All about dinosaurs, fossils and prehistoric animals by Everything Dinosaur team members.
12 08, 2016

Paleo-Creatures Coming to Everything Dinosaur

By |2023-05-06T15:34:28+01:00August 12th, 2016|Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur Products, Main Page, Press Releases|0 Comments

Paleo-Creatures Replicas Added to Everything Dinosaur’s Huge Model Range

Everything Dinosaur is pleased to announce that the UK based prehistoric animal model supplier will be stocking the Paleo-Creatures range of prehistoric animal replicas.  Paleo-Creatures are the brain-child of talented Spanish artist and model maker Jesús Toledo.  The first ten figures should be arriving at Everything Dinosaur’s warehouse next week.  Model fans will be able to purchase on line at Everything Dinosaur’s website Everything Dinosaur. shortly afterwards.

Coming into Stock in the Next Few Days – Paleo-Creatures Prehistoric Animal Models

The Paleo-Creatures range

An assortment of prehistoric animal replicas in the Paleo-Creatures range.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

The Paleo-Creatures Replica Range

To start with, ten models are coming into stock.  The picture above shows the ten replicas, the top row shows Concavenator (C. corcovatus), the Koolasuchus (K. cleelandi) and the bizarre marine reptile Atopodentatus (A. unicus).  The middle section of the image showcases a further four Paleo-Creatures figures, on the left there is Aegirocassis (A. benmoulai), the giant filter-feeding anomalocaridid (anomalocarid) from the Ordovician.  The beautifully coloured Dilophosaurus (D. wetherilli), sits above a fantastic replica of the amazing Tully Monster (Tullimonstrum gregarium) and to the right of the image we have the Paleo-Creatures Kosmoceratops (K. richardsoni).

A spectacular Xenacanthus, an ancient genus of freshwater shark, joins the Paleo-Creatures Torvosaurus and an Eotyrannus (E. lengi) on the third row.  Creator Jesús Toledo has even provided the Eotyrannus and Torvosaurus replicas with articulated lower jaws.

Amazing Figures for the Discerning Model Collector

Paleo-Creatures Concavenator

The Paleo-Creatures Concavenator model.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

To see the huge range of models and figures stocked by Everything Dinosaur: Prehistoric Animal Models and Figures.

Beautifully Painted Dinosaur Models

The Paleo-Creatures range of prehistoric animal figures are superb quality polyurethane replicas hand-painted with high quality acrylic paints.  Each one makes a fantastic piece for any model collector, especially discerning collectors of prehistoric animal models.  These scale models are available exclusively to Everything Dinosaur customers within Everything Dinosaur’s main markets and to express an interest in obtaining a Paleo-Creatures replica simply drop Everything Dinosaur an email and our dedicated team will contact you with further information: Contact Everything Dinosaur.

Aimed at collectors aged fourteen and above, these replicas are top quality display items.

The Paleo-Creatures Koolasuchus Figure

The fantastic Paleo-Creatures Koolasuchus.

A Paleo-Creatures Koolasuchus figure.

Picture credit: Paleo-Creatures/Everything Dinosaur

Paleo-Creatures Replicas

A spokesperson from Everything Dinosaur commented:

“We like the individuality of these figures.  Each Paleo-Creatures replica is carefully crafted and hand-painted, they really are excellent quality and we love the fact that some of the more amazing and bizarre prehistoric animals are represented.  For example,  it’s great to see a really good model of Koolasuchus, along with an interpretation of the bizarre Triassic marine reptile Atopodentatus.  Of course, there are dinosaur models and terrific they are too, but for us the real stars are the truly weird Tully Monster and the giant filter feeder Aegirocassis.”

The first ten models in this exciting new series will be available from Everything Dinosaur, next week!

11 08, 2016

Orthacanthus was a Cannibal

By |2023-05-06T15:11:39+01:00August 11th, 2016|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page|1 Comment

Teeth in Coprolites Indicate Cannibalism in Orthacanthus

A study of the coprolites of a prehistoric, freshwater shark suggest that this fish indulged in cannibalism when times were hard.  The shark in question, an Orthacanthus (identified from the typical spiral shape of the fossil poo), probably ate members of its own species when other food resources became scarce.

Carboniferous Sharks

During the Late Carboniferous, much of the Northern Hemisphere was covered by swamps and ancient forests.  Amphibians and primitive reptiles dominated the land, but in the water, the fish reigned supreme and one group of fishes, that have survived through to today, the sharks, were particularly diverse and numerous.

