It is always interesting to see how manufacturers display their models in their catalogues. Not only is there a great deal of attention and care given to the design process, but the same attention is lavished on the models when it comes to displaying them in the company brochures. Take for example the new additions to the Wild Safari Dinos range made by Safari Ltd. There are four new replicas being introduced into this popular line this year, and the company has found a novel way of highlighting the New Safari Ltd dinosaur models. The new dinosaur figures are Acrocanthosaurus, Vagaceratops, Ceratosaurus and Dracorex, all these models are eagerly anticipated by Everything Dinosaur team members. The colourful Dracorex model is shown in a skilfully crafted scene in the Safari Ltd product catalogue. A flock of these Pachycephalosaurs (or should that be a herd), is shown crossing a river with a pterosaur flying overhead.
The Safari Ltd Catalogue Image – Dracorex
A flock of Dracorex crossing a river. A novel way of highlighting new Safari Ltd dinosaur models.
Picture credit: Safari Ltd
Safari Ltd Dinosaur Models
Scientists believe that dinosaurs such as Dracorex did live in groups and the scenery chosen by the designers at Safari Ltd is reminiscent of the sort of habitat in the Late Cretaceous where these bone-headed dinosaurs would have lived. The only slight issue we would have with this artwork, is the depiction of a Rhamphorhynchus pterosaur flying overhead. The Rhamphorhynchus is a model in the Wild Safari Dinos replica range, it is a very beautiful item in its own right. Unfortunately, this type of flying reptile is associated with marine deposits from the Middle and Upper Jurassic. No rhamphorhynchoid pterosaur ever flew over a group of Dracorex, this type of flying reptile was long extinct before the dinosaur known as Dracorex evolved.
We have altered the original image, and replaced the Rhamphorhynchus with a model of Quetzalcoatlus, a pterosaur known from the Late Cretaceous, which is more in keeping with the geological time period associated with Pachycephalosaurs.
The Dracorex Image as Modified by Everything Dinosaur
Prehistoric animals from the Late Cretaceous.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur/Safari Ltd
Perhaps with a little more time, and a little more skill we could scale down one of the images of the Dracorex, change the colouring slightly, losing the bright red throat patch and then insert into the picture a representation of a juvenile dinosaur following the adult animals in the herd.
Brachiosaurus Model Measurements from Papo of France
With the introduction of a new Brachiosaurus replica from Papo of France questions have been asked regarding the actual size of this model. The Papo Brachiosaurus dinosaur model is due to be released in June/July this year, it is the first sauropod model to be made by Papo for their “Les Dinosaures” range. This range includes models of small dinosaurs such as Oviraptor and Velociraptor as well as more sizeable ones such as Stegosaurus, Triceratops and T. rex.
The New Papo Brachiosaurus Model
Large size model of a Brachiosaurus (Papo Brachiosaurus).
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur/Papo
Papo Brachiosaurus Dinosaur Model
The model measures 40 cm in length, it stands 31.5 cm tall and it is 11.5 cm wide. We estimate that this gives this particular model an approximate scale of 1:55 if the East African brachiosaur material is regarded as representative. Although there has been a great deal of scientific research carried out on brachiosaur fossil material over the last few years (remembering the Giraffatitan/Brachiosaurus debate), species such as B. altithorax are estimated to be up to 22-25 metres in length. Based on this data, this would give the new Papo model an approximate scale of 1:55, for example, one centimetre on the model equals 55 centimetres on the actual dinosaur.
To view the sauropod models and other plant-eating dinosaur figures in the Papo “Les Dinosaures” model range, we suggest you visit Everything Dinosaur’s user-friendly and award-winning website: Papo Dinosaur Models.
Remembering One of the “Fathers of Modern Geology”
Google has commemorated the date regarded by many academics as the birthday of one of the “fathers of modern geology” Nicolas Steno by creating a stratigraphic “google doodle” which is being displayed as the main icon on the google home page. It may have been the likes of Charles Darwin and Georges-Louis de Buffon that are better known when it comes to Europeans that have influenced the nascent sciences of palaeontology and geology but the contribution made by this Danish academic and member of the Catholic church in the 17th century cannot be underestimated.
