Do you want a T. rex?

A US theme park is closing and selling its animatronic dinosaurs to enthusiasts

- DODAI STEWART

The stegosaurus, over 9m long and described as “housebroken”, is selling for US$1,260 (41,000 baht). The adult triceratops, $2,230. A life-size T. rex, 12m long, 5.5m tall, “slightly used” and “well loved”, will cost you $2,700.

An American dinosaur theme park in Leonia, New Jersey, is closing next month, and with it has come an unusual opportunity for dinosaur enthusiasts and anyone else interested in adding a bit of prehistoric panache to a boring backyard.

Thirty-one animatronic dinosaurs on display at Field Station: Dinosaurs — including some that growl and roar — are for sale. If social media is any guide, the prospect of owning an enormous human-made dinosaur, even a used one, has captured the imaginations of people far beyond New Jersey.

Screenshots of Facebook Marketplace posts advertising the creatures have been widely shared.

"That's a good price for a used triceratops," one person noted on the social platform X.

"I have the money, but I don't have the means of getting them to Australia," wrote another.

More than a few people seemed interested in purchasing a dinosaur to taunt their homeowners associations.

On a recent sunny Sunday, the man behind the sale, Guy Gsell, was fussing with an electrical box hidden in the brush, flipping switches. The apatosaurus wasn’t moving as it was supposed to.

“We had rain last night, and sometimes the water gets in,” said Gsell, the president of the park.

The apatosaurus, with its unbelievably long neck, is 23m long, 6m tall and priced at $2,860.

Gsell has mixed emotions about selling off the dinosaurs. “It’s a little sad. It really kind of feels like I’m putting a pet up for adoption.”

But the park has been open for 13 years, and Gsell is ready to let it go. “Our lease was coming up and, the county — for good reason — they need a commitment. Is it going to be another five years? Is it going be another 10 years?”