Sharks not only dominated marine environments but they were also present in large numbers in brackish conditions and freshwater.  One group of sharks, the Xenacanthiforms were very common in freshwater environments and Orthacanthus was a member of this group.  Fossil coprolites found in the Minto Coalfield of New Brunswick, Canada, reveal a dark secret.

The 300-million-year-old shark poo is packed with the fossilised remains of juvenile members of its own genus.  This is evidence of cannibalism, specifically fillial cannibalism – when adults of one species deliberately hunt and consume young of their own species, even their immediate offspring.

An Illustration of the Prehistoric Freshwater Shark Orthacanthus

The prehistoric freshwater shark Orthacanthus

An illustration of the prehistoric freshwater shark Orthacanthus, scientists have found evidence of cannibalism.

Picture credit: Alain Beneteau

Orthacanthus – A Freshwater Prehistoric Shark

A number of species of Orthacanthus shark have been described.  These sharks, that possessed a long spine just in front of their sinewy dorsal fin, evolved in the Devonian.  Orthacanthus fossils (especially teeth) are quite common in Carboniferous rocks located in North America and Europe.  Orthacanthus teeth fossils have been found in Cumbria (UK), close to the small port of Whitehaven, a part of the coast we at Everything Dinosaur, know quite well.

The sediments in that part of Cumbria represent a coastal environment and amongst the carbonised remains of ancient plants, occasionally the distinctive tricuspid (three pointed) teeth of Orthacanthus can be found.

Cannibalism in Prehistoric Sharks

PhD student Aodhán Ó Gogáin (School of Natural Sciences, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland), one of the co-authors of the study that has been recently published in the journal of the Palaeontology Association “Palaeontology”, stated:

“Orthacanthus was a three-metre-long xenacanth shark with a dorsal spine, an eel-like body, and tricuspid teeth.  There is already evidence from fossilised stomach contents that ancient sharks like Orthacanthus preyed on amphibians and other fish, but this is the first evidence that these sharks also ate the young of their own species.”

A Typical Shark Coprolite (note the spiralling)

A spiral shaped shark coprolite.

Shark coprolite indicates cannibalism in Orthacanthus.

Picture credit: Journal Palaeontology

For models and replicas of prehistoric animals: Prehistoric Animal Models.

Corkscrew Coprolite

Fossil shark poo (coprolite) is not rare, it can be found in quite plentiful quantities in some bedding planes.  Shark coprolite comes in all shapes and sizes, but it often has a distinctive spiral pattern on it, an impression of the intestinal tract in which it was formed and of the rectum in which it was passed through.  It is this spiral pattern that has permitted the scientists to identify the coprolite down to genus level in this instance.

Another co-author of the report, Dr Howard Falcon-Lang, of the Royal Holloway University of London commented:

“We don’t know why Orthacanthus resorted to eating its own young.  However, the Carboniferous Period was a time when marine fishes were starting to colonise freshwater swamps in large numbers.  It’s possible that Orthacanthus used inland waterways as protected nurseries to rear its babies, but then consumed them as food when other resources became scarce.”

Cannibalism Recorded in Extant Sharks

Fillial cannibalism has been observed in a number of extant shark species, including the Bull Shark (Carcharhinus leucas).  The researchers suggest that Orthacanthus may have filled a similar environmental niche as modern Bull Sharks.  Both types of shark are able to migrate backwards and forwards between salt and freshwater and in the case of Orthacanthus, this unusual adaptation for a fish may have helped it play an important role in the colonisation of inland freshwater environments.

A Polished Section of a Orthacanthus Coprolite with Juvenile Teeth Fragments Highlighted

A polished section of Orthacanthus coprolite reveals evidence of cannibalism.

A cross section of Orthacanthus coprolite with the fossilised teeth of a juvenile Orthacanthus indicated in the box.

Picture credit: Journal Palaeontology

In the picture above a cross section of a Orthacanthus coprolite shows tricuspid teeth of a juvenile preserved within the fossil poo (black box).

The scientific paper: “Fish and tetrapod communities across a marine to brackish salinity gradient in the Pennsylvanian (early Moscovian) Minto Formation of New Brunswick, Canada, and their palaeoecological and palaeogeographical implications”.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s website: Everything Dinosaur.

10 08, 2016

Why Would a Dinosaur Not Make a Good Pet?

By |2023-05-06T14:49:59+01:00August 10th, 2016|General Teaching, Key Stage 1/2|Comments Off on Why Would a Dinosaur Not Make a Good Pet?

Why Would a Dinosaur Not Make a Good Pet?

Around the country lots of teachers are busy organising their next scheme of work in conjunction with the national curriculum.  With the autumn term fast approaching, Everything Dinosaur takes time out to consider one of the term topic themes that has been proposed in support of the science element of the national curriculum in England.  It is important with a subject like science to try and start from a concept that appeals to the child, dinosaurs and fossils tend to be very popular and most teachers find a ready, eager and very enthusiastic audience when prehistoric life is part of the teaching programme.

