The Ballad of Big Al
Encyclopedia
The Ballad of Big Al is a combination biography-sequel for Walking with Dinosaurs
. It focuses on an Allosaurus
(Allosaurus fragilis) named Big Al and his constant struggle to survive in a world filled with danger.
The special begins at the University of Wyoming
, showing the bones of a sauropod followed by an Allosaurus named Big Al. The film then travels back in time showing a nest containing some eggs. Al and his siblings hatch and are helped out of the nest by their mother. She brings them to a river bank and the hatchlings start to hunt for insects
. When the mother leaves the hatchlings
temporarily, a year-old Allosaurus comes and kills one of them (fortunately, Al isn't the victim).
Al is then shown at two years old. He is trying to hunt a flock of Dryosaurus. He hasn't yet learned how to ambush so he fails to kill one of the swifter, smaller dinosaurs. Later, he snatches a lizard from a branch. Al comes across a dead stegosaurus and an Allosaurus waiting for death in a pit of sticky mud
. Meanwhile, another Allosaurus also gets stuck. She struggles to free herself, but fails. Al luckily avoids the same fate as he had learnt to avoid carrion. The trapped Allosaurus pair are stuck forever and die.
Five years pass, and a herd of Diplodocus are migrating across the prehistoric salt lake. Al is joined by several other Allosaurus and they attempt to bring a weak member of the herd down. Once the herd leaves the sick Diplodocus, the Allosaurs gather. Al is struck down by the neck of the Diplodocus. The pack wait for a few hours until the Diplodocus is brought down by heat exhaustion and his illness. Though they feed, within the hour an adult female Allosaurus scavenges the kill.
A year passes by, and Al is shown drinking at a pond. He discovers the scent of a female Allosaurus. She is not interested, but he gets too close. She finally injures his arm, breaks his ribs, and deforms his right hand, though Al is lucky enough to escape with his life. Later the dry season comes, and Al is attempting to hunt a flock of Dryosaurus. Whilst ambushing them, he trips on a log and badly breaks his right middle toe. As the dry season turns to a drought, Al's limp from the fall gets worse and his right middle toe is now badly infected, and soon, unable to hunt, he dies in a dried-up riverbed, where two hatchling Allosaurus are hunting for bugs and come across his emaciated carcass. He is said not to have reached full size, dying as a mature adolescent.
of the Allosaurus specimen nicknamed
Big Al.
and the birds and reptiles behavior, and shots of Al living in the 21st Century.
The Ballad of Big Al is part of a series of BBC documentaries that also include:
The following are Walking With... series specials:
The following are similar programs, produced by the BBC:
Walking with Dinosaurs
Walking with Dinosaurs is a six-part documentary television miniseries that was produced by BBC, narrated by Kenneth Branagh, and first aired in the United Kingdom, in 1999. The series was subsequently aired in North America on the Discovery Channel in 2000, with Branagh's voice replaced with that...
. It focuses on an Allosaurus
Allosaurus
Allosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
(Allosaurus fragilis) named Big Al and his constant struggle to survive in a world filled with danger.
Narrative
Animals featured are:- AllosaurusAllosaurusAllosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
- ApatosaurusApatosaurusApatosaurus , also known by the popular but scientifically deprecated synonym Brontosaurus, is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived from about 154 to 150 million years ago, during the Jurassic Period . It was one of the largest land animals that ever existed, with an average length of and a...
- DryosaurusDryosaurusDryosaurus is a genus of an ornithopod dinosaur that lived in the Late Jurassic period. It was an iguanodont . Fossils have been found in the western United States, and were first discovered in the late 19th century...
- StegosaurusStegosaurusStegosaurus is a genus of armored stegosaurid dinosaur. They lived during the Late Jurassic period , some 155 to 150 million years ago in what is now western North America. In 2006, a specimen of Stegosaurus was announced from Portugal, showing that they were present in Europe as well...
- BrachiosaurusBrachiosaurusBrachiosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Jurassic Morrison Formation of North America. It was first described by Elmer S. Riggs in 1903 from fossils found in the Grand River Canyon of western Colorado, in the United States. Riggs named the dinosaur Brachiosaurus altithorax,...
- OrnitholestesOrnitholestesOrnitholestes was a small theropod dinosaur of the late Jurassic of Western Laurasia . To date, it is known only from a single partial skeleton, and badly crushed skull found at the Bone Cabin Quarry near Medicine Bow, Wyoming, in 1900...