Nicolaus Steno, referred to in Denmark as Niels Stensen, was born 374 years ago today (based on accepted data regarding his actual date of birth). He lived by the principle that a person should try to investigate the world around them and not simply accept what was written down by others. His, at the time, controversial views were to lead to disagreements and conflict amongst other scientists and the church. The conclusions made by Stenos in the course of his life were to challenge the accepted religious doctrine.
Nicolas Steno
Born in Copenhagen (Denmark) in 1638, as a young man he had the opportunity to travel widely throughout Europe. His inquiring mind and meticulous observations led him to investigate a very broad range of scientific subjects. For example, he studied human anatomy and helped to improve medical knowledge. However, he is perhaps best remembered for his written texts on how layers of sedimentary rock are formed. He openly challenged the established religious doctrine regarding how old the Earth was and how it was formed. His published work helped to lay the foundation for the modern science of geology and he is often referred to as “one of the founders of modern geology”.
The Google Doodle – Celebrating the Birth of Nicolas Steno
Remembering the contribution of Nicolas Stenos.
Picture credit: Google
Layers of Rock
The clever doodle is split into the six google letters with each letter being made up of layers of rock. The different colours of the layers and the fossils in them hint at one of the main tenets of the work of Steno, that layers are laid down in sequence and bizarre objects found in some of these layers such as “tongue stones” are actually the remains of long-dead animals that have been turned to stone (fossilised).
Other scientists in the 17th century, thought that these strange objects we now identify as fossils, simply grew in rock formations. Nicolaus Steno was not the first academic to consider fossil material but he made an invaluable contribution to the foundation of geology and established a fundamental principle of stratigraphy (study of rock layers) – that in most cases younger rocks can be found on top of older rocks.
Younger rocks on top of older rocks is the abiding principle of the Law of Superposition, it was Nicolaus Steno who first formulated this law of geology and it is great to see google remembering this important European scientist.
London to Birmingham High Speed Rail Link Could Lead to new Fossil Discoveries
The first phase of a new high speed rail route linking London to the West Midlands of the UK is likely to be given the go ahead by the Government today (January 10th). The controversial plan to build a new 100-mile-long, high speed rail link from north-west London through the home counties, up to Birmingham has divided opinion, with supporters keen to see improvements in Britain’s rail infrastructure whilst opponents protest over the cost and the environmental damage the construction may cause. However, the construction work could expose Mesozoic sediments and lead to new fossil discoveries.
Mesozoic Sediments
The Government’s Transport Secretary, Justine Greening will announce that the first phase of this £32 billion project is to go ahead, a second high speed rail plan linking Birmingham to Leeds and Manchester has been proposed and it has been indicated that by 2033 the UK will boast a super fast rail network connecting London with the north of England, enabling trains to travel in excess of 200 mph.
An Illustration of the Proposed Rail Route
The geology of the route.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur
The proposed route takes trains out of north-west London, through the home counties, north of Oxford and on to Birmingham. Supporters say that the new link will alleviate overcrowding, improve the UK’s rail infrastructure and boost the economy by a huge amount. However, opponents are considering legal action in a bid to delay the scheme or to have it postponed altogether.
Cutting Through Cretaceous and Jurassic Strata
The planned rail link will mean that engineers will be cutting through extensive Mesozoic strata, including Jurassic and Cretaceous marine deposits. Just as with the first railways and before them the construction of the canals, this will expose fossiliferous strata, some of it as yet not fully explored and this could lead to scientists making a number of important discoveries.
Following the rail route from London the rocks get older and older. Soon the Tertiary deposits of London and much of the south-east are replaced by a belt of Cretaceous aged rocks, and this gives way to Jurassic aged sediments as the rail link extends northwards. The final part of the first phase of the rail link, the approach to Birmingham will see construction workers creating cuttings and such like through Triassic aged rocks.
If the plans are given the go ahead, an indirect benefit might be the opening up of cuttings and other types of excavation associated with the rail line construction, that could lead to a number of new, exciting fossil discoveries. Perhaps the fossils of marine reptiles might be exposed, or even a dinosaur’s remains, the last resting place of a carcase that was washed out to sea and settled on the seabed more than one hundred million years ago.
You don’t have to have access to your very own exhibition company to bring dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals to life. For all budding palaeontologists, a prehistoric animal hand-puppet may be all that is required for your young dinosaur fans to go off on their own dinosaur land adventures. Everything Dinosaur has introduced a Pteranodon puppet into their extensive prehistoric animal toy range.