Studying Dinosaurs Helps to Enthuse Young Learners

Dinosaur toys encourage play.

Children playing with dinosaur and prehistoric animal models.

Picture credit: Schleich

The models in the image are from Schleich.

To view the range of Schleich prehistoric animal figures: Schleich Dinosaur Models.

Foundation Stage Through to Upper Key Stage 2

Learning about life in the past and fossils intersects with the learning programmes of many Year groups within the new curriculum.  For example, Year 3 children have the opportunity to learn about rocks and fossils and Year 6 pupils are challenged to study natural selection, adaptation and evolution.  For younger children, building a term topic with a science theme can start with asking an intriguing question posed from the child’s point of view (the child’s context).  An example of this is the question why would a dinosaur not make a good pet?

Dinosaurs as Pets

Ironically, as birds are technically dinosaurs, many dinosaurs make excellent pets, just ask a pigeon fancier, but that’s not quite the point.  Although we, at Everything Dinosaur do build in the dinosaur/bird link into our workshop activities, feathers and all.  The question can form the basis of a varied and exciting programme of discovery that links nicely across the curriculum.  Many teaching teams use the “learning challenge” method, whereby, a different question related to the term topic is explored each week.  For example:

Term Topic Question – Why Would a Dinosaur not Make a Good Pet?

  • Week 1 question – What is a dinosaur?
  • 2 question – When did dinosaurs live?
  • 3 question – How do we know about dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals?
  • 4 question – What does a palaeontologist do?
  • 5 question – What happened to the dinosaurs?
  • Week 6 summation – Would a dinosaur make a good pet?

Lots of Links to Literacy, Numeracy, History, Geography and Other Curriculum Elements

Lots of dinosaur and prehistoric animal facts on a poster.

Dinosaur facts compiled by Year 1 children.

Dinosaur Fascination

Children are fascinated with dinosaurs.  Learning about dinosaurs can provide a teaching team with lots of lesson plan ideas.  Lesson plans can be tailored to support literacy and numeracy.

To learn more about Everything Dinosaur: About Everything Dinosaur.

With Key Stage 1 children in particular, every opportunity should be taken when it comes to engaging the children and developing literacy and numeracy themes.  However, children whatever their age, if they can be enthused and inspired by a topic then they will quickly pick up and cement life-long learning skills.

Visit the child-friendly Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

10 08, 2016

New Schleich Dinosaurs for 2017 (Part 2)

By |2023-05-06T13:18:47+01:00August 10th, 2016|Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur Products, Main Page, Press Releases|0 Comments

New from Schleich Early 2017 More Dinosaur Models

Yesterday, Everything Dinosaur team members provided information on the first of the new for 2017 Schleich prehistoric animal models.  In today’s article, we conclude our look at the new 2017 Schleich dinosaurs (yes, all models announced so far are members of the Dinosauria), by looking at the other, smaller models that the Germany-based manufacturer will be introducing into their prehistoric animal replica range next year.

Schleich Dinosaur Models

Let’s jump straight in by looking at the new mini dinosaur models.

Four New Mini Dinosaur Models Available from Schleich in Early 2017

New mini dinosaurs (Schleich) 2017.

New mini dinosaurs from Schleich for early 2017.

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

It’s no surprise but Schleich will be adding four new prehistoric animal models to their range of “dinosaur minis” in 2017.  Clockwise from top right we have a colour variant of the Spinosaurus model, a new figure, a feathered, mini Utahraptor (expect more news about “raptors” below).  Next there is a colour variant of the Velociraptor mini dinosaur figure.  If our calculations are correct, this is the third colour variant of a Velociraptor to become available in the Schleich minis range, perhaps the German manufacturer is trying to encourage collectors to build up their own “raptor pack”!

Schleich T. rex and Spinosaurus Models

Last but not least we have a new Tyrannosaurus rex mini dinosaur model in a changed pose.  The new for 2017 Schleich mini T. rex reminds us of the Papo mini T. rex dinosaur model in the model dinosaur set that was introduced last year.  Expect these new replicas to be available sometime in quarter one of next year.

To view the range of mini  dinosaurs and prehistoric animals available: Schleich Prehistoric Animal Models.

A New Predator Box Set for 2017 from Schleich

New dinosaur box set (Schleich 2017)

A Spinosaurus and a new painted version of T. rex in the box set.