- OthnieliaOthnieliaOthnielia is a genus of ornithischian dinosaur, named after its original describer, Professor Othniel Charles Marsh, an American paleontologist of the 19th century...
- AnurognathusAnurognathusAnurognathus is a genus of small pterosaur that lived approximately 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic Period ....
- DiplodocusDiplodocusDiplodocus , or )is a genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaur whose fossils were first discovered in 1877 by S. W. Williston. The generic name, coined by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1878, is a Neo-Latin term derived from Greek "double" and "beam", in reference to its double-beamed chevron bones...
- IguanaIguanaIguana is a herbivorous genus of lizard native to tropical areas of Central America and the Caribbean. The genus was first described in 1768 by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in his book Specimen Medicum, Exhibens Synopsin Reptilium Emendatam cum Experimentis circa Venena...
(live-acted) - ToadToadA toad is any of a number of species of amphibians in the order Anura characterized by dry, leathery skin , short legs, and snoat-like parotoid glands...
(live-acted) - DragonflyDragonflyA dragonfly is a winged insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera . It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body...
(live-acted) - ScorpionScorpionScorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
(live-acted)
The special begins at the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
, showing the bones of a sauropod followed by an Allosaurus named Big Al. The film then travels back in time showing a nest containing some eggs. Al and his siblings hatch and are helped out of the nest by their mother. She brings them to a river bank and the hatchlings start to hunt for insects
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
. When the mother leaves the hatchlings
Hatchling
In oviparous biology, a hatchling is the newborn of animals that develop and emerge from within hard-shell eggs. The offspring of birds are often hatched naked and with their eyes closed. The hatchling relies totally on its parents for feeding and warmth. Hatchlings precede nestlings in the chick's...
temporarily, a year-old Allosaurus comes and kills one of them (fortunately, Al isn't the victim).
Al is then shown at two years old. He is trying to hunt a flock of Dryosaurus. He hasn't yet learned how to ambush so he fails to kill one of the swifter, smaller dinosaurs. Later, he snatches a lizard from a branch. Al comes across a dead stegosaurus and an Allosaurus waiting for death in a pit of sticky mud
Predator trap
A predator trap is a natural hazard such as a tar pit. Predators would become attracted to struggling animals that have become entrapped in viscous or glutinous material, such as a heavy sedimentary deposit or tar and, in the process, become entrapped themselves...
. Meanwhile, another Allosaurus also gets stuck. She struggles to free herself, but fails. Al luckily avoids the same fate as he had learnt to avoid carrion. The trapped Allosaurus pair are stuck forever and die.
Five years pass, and a herd of Diplodocus are migrating across the prehistoric salt lake. Al is joined by several other Allosaurus and they attempt to bring a weak member of the herd down. Once the herd leaves the sick Diplodocus, the Allosaurs gather. Al is struck down by the neck of the Diplodocus. The pack wait for a few hours until the Diplodocus is brought down by heat exhaustion and his illness. Though they feed, within the hour an adult female Allosaurus scavenges the kill.
A year passes by, and Al is shown drinking at a pond. He discovers the scent of a female Allosaurus. She is not interested, but he gets too close. She finally injures his arm, breaks his ribs, and deforms his right hand, though Al is lucky enough to escape with his life. Later the dry season comes, and Al is attempting to hunt a flock of Dryosaurus. Whilst ambushing them, he trips on a log and badly breaks his right middle toe. As the dry season turns to a drought, Al's limp from the fall gets worse and his right middle toe is now badly infected, and soon, unable to hunt, he dies in a dried-up riverbed, where two hatchling Allosaurus are hunting for bugs and come across his emaciated carcass. He is said not to have reached full size, dying as a mature adolescent.
Evidence
A "making of" documentary was made called "Big Al Uncovered". It focuses on the discovery and pathologiesPathology
Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
of the Allosaurus specimen nicknamed
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
Big Al.
Critical Reaction
The Ballad Of Big Al won two 2001 Emmy Awards http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0283245/awards including Adelphoi Music Ltd's Andrew Sherriff and Ashley Bates for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Non-Fiction Program.American
The American version was renamed Allosaurus: A Walking with Dinosaurs Special, along with combining the evidence with Al's life. Also they took out the one of the trapped AllosaurusAllosaurus
Allosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
and the birds and reptiles behavior, and shots of Al living in the 21st Century.
