presumably for show purposes only), the park's main control center, embryonic storage, and a circulating movie room. There was also a conference room with one table and several projection devices for use in presentations regarding the park. It appears that the Jurassic Park Visitor Center was never fully completed as evidenced by construction workers and scaffolding present within scenes from the movie.

[edit] Perimeter Fence and Gates

The park was surrounded by a large perimeter fence. The fence had an 10,000 volt charge running through it. The general perimeter fence was used as a sort of last defense against dino escape. Each species of dinosaur also had fences around their particular enclosure to ensure there would not be intermingling of certain species. The perimeter fence featured a number of large gates which would allow passage to vehicles and humans via electronic locking mechanisms.

[edit] Dilophosaurus Enclosure

The first dinosaur enlcosure on the tour was that of Dilophosaurus. The enclosure had a small electric fence with a notice saying for people to turn up the windows. The Dilophosaurus enclosure was notoriously badly designed due to a lack of proper sight lines and dense vegetation. Due to these factors it was extremely difficult to catch a glimpse of its beautiful inhabitants.

[edit] Tyrannosaurus Enclosure

The T.Rex enclosure was probably the most viewed enclosure in the film. The enclosure itself was separated from the road by a large electric fence, and had a security moat in between the fence and the enclosure. Curiously, in the film, the moat disappears and then reappears within the same scene. The enclosure also featured retractable mini-cages which housed small mammals for consumption by the inhabitants (i.e.- goat). This is used to bring the animals into view of the audience.

[edit] Raptor Pen

The Raptor Pen was a relatively small enclosure when compared to its counterparts throughout the park. The Raptor was believed to be too dangerous for a typical park enclosure and was relegated to this smaller, yet more secure dwelling. The enclosure featured its own "lookout" tower to oversee the animals as well as a custom feeding mechanism which would lower live-feed, in the form of livestock, to the floor of the pen for consumption. Interestingly, this enclosure is not part of the Jurassic Park paid tour and was actually far off the tour path. Undoubtedly, the designers were wrong when choosing the placement of the pen because it appears curiously close to the Jurassic Park Visitor's Center, a dangerous design flaw.

[edit] Brachiosaurus and Parasaurolophus enclosure

The first encounter with the Brachiosaurus shows them and Parasaurolophus herding together. The enclosure was large grassy plains with occasional tall trees and a lake. This enclosure was particularly important because one must traverse through it in order to reach the Visitor's Center.

[edit] Gallimimus Enclosure

This enclosure was seen in the Gallimimus stampede scene. The enclosure was surrounded by mountains and mostly consisted of plains with trees and the occasional root system. This was perhaps the largest enclosure within the park due to the herding nature of the Gallimimus.

[edit] Triceratops Enclosure

This enclosure was seen in the Triceratops scene. There was little grass in the enclosure and poisonous West Indian Lilac berries. Perhaps the enclosure with the best view of the animals residing within, the Triceratops enclosure was flat and vegetation was not too dense that it would cover the animals. From the touring vehicles you could view far and wide throughout the enclosure.

[edit] Power Shed

The power shed basically was a small shed (from the outside at least). It was situated near the Raptor Pen. Inside, some small stairs led down into a complex maze of passages. This inconspicuous structure was close to the Visitor Center and located primarily underground presumably to keep electronic equipment cool.

[edit] Dinosaurs and other extinct animals featured

The park showcases dinosaurs, which have been recreated from dinosaur DNA found in mosquitoes trapped in fossilized amber that sucked their blood millions of years ago. The DNA was damaged, so to fill the genetic gaps, amphibian DNA was used.

[edit] Film

These are dinosaurs and other extinct animals confirmed to be on Isla Nublar in the movies:

[edit] Novel

Dinosaurs and other extinct animals confirmed to be on Isla Nublar in the novel:

  • Later editions of the novel list Microceratops in place of Callovosaurus on the population tables presented in the book. Microceratops, however, is seen by characters in the park whereas Callovosaurus is not.
  • Later editions of the novel use Camarasaurus in place of Apatosaurus, although Apatosaurus remains on the population tables presented in the book.
  • A dinosaur presumed to be a Coelurosaurus had just begun the DNA extraction procedure at the time the story takes place.
  • In addition to dinosaurs and pterosaurs, several prehistoric plants and at least one species of insect (a giant dragonfly, perhaps Meganeura) were also resurrected from extinction for the park.


[edit] References

  1. ^ nublar in the Diccionario de la Real Academia Española

[edit] External links

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Jurassic Park franchise
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Isla Nublar · Isla Sorna · InGen · Dominican amber · Dragon curve
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