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

Schleich will be adding to their small dinosaur boxed play sets early next year by bringing out a new, very colourful Spinosaurus sculpt to accompany a repaint of the small Tyrannosaurus rex model.  Expect each replica to measure around fifteen centimetres in length (although the Spinosaurus may be a little bigger).  This box set is scheduled for a January 2017 release.  As far as we at Everything Dinosaur know, Schleich have no plans to sell these two carnivore models separately.

To view Everything Dinosaur’s current range of small Schleich models: Schleich Dinosaur Models.

A New “Raptor Squad” from Schleich

Feathered “Raptors” Are Coming!

Schleich "raptor" set.

Three model “raptors” from Schleich in early 2017.

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

A set of three, feathered “raptors” will also be introduced.  The biggest model  in the picture above is a colour variant of the large Utahraptor model.  This colour variant will also have an articulated lower jaw and poseable forelimbs.  Like its more colourful counterpart, this Utahraptor will measure twenty-one centimetres in length.  The medium sized dinosaur is a new model of a Velociraptor.  The smallest “raptor” in this trio is a model of Microraptor, a re-painted version of a Microraptor model introduced by Schleich in their cave play set.

This set of three dinosaur models will be available early in quarter one of next year and they will not be sold separately.

No News of Schleich Dinosaur Jigsaws

To date, Everything Dinosaur has not received news regarding the release of any new mini dinosaur themed jigsaws.  However, Schleich will be making new model announcements in due course and Everything Dinosaur team members will be doing their best to ensure dinosaur fans and model collectors are kept informed via this blog and our social media pages.

To read yesterday’s article about the larger Schleich model introductions for 2017: New Schleich Dinosaurs for 2017 (Part 1).

9 08, 2016

New Schleich Dinosaurs for 2017 (Part 1)

By |2023-05-06T08:21:29+01:00August 9th, 2016|Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur Products, Main Page, Press Releases|2 Comments

Everything Dinosaur Reveals the First of the New for 2017 Schleich Dinosaurs

After the successful introduction of the Schleich Dunkleosteus, the Herrerasaurus and the marvellous Barapasaurus models this spring, Schleich have been preparing new prehistoric animal replicas to introduce into their model range for 2017.  The first models of the new for 2017 Schleich prehistoric range are all dinosaurs and there is a strong Late Jurassic theme as three of the four large dinosaurs to be introduced early next year are associated with Upper Jurassic strata.

Schleich Dinosaur Models

New for 2017 The Schleich Brachiosaurus

Schleich 2017 Brachiosaurus.

Schleich Brachiosaurus model (2017).

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

Schleich Brachiosaurus

This model measures around thirty centimetres in length and the head height is a fraction over eighteen centimetres.  It is a decent size but nowhere near the size of the Schleich “Saurus” replicas which measured around forty-eight centimetres long and were approximately 1:40 scale.

There is an existing Brachiosaurus replica in Schleich’s “World of History” range and the new for 2017 replica is roughly the same size, but we at Everything Dinosaur can confirm that the new for 2017 Brachiosaurus model is a new sculpt, it is not a repaint of an existing replica.  Sources close to Everything Dinosaur have commented that this replica might be available January 2017, but realistically it would probably be available from the middle of February onwards.  Check out Everything Dinosaur’s Facebook page and this blog for more updates.

New for 2017 Schleich Stegosaurus

Schleich (2017) Stegosaurus dinosaur model.

New for 2017 the Schleich Stegosaurus.

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

Schleich Stegosaurus

Having retired the World of History Stegosaurus this year, Schleich have been keen to re-introduce this popular armoured dinosaur into their larger model range. If we are not mistaken, this Stegosaurus featured in the Schleich Volcano play set that was introduced earlier this year.  The Stegosaurus replica measures fifteen centimetres long and those fearsome tail spikes are raised over eleven centimetres into the air.   As for when this model will be available, expect it quarter one of 2017.

Schleich New for 2017 Allosaurus

Schleich Allosaurus dinosaur model (2017)

Coming in 2017 a Schleich Allosaurus dinosaur model.

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

Schleich Theropod Dinosaur Models

The third of the Jurassic dinosaurs is the predator Allosaurus.  Schleich have made a number of Allosaurus models in the past, they currently have an Allosaurus replica in their model range but we can confirm that the 2017 Schleich Allosaurus will be a new sculpt.  The new model measures a fraction over twenty-five centimetres in length and that nicely detailed head (with articulated lower jaw), stands around twelve and a half centimetres high, making the 2017 model larger than the existing Allosaurus replica.  Once again, dinosaur fans can expect this new model in quarter one of 2017.

To view Everything Dinosaur’s existing range of larger Schleich prehistoric animal models: Schleich Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animal Figures.

