Isla Sorna | Jurassic Field Guide

Also known as "Site B", Isla Sorna is a Sub-Tropical Island within the Las Cinco Muertes Archipelago, it was the factory floor of Jurassic Park, where all the Dinosaurs were originally bred, raised and studied before going to Isla Nublar. The status of the Island remains mysterious.

Ecosystems

Located in:

Costa Rica

Coordinates:

7°70'55.7"N, 90°00'58.2"W

Predominant Biome:

Sub-Tropical Forest

Seen in:

The Lost World Jurassic Park (1997)
Jurassic Park Trespasser (1998)
Jurassic Park III (2001)
Jurassic World Dominion (2022)

1/5

Description and Discovery:

"1981, I stumble out of the Helicopter, already beginning to sweat and look around at the lush forest, the wet leaves. A forest this wild, this unknown, has not been seen by any humans since the great hunters of the Early Pliocene. The forest smelled of wet leaves, damp earth, rotting wood. The sky noon was like nothing in Europe, hot, tropical and.. new world."

This was John Hammond's description of Isla Sorna when he first visited it. Isla Sorna is a Sub-Tropical Island located off the shore of Costa Rica, it belongs to a series of Islands known as the archipelago of "Las cinco muertes" (The five deaths in Spanish). Sorna is the largest of the five Islands, with over 400 square kilometers (or 160 square miles) of land. Forming vast landscapes with high mountains ridges, wide rivers & lakes, and a unique array of Sub-Tropical & Tropical Regions, those of which would eventually become the home of Jurassic Park's Dinosaurs.

The exact date of when Isla Sorna was discovered is currently unknown, but a fair assumption might be around the early 1500s, close to the discovery and description of a nearby large Island called Isla Nublar, it is possible that Isla Sorna, and the other four islands from Las Cinco Muertes were discovered and described during that same period.

Centuries in the future, the Island would be bought from the Costa Rican Government by the company Ingen, founded by John Hammond in the early 80s. With the acquisition of the Island, operations and construction of Facilities would begin to be raised between 1982 to 1989, drastically changing Sorna's landscapes in favor of what would become one of the greatest achievements of Humankind in the world of Genetic Technologies.

Biomes and Landscape:

Unlike its sister Site, Isla Nublar, Isla Sorna sports a multitude of Biomes, Landscapes and Environments, being a bigger island, that was to be expected. With its predominant Sub-Tropical Climate, Isla Sorna has vast Tropical and Temperate Grasslands, Coniferous Forests, Tropical Rainforests and even Sequoia Redwood Forests!

The eastern north and south of the Island is where Conifer Forests and Sub-Tropical Plains dominate, respectively, there, certain Species of Dinosaurs take these lower lands for their territories, notable examples being animals such as the Coniferous Parasaurolophus, or the exuberant Mamenchisaurus. This portion of the Island is also where most of Ingen's operations happened during Peter Ludlow's Expedition on the Island during 1997.

Heading towards the west of the Island lies a series of Mountain ridges that act as a natural barrier to the Tropical Rainforests and Highlands of Sorna. These would form dense humid jungles with landscapes similar to those of Isla Nublar. Much like the East, the West of Sorna would be home to unique types of Dinosaurs such as the Corythosaurus or Ceratosaurus. Unique breeds of Velociraptors would also take the mountainous highlands for their territory.

Tropical Grasslands

Tropical Coast

Beaches

Temperate Grasslands

Tropical Rainforest

Coniferous Forests

Sub-Tropical Plains

Sequoia Forests

Lakes and Rivers

Fauna:

By now, nearly 30 years later, Isla Sorna became the home of a multitude of De-Extinct Animals, Dinosaurs and Pterosaurs of every kind were cloned by Ingen in the 90s for Jurassic Park. The oldest clones known are Species such as Triceratops and Velociraptor, during the mid-80s, it is still debated which of them was exactly the first Dinosaur ever cloned. Some medias such as "The Lost World Jurassic Park: Trespasser" imply that it was a Velociraptor. Another noteworthy case is the Microceratus, as seen in recorded footage from 1986 directly from the Laboratories.

During its operational years, Site B would house its Dinosaurs within perimeter zones, connected via Dirt Roads and Trails where Ingen Staff and Scientists could easily travel through the Island. Unfortunately, in 1995 after the disastrous incident on Isla Nublar, a powerful tropical storm would hit Isla Sorna too, called Hurricane Clarissa, as John Hammond describes:

"Hurricane Clarissa wiped out our facilities on Site B, call it, an act of God. But we had to evacuate of course, and the animals were released, to mature on their own. Life, will find a way!"

Nowadays, most remains of the abandoned Facilities have plants and vines growing through their walls, and the majority of the Perimeter Fences, are by now demolished.

It would be around 2004, after the acquisition of Ingen by Masrani Global, that Isla Sorna would be loosely operational again, placeholder Facilities and Paddocks would be built to clone and contain new breeds and species of Dinosaurs for the upcoming Jurassic World Theme Park. It is unclear which Species or Breeds exactly were only introduced post 2004 during the "Jurassic World Era" however.

Northeastern Fauna (Coniferous & temperate regions):

Apatosaurus

Compsognathus

Edmontosaurus

White-Footed

Gallimimus

Mamenchisaurus

Pachycephalosaurus

Coniferous

Parasaurolophus

Inland Pteranodon

Leatherback

Stegosaurus

Clouded Triceratops

Tyrannosaurus

Lowland

Velociraptor

Southeastern Fauna (Temperate & Sub-Tropical Regions):

Albertosaurus

Apatosaurus

Greater

Brachiosaurus

White-Footed

Gallimimus

Coniferous

Parasaurolophus

Leatherback

Stegosaurus

Clouded Triceratops

Forest

Velociraptor

Lowland

Velociraptor

Mountain

Velociraptor

Tyrannosaurus

Western Fauna (Tropical & Mountainous Regions):

Red-Headed Ankylosaurus

Sorna's

Brachiosaurus

Ceratosaurus

Compsognathus

Corythosaurus

Tropical

Parasaurolophus

Highland

Pteranodon

Spinosaurus

Leatherback

Stegosaurus

Striped Triceratops

Tyrannosaurus

Highland

Velociraptor

Flora:

With its wide array of Biomes and Landscapes, the biological diversity of Isla Sorna extends beyond its De-Extinct Fauna. Documenting the various plant species to be present on the Island is a difficult task. Uncharted territory to call it. But the Jurassic Field Guide tries its best to identify key taxons that can be seen throughout the Island. The list below could be in constant changing, as it is what we identify thus far.

Isla Sorna's Landscapes aren't entirely natural, with the arrival of Spaniards during the late 1800s, certain species of Plants would be introduced into the Island for different purposes, one example being the Breadfruit, a species of tree that was introduced in many countries of Central America and Caribe as a cheap source of food for slaves. Years later, International Genetic Technologies, or simply Ingen, would also introduce some species into Sorna, as a way of integrating the Dinosaurs into a new ecosystem altogether. With that said, the biome diversity of Isla Sorna is a result of natural and artificial causes, further making it one of the most fascinating ecosystems on Earth.

Sorna is known for two major environments, the cool, temperate Forests that dominate most of the Northeast of the Island, and the lush, warmer Tropical Rainforests from the West and parts of the Southeast. These include their own variety of plants, of which we are listing below.

Plant Species identified in Isla Sorna so far: