Final for my Corythosaurus casuarius.
The heat of the midday sun relentlessly beats down on a pebble strewn beach, located in what will eventually be known as Alberta, Canada by an as yet not evolved human population. For now, it is 76 million years prior to any human knowing anything, the Late Cretaceous period. The scene is perfect, the pale surface stretching languidly on the inner bend of a gently sloping riverbank. The water is almost placid, rippling slightly as it meanders its way around the river rocks as they break the surface of the water, a vision of serene stillness.
Dried out vegetation and dead tree limbs line the perimeter between the beach and low-lying coastal plain beyond, forming a makeshift a dumping ground for detritus deposited by the flow of the river during the rainy season. A cacophony of crashes and loud honks signals and end to the otherwise peaceful vista as two male Corythosaurs crash through the graveyard of dendrological remains as they face off with each other.
It's mating season, and these two are vying for the attention of the same female. Both of them are immense, measuring around 29 feet in length and weighing in at nearly 3 ton each. The large crests adorning their heads are flushed with color, and they wave them back and forth in a threat display to make themselves look even larger. Rearing up on their hind legs they bellow as the hollow interiors of the crests aid as a kind of natural resonating chamber. Both rivals lunge forward, crashing into each other, their shoulders bearing the brunt of the force while they simultaneously slam their necks into each other in an effort to tire out the other and throw them off their game, the contest can for hours.
Eventually they slow, their energies drained. Finally one of them falters as a large river rock, dug up during the battle finds itself below the animals food, causing it to stumble and loose its balance. With a last surge of strength the other male uses this opportunity to overtake his opponent, with a massive crash the destabilized titan loses their balance and falls to the ground, the victor raising his head and signaling his victory just as the sunlight starts to fade.Β
