THERE’S a dilophosaurus shooting venom on your left, and a ferocious saber-toothed cat growling at you to your right, your only choice is to run.

But this is no Jurassic Park set, this is Chester Zoo. Just don’t turn your back on them for long!

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A terrifying T-Rex, one of several animatronic marvels at the Predators exhibition

Chester Zoo is set for the world premier of Predators, an exhibition featuring 13 ‘animatronic mega beasts’ all the way from America, recreated based on fossils, cave paintings and similarities between modern day animals.

The Saturday, May 25 debut will see a 12ft-tall giant bear, a colossal T-Rex and an angry titanoboa snake among the robotic creations, which will showcase 200 million years of lost species and reveal the reality of extinction.

Zoo rangers – and their collection of skulls – will be on hand at the exhibition to educate, fascinate, and maybe even scare you!

Chester and District Standard:

A saber-toothed cat

On our visit, the zoo ranger told us about the jaw strength of a T-Rex (spoiler: it can crush the weight of an elephant!). You can even sink your teeth into one of the regular talks with a predator expert.

Featuring realistic movements and sounds, the exhibit includes the infamous T-Rex – the most feared land predator of all time – a shark which had a bite that was three metres wide and a giant snake that ate crocodiles for breakfast, even accommodating Game of Thrones fans, who can now pet a dire wolf like Jon Snow.

The experience allows you to immerse yourself into the past, with friendly zoo rangers there to reassure kids (and adults, too). “Don’t worry, we’ve fed the dinosaurs today!”, they told one awe-struck young boy.

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An allosaurus

Another predator waiting around the corner is the quetzalcoatlus. Although the size of a giraffe, he’s probably already seen you, due to being the largest flying animal to have ever lived, with a wingspan of 30ft (longer than a London bus!).

Though fearsome, our most loved creatures walking the earth today could face the same fate as the predatory beasts. Zoo conservationists hope the high-tech creatures will highlight that extinction is a very real threat to animals on the planet today.

Chester Zoo has worked with communities in South America to try and prevent the extinction of the Andean bear, hoping to avoid the same fate as their distant ancestors, the now-extinct short faced bear, which features in the spectacle.

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The now-extinct short-faced bear also features in the line-up

A zoo spokesperson told The Standard: “It’s heart-breaking to think that, one day, future generations may only be able to see animatronic rhinos, tigers and elephants because they too have been wiped out. That’s what we want to highlight with this new display – and that it’s vital that we act now to prevent the extinction of species while we still have the chance.”

They added: “This collection of robotic predators is an exciting new exhibition that has never before been seen, anywhere in the world.

“It’s amazing to see the sheer size and scale of some of the mega beasts that once walked the planet but it’s also a real reminder about the threat of extinction that many species face today.”

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A sarcosuchus, one of the animatronic marvels at Chester Zoo.

Phil Blackburn, a wildlife conservationist at Chester Zoo of six years, explained further: “The exhibition is about promoting the fact extinction is forever.

“We do have a lot of species here at the zoo which we’re trying to learn a lot more about, making sure we’re preventing extinction in the wild, with many other predators like jaguars and tigers at risk of extinction.”

  • The Predators exhibition is free with normal zoo admission, set to run every day until Sunday, September 8.

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