Book
A children's book was made, called Allosaurus! The Life and Death of Big Al, and it differs from both the American and UK versions in some aspects.- Al's sibling was killed by a male AllosaurusAllosaurusAllosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
on the show, while it was killed by an OrnitholestesOrnitholestesOrnitholestes was a small theropod dinosaur of the late Jurassic of Western Laurasia . To date, it is known only from a single partial skeleton, and badly crushed skull found at the Bone Cabin Quarry near Medicine Bow, Wyoming, in 1900...
in the book.
- The StegosaurusStegosaurusStegosaurus is a genus of armored stegosaurid dinosaur. They lived during the Late Jurassic period , some 155 to 150 million years ago in what is now western North America. In 2006, a specimen of Stegosaurus was announced from Portugal, showing that they were present in Europe as well...
was shown dead in the show, while it was alive and struggling (trying to fight off the Allosaurus pair) and soon died in the book.
- In the show at the sixth year, Al is hunting DryosaurusDryosaurusDryosaurus is a genus of an ornithopod dinosaur that lived in the Late Jurassic period. It was an iguanodont . Fossils have been found in the western United States, and were first discovered in the late 19th century...
. In the book he is hunting OthnieliaOthnieliaOthnielia is a genus of ornithischian dinosaur, named after its original describer, Professor Othniel Charles Marsh, an American paleontologist of the 19th century...
.
- Al tripped on a log in the show, while he tripped on a mound of dirt in the book.
See also
- PaleoworldPaleoworldPaleoworld was a documentary television series that was produced for The Learning Channel, and has had a total of 50 episodes. Some consider it to be the largest and most comprehensive paleontology series ever made. The series began in late September 1994 and, after 4 seasons, ended in 1997...
- Dinosaur Planet (TV series)
- When Dinosaurs Roamed AmericaWhen Dinosaurs Roamed AmericaWhen Dinosaurs Roamed America is a two-hour American television program that first aired on Discovery Channel in 2001. It was directed by Pierre de Lespinois and narrated by actor John Goodman...
The Ballad of Big Al is part of a series of BBC documentaries that also include:
- Walking with DinosaursWalking with DinosaursWalking with Dinosaurs is a six-part documentary television miniseries that was produced by BBC, narrated by Kenneth Branagh, and first aired in the United Kingdom, in 1999. The series was subsequently aired in North America on the Discovery Channel in 2000, with Branagh's voice replaced with that...
(1999) - Walking with BeastsWalking with BeastsWalking with Beasts is a 2001 six-part television documentary miniseries, produced by the BBC in the United Kingdom, narrated by Kenneth Branagh. In North America it has been retitled Walking with Prehistoric Beasts, and the original Discovery Channel broadcast was narrated by Stockard Channing...
(2001), depicting life after the dinosaurs - Walking with CavemenWalking with CavemenWalking with Cavemen is a four-part television documentary series about human evolution produced by the BBC in the United Kingdom. It was originally released in April 2003. It was subsequently presented in the United States as a two-part series by the Discovery Channel and its affiliates...
(2003) - Walking with MonstersWalking with MonstersWalking with Monsters is a three-part British documentary film series about life in the Paleozoic, bringing to life extinct arthropods, fish, amphibians, synapsids, and reptiles...
(2005), depicting life before the dinosaurs
The following are Walking With... series specials:
- Sea Monsters (2003)
- Chased By DinosaursChased by DinosaursChased by Dinosaurs is a BBC program featuring Nigel Marven as a time-traveller who encounters dinosaurs in the wild. The two-part series, a sequel to Walking with Dinosaurs, was broadcast over Christmas 2002 and featured Nigel and his "team of fellow explorers" encountering prehistoric life over a...
(2002) - Prehistoric ParkPrehistoric ParkPrehistoric Park is a six-episode mockumentary television mini-series that premiered on ITV on 22 July 2006 and on Animal Planet on 29 October 2006. The program was produced by Impossible Pictures, who also created Walking with Dinosaurs. In 2007, ITV cancelled Prehistoric Park, but introduced the...
(2006)
The following are similar programs, produced by the BBC:
- "Prehistoric America (film)Prehistoric America (film)Wild New World, also known as Prehistoric America, is a British documentary series about Ice Age America . Like several other BBC programmes, it contains both computer graphics and real life animals...
" (2003) - "Monsters We MetMonsters We MetMonsters We Met is a documentary produced by the BBC and later aired on Animal Planet in 2004 . The show used computer-generated imagery to recreate the life of the giant animals that lived during the last ice age and explains how early humans encountered them. It also features humans as the main...
" (2004)