【Sarah Shevon Archives】

Spoilers ahead,Sarah Shevon Archives but they're very small, like Compsognathus.

Chris Pratt has the abs, smile, and square jaw. But the real hero of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is Stiggy the Stygimoloch.

Yes, the adorable dinosaur headbutted its way into our hearts by saving our heroes and kicking villain butt, and yes, Stygimolochwas a real creature.

SEE ALSO: More is more in 'Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom'

The herbivore had a dome on its head, probably for defense against predators and battling each other for mates. Stygimoloch is also an excellent name for a metal band. (Itroughly translates to "Styx demon.")

Another reason Stygimolochwas so badass: It had big horns on its head, which were probably very useful for not getting eaten.

"If you're a T. rexthat wants to bite this guy's head off, you're going to do it with a certain amount of risk," said paleontologist Pete Larson, president of the Black Hills Institute of Geological Research.

It was relatively small, about 3 feet tall at the hip and 7 to 10 feet long. Discovered in North and South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, it lived alongside some of the greats — Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, Ornithomimus, and Dakotaraptor — during the late Cretaceous Period. So late, in fact, that it was around during the extinction event that killed off the dinosaurs.

Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter. By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Thanks for signing up!

"When the asteroid hit, some of these guys were around to look up at the sky and say, 'Oh crap, what's that?'" joked Larson. (Luckily, Stiggy only had to deal with an active volcano.)

Some paleontologists, including Jack Horner, who served as an adviser to the Jurassic Parkfilms, have theorized Stygimolochwas just a juvenilePachycephalosaurus. Larson disagrees, claiming the number and orientation of their horns are too different.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

OK, get ready for a very minimal spoiler, if you can spoil a movie where a raptor jumps away from an explosion like Bruce Willis in Die Hard.

Remember that scene where Stiggy smashes through a brick wall and prison door to free Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard from their cell?

Via Giphy

It seemed pretty ludicrous. And it was, as far as plot goes. Buuut, actually, said Larson, it might be possible. The dinosaur's thick dome -- made of porous bone -- was a very good shock absorber, so a 200-pound Stygimoloch running full speed could have "potentially" broken down a brick wall. Still, scientists haven't studied the matter, so we can't know for sure.

Not that it should matter. I mean, compared to some other scenes in the movie, the Stiggy jailbreak was very realistic. (Let's not even talk about that blood transfusion.)

Larson said his colleagues often criticize the science in the Jurassic Parkand Jurassic Worldmovies. He doesn't take them so seriously.

"It's a movie," he said. "These things are genetically engineered, they're not necessarily what they were when they were living [in the Cretaceous Period]. Just enjoy it, have fun, and watch these dinosaurs move and do cool things."

Yeah, cool things like smash stuff. Long live Stiggy.

---

Featured Video For You

---

Jeff Goldblum is back in the amazing 'Jurassic World Evolution' video game

---

• Shopping
• Social Good
• Deals
• Science
• Tech
• Digital Culture
• Games
• Life

• Fyre Festival and Trump’s Language
• 'Toy Story' Vans are actually for adults
• When Kim Kardashian returns to social media, it will be very different
• Dog is super concerned when his buddy fakes being dead
• Best gaming laptop deal: Save $400 on the HP Victus 15 with Ryzen 5 and Radeon RX 6550M
• Hurricane Matthew could damage the U.S.' newest weather satellite before it launches
• The bigger the yawn, the bigger the brain, scientists find
• Google's Pixel and Pixel XL smartphones to go on pre
• How to Squeeze the Most Out of Your iPhone's Battery
• Grindr drops inappropriate tweet during VP debate

• Steven Soderbergh's new HBO show will have a choose
• Barclays put in sensors to see which bankers are at their desks
• Live your laziest life with this super convenient charging pad
• The Defenders: Misty Knight's injury teases 'Daughters of the Dragon'
• Junior League World Series player makes insane catch, snagging would
• Facebook is finally purging annoying fake videos from your News Feed
• The definitive ranking of 'Game of Thrones' characters most likely to die in episode 6
• Game of Thrones: A dragon dies in 'Beyond the Wall,' but it gets worse
• The New York Times has recognized that it did not discover bubble tea
• Is Taylor Swift about to drop a single?

• The Kindle Scribe just dropped to its lowest price ever, but is it worth it?
• Professor says she'll bring gun to campus after members of the band kneel for anthem
• Facebook missed a big opportunity with end
• Cara Delevigne, Dakota Johnson FaceTime with bestie Taylor Swift
• Apple is reportedly still working on smart glasses of some kind
• The 8 most impressive social good innovations from September
• Marriage equality haters made a 'data
• How Florida could get slammed twice by Hurricane Matthew in one week
• Against Fear
• How wild card walk

• A worthless juicer and a Gipper-branded server
• NASA's blasting a new lander to the moon. It's wrapped in sportswear.
• Why watch Pence vs. Kaine? Because this is the real presidential debate.
• Computer scientist shuts down mansplainer who told her to learn Java
• #rateaspecies is basically Yelp reviews for zoo animals
• U.S. Southwest faces 99% risk of 'megadroughts' due to climate change
• Pregnant dog delays Moscow metro train by giving birth
• 'Racist' Fox News piece blasted by Asian
• The Bose QuietComfort Ultra headphones are on sale for $100 off
• Professor says she'll bring gun to campus after members of the band kneel for anthem