Pteranodon Puppet
Just added to the Everything Dinosaur range of soft toys is this super, soft and cuddly Pteranodon hand-puppet. The puppet is big enough to allow an adult’s hand to fit inside so Mums and Dads can join in the fun too.
Pteranodon (Pterosaur) Hand-Puppet from Everything Dinosaur
Bright and colourful hand-puppet of a Cretaceous pterosaur.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur
Late Cretaceous Flying Reptile
The puppet represents the head of a large, Late Cretaceous flying reptile an animal known as Pteranodon. Pteranodon fossils have been found in many parts of the world and some types of this pterosaur had wingspans in excess of six metres in diameter. The hand-puppet shows the toothless beak of this large reptile and even has a bright and colourful crest on the back of the head, just like the real fossils of this animal that lived at the end of the Age of Reptiles.
Puppets are great for encouraging creative play amongst children. They can make up their own stories and go on adventures with their fish-eating, flying reptile friends. We adored the cute, pink and curly tongue on our hand-puppet and these soft toys proved very popular when we put them on test with our field researchers.
To view the wide range of dinosaur and pterosaur soft toys and an array of prehistoric plush available from Everything Dinosaur’s award-winning website: Pterosaur and Dinosaur Soft Toys.
So no excuses then, children can create their own “Jurassic Park” theatre company with prehistoric animal hand-puppets.
It is always a pleasure to hear nice things about Everything Dinosaur. We all work hard to deliver the best customer service that we can and this web log (all 1,650 articles), has become an important tool in our attempts to help communicate new research in Earth Science to a wider audience.
Over the next twelve months or so, we will remain committed to writing at least once a day, helping to produce articles covering subjects as diverse as new fossil discoveries, updates on research, outlines regarding museum exhibitions and so on. We have received praised from a number of other organisations as we try to bring scientific topics to a wider audience.
Helping to Spread the Word about Earth Science
Using such excellent formats and platforms such as the Everything Dinosaur E-zine articles, we shall strive to get at least two hundred extra articles published up on this article platform in 2012. With articles already on E-zines as diverse as “Winning Ways with Dinosaur Party Food” and articles on the origins of life on Earth, their certainly is an eclectic mix. If we achieve our aims this would mean that there would be nearly three hundred published articles by Everything Dinosaur authors on this media.
Nice to hear the Everything Dinosaur’s article writing ability is being praised.
Visit Everything Dinosaur’s award-winning website to purchase dinosaur models and toys at competitive prices: Everything Dinosaur.
Children Know their Dinosaurs – Manufacturers Beware!
One of the most frustrating aspects of our jobs is when we come across an item that contains grossly inaccurate or misleading information about prehistoric animals on a product designed for young children.
As we can all attest to, young dinosaur fans really know their stuff and to find on sale a dinosaur themed toy that confuses and provides inaccurate information is extremely disappointing especially when we spend a considerable proportion of our time offering advice (usually free) to help correct some of the more obvious mistakes. When we visit schools to teach about dinosaurs we are amazed at the children’s prior knowledge.
Dinosaur Expert
One of the viral phenomena doing the rounds on YouTube and other social network platforms is this short video of a young girl called Stella, pointing out the inaccuracies on a horned dinosaur described on the product packaging as a Triceratops.
It saddens us when we come across instances such as this, young Stella knows her horned dinosaurs and in this short video she points out the dinosaur image on the front of the box does not represent a Triceratops. She suggests that the picture is more representative of another horned dinosaur, one that is only distantly related to Triceratops, a dinosaur known as Styracosaurus.
As a company made up of teachers and prehistoric animal enthusiasts we marvel at how much knowledge some children acquire when it comes to these extinct creatures. They seem to be able to absorb information like a sponge absorbs water and we are often corrected when we are working in a school or at a museum if we are seen to get something slightly wrong. Only yesterday, I was discussing the Jurassic stegosaur Tuojiangosaurus (T. multispinus) with the mother of a five-year-old who had insisted on a model of this dinosaur and had refused a Kentrosaurus replica, because in his words “he knew the difference“.
Selecting a Stegosaur
Good luck to him we say. A fascination for dinosaurs can open up a whole world of learning for young children. We have observed reception aged students reluctant to read any other material but absolutely enthralled with a reference book on dinosaurs, happy to point out to us, which dinosaurs were meat-eaters and where they lived. It is astonishing how many facts and snippets of dinosaur information they can pick up and woe betide us if we should venture to say something that does not entirely agree with an aspect of the Dinosauria that they may have read about in one of their many dinosaur books.
An Excellent and Very Informative Dinosaur Book
Aimed at young readers as well as older, general readers. Children known their dinosaurs and excellent books such as “The Great Dinosaur Discoveries” help to feed their desire for knowledge. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur
One of the worst cases we have come across, was discovered whilst visiting a trade show a couple of years ago. On a colourful exhibitors stand, there was a range of melamine plates, bowls and cups all with a dinosaur theme. There were pictures of prehistoric animals, plus some brief information, one or two “facts” as it were. The designers had obviously taken care over their bright and attractive children’s dinner service, I am sure many parents of young dinosaur fans would have been keen to purchase these items for their young, budding palaeontologists. However, a cursory examination of the “factual” information revealed some distressing oversights. For example, the word “Corythosaurus” (a well-known hadrosaur and a dinosaur that is featured in many children’s books and games), was not spelled correctly. In addition, printed around one of the pieces in the set ( we can’t remember whether it was the bowl or the plate), was a statement that “Brachiosaurus was the biggest dinosaur of all time”. These inaccuracies distress us. We did have a quiet word with the sales representative on the trade stand, pointing out these errors, we even offered to help fix the problems, but this was all to no avail.
Children Know Their Dinosaurs
Children deserve better than this. A love of dinosaurs from an early age can help young children to develop the habit of life-long learning, it is such a shame that a growing number of manufacturers wish to exploit a child’s fascination with all things prehistoric by producing goods that carry misleading images, spelling mistakes and other dinosaur inaccuracies.
We at Everything Dinosaur will continue our efforts and to try to help where we can. We take care when delivering a dinosaur workshop in school to get our facts straight. If we don’t then some budding young palaeontologist is bound to point out our error.
Expecting our Anniversary Edition of “Prehistoric Times” Any Day Now
One of the most exciting events of the Holocene epoch is nearly upon us, the long awaited, highly anticipated arrival of the 100th edition of “Prehistoric Times”. To mark this special occasion the team behind the U.S. based magazine will be printing it with two centenary front covers. As Mike Fredericks, the editor of “Prehistoric Times”, (otherwise known as PT) states:
“I am very proud to announce that the 100th issue of Prehistoric Times magazine is being printed now and will start shipping next week. The issue features Albertosaurus and Dimetrodon, has an interview with the amazingly talented artist Peter Schouten, a behind the scenes look at the Terra Nova TV show, plus Steve Brusatte lists the top Paleo News of 2011 and on and on!”
When asked about to describe the two special front covers that have been chosen for this landmark publication, Mike added:
“The issue sports two different awesome Albertosaurus front covers. One by Fabio Pastori and the other by Raul Martin. It is because of our loyal readers that I get to continue to have the time of my life producing this magazine. I can’t thank you enough.”
Which Cover will you Get?
All Albertosaurus but which one will you get?
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur/Prehistoric Times
We are looking forward to receiving our copy and to writing a review of this very special publication.
German Discovery – Challenges Ichthyosaur Extinction Theory
The partial remains of an ichthyosaur discovered by a fossil collector whilst exploring cuttings made by a road construction crew in Germany, may hold the key to shedding light on one of the mysteries surrounding the evolution of ichthyosaurs. After a careful comparison with other known ichthyosaur specimens from Germany, England and the USA, this new creature has been regarded as a new ichthyosaur species and given the name Acamptonectus densus. The name means “rigid swimmer”.
New Ichthyosaur Species
Ichthyosaurs, otherwise known as “fish-lizards” are an Order of reptiles that evolved in the Early Triassic and survived right up to near the end of the Cretaceous. Ichthyosaurs were fast-swimming, nektonic and predatory marine reptiles. With their dolphin-like bodies and with the ability to give birth to live young (viviparous), these creatures seemed to have been one of the most successful of all the marine reptile types.
A Model of a Typical Ichthyosaur
Affected by at least 3 major extinction events.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur
The picture (above) shows a Safari Ltd Ichthyosaurus replica, to view the rest of the models in this prehistoric animal model range: Prehistoric World Models.
Acamptonectus densus
However, scientists have identified at least three major extinctions that have affected the ichthyosaur Order. Although the fossil record is far from complete, it is believed that the ichthyosaurs were subjected to the first mass extinction around 200 million years ago as the Triassic gave way to the Jurassic. The second mass extinction took place as the Jurassic gave way to the Cretaceous around 145 million years ago, where factors such as climate change reduced the number of highly specialised ichthyosaurs surviving into the latter part of the Mesozoic. The third major extinction event for the ichthyosaur Order took place around 90 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. The ichthyosaurs did not survive to the very end of the Mesozoic.
A Table Showing the Approximate Dates of Ichthyosaur Major Extinction Events
Showing the major ichthyosaur extinction events.
Table credit: Everything Dinosaur
It had been thought that the more specialised clade of ichthyosaurs known as the ophthalmosaurs, which had thrived in the Jurassic did not survive the second mass extinction event at the onset of the Cretaceous. Ichthyosaur fossils found in Cretaceous-aged strata have tended to be representative of a second clade of these “fish-lizards”, known as the platypterygians.
There had been a number of fossil finds recorded from sediments laid down in the Cretaceous that have been ascribed to the ophthalmosaur clade, but these remains have been very fragmentary, so most scientists who had studied the ichthyosaur fossil record did believe that only the platypterygians survived into the Cretaceous geological period. What caused these extinction events is still debated, but a number of other nektonic marine creatures, including other types of marine reptile also suffered major extinction events around these dates – especially at the Jurassic/Cretaceous boundary.
An Illustration of a Typical Ophthalmosaur Ichthyosaur
An illustration of the ophthalmosaurid Ichthyosaur Palvennia hoybergeti.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.
The discovery of a much more complete ophthalmosaur ichthyosaur in Germany, provides the best evidence yet that this type of dolphin-like, marine reptile did survive well into the Cretaceous. The specimen, which represents an animal around three metres long has been studied by a number of ichthyosaur specialists. It is believed this marine reptile fed on fish and cephalopods.
A Race Against Time
Private fossil collector Hans-Dieter Macht discovered the specimen whilst collecting fossils at the construction site of a new main road in the Cremlingen area, (Lower Saxony, Northern Germany), in the late spring of 2005. After finding some isolated vertebrae the collector informed the director of the State Natural History Museum at Braunschweig and a formal excavation began. As the need to complete the roadway was pressing, the field team had just three days to study the site and remove any more fossilised bones.
Despite the extreme time pressure the scientists were able to find fragmentary skull material, parts of the jaws, elements from the scapular girdle, pieces of rib, vertebrae and a complete right humerus (upper arm bone).
Ichthyosaur Fossils Provide Evidence of Ophthalmosaurs Surviving into the Cretaceous
The crushed skull of a new species of ichthyosaur.
Picture credit: PLoS One/Fischer et al.
Commenting on the find, the director of the State Natural History Museum (Braunschweig), Ulrich Joger stated:
“With this, an entire extinction theory will be questioned.”
Since the discovery of these bones almost seven years ago, palaeontologists from Germany, Scotland, England and Belgium have compared the skeleton with a similar one found back in 1958 on the north-east coast of England and determined that there is fossil evidence to suggest ophthalmosaurus did indeed survive into the Cretaceous.
The scientific paper: “New Ophthalmosaurid Ichthyosaurs from the European Lower Cretaceous Demonstrate Extensive Ichthyosaur Survival across the Jurassic–Cretaceous Boundary” by Valentin Fischer, Michael W. Maisch, Darren Naish, Ralf Kosma, Jeff Liston, Ulrich Joger, Fritz J. Krüger, Judith Pardo Pérez, Jessica Tainsh and Robert M. Appleby published in PLoS One.
Lots of new Prehistoric Animal Models to Look Forward to in 2012
Something to brighten us all up as we start the New Year, there are lots of new dinosaur and prehistoric animal model releases to look forward to over the coming months.
Dinosaur Models
Team members at Everything Dinosaur, have been playing around with the product images and practising their Adobe CS5 photoshop skills (yes, we need lots of practice).
Just a little pic, posted below, where we have combined the new, large scale Triceratops horridus and the Tyrannosaurus with the Struthiomimus for its dinner, using our logo as a backdrop.
New Models in 2012 (CollectA Dinosaurs)
T. rex and a large scale Triceratops dinosaur model.
Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur
There are so many exciting new prehistoric animal models to look forward. It looks like it is going to be a “bumper” year for new dinosaur model introductions.