New from Schleich for 2017 a Feathered Utahraptor Dinosaur Model

Feathered Utahraptor (Schleich 2017)

The colourful feathered Utahraptor from Schleich

Picture credit: Schleich/Everything Dinosaur

The fourth of the new introductions for the first part of 2017 is this colourful, feathered Utahraptor dinosaur model.  It has moveable forelimbs and an articulated lower jaw and although we at Everything Dinosaur could take issue with one or two anatomical discrepancies, it is pleasing to see a feathered dinosaur like Utahraptor enter the Schleich range.  The new for 2017 Schleich Utahraptor measures twenty-one centimetres long and that impressive head stands a little under nine and half centimetres high.

New Dinosaurs Logo from Schleich

Hot on the heels of some further print-led marketing of the Schleich prehistoric animal model range, the German company has introduced a new logo for its “dinosaurs” sub-brand.  This logo effectively covers all the prehistoric animals in the company’s portfolio, even if models don’t actually represent a dinosaur (Dimetrodon, Dunkleosteus, Quetzalcoatlus etc).

Schleich’s “Dinosaur” Logo 

Schleich logo - Dinosaurs

Schleich dinosaurs logo.

Picture Credit: Schleich

We are not sure what these new introductions will mean for some of the existing replicas within the Schleich model range but a spokesperson for Everything Dinosaur stated that collectors could expect some model retirements next year as well as further introductions to the Schleich prehistoric animal model portfolio later in 2017.  On that note, check out part two of our Schleich new for 2017 update coming out tomorrow.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s website: Everything Dinosaur.

8 08, 2016

Chinese Fossil Primates Unravel Evolutionary Puzzle

By |2023-05-06T07:51:07+01:00August 8th, 2016|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Main Page, Palaeontological articles|0 Comments

Ancient Asian Primates Decimated by Climate Change

The lineage of primates that led to the monkeys, the apes and eventually the hominins (that’s us), originated in Asia.  Palaeoanthropologists and palaeontologists tend to agree on this as the known fossil record suggests a Far Eastern evolutionary heritage for our distant ancestors.  However, there is a conundrum, if the anthropoids (those flat-faced monkeys that led to the apes and ourselves), evolved in Asia, then why didn’t this evolutionary line continue and lead to higher apes and hominins from Asia?

For models and figures of prehistoric animals: Prehistoric Animal Figures and Replicas.

Fossil Primates

The fossil record indicates that the earliest anthropoid fossils date from 45 million years ago (Asian fossil discoveries).  In African strata some seven or eight million years younger, the first fossils of African anthropoids are found.  We can conclude from this fossil evidence that the anthropoids first evolved in Asia, only making their way to Africa around 38 million years ago, with the hominins evolving something like 33 million years later, but only in Africa, so what caused the Asian anthropoids to stall?

Thanks to some remarkable fossil finds from China, scientists have solved this primate puzzle, it seems that dramatic climate change some 34 million years ago, nearly wiped out Asian primates, decimated populations and rendered much of that continent as “no go” areas for our distant cousins.

Ancient Teeth and Bones Provide an Important Breakthrough in Our Understanding of Primate Evolution

Fossil jaws and teeth of ancient Chinese primates.

Different types of ancient primate from southern China identified from their fossilised jaws and teeth.

Picture credit: Chinese Academy of Sciences

Studying Fossil Primate Teeth

The picture above shows the different types of fossil teeth and jawbone used by the scientists to identify new species of Asian Oligocene primates.

In a study published in the journal “Science”, researchers from the University of Kansas in collaboration with colleagues from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, report on the identification of six new species of primates from a site in southern China.  Described as a “mother lode”, these extremely rare and precious fossils shed light on how some Asian primates survived the global cooling event that marked the end of the Eocene Epoch.

Eocene to Oligocene Transition (EOT)

The end of the Eocene Epoch is marked by a significant extinction event.  It may not have been as devastating as the end Cretaceous extinction that led to the demise of something like 70% of all large terrestrial animals, but nonetheless, there was a considerable amount of faunal turnover with many long-established genera (such as the early whales), becoming extinct.  Some 34 million years ago, the Earth cooled dramatically.  Global temperatures fell from an average of around 21 degrees Celsius to around 16 degrees Celsius.

Scientists remain uncertain as to the cause of the cooling, although there was considerable tectonic plate activity, volcanism and a number of extraterrestrial impacts during the Late Eocene.  Some studies have indicated a fall in atmospheric carbon dioxide at this time.  This “greenhouse gas”, so feared today, because of its affect on global warming, may have been reduced in the atmosphere to such an extent that the Earth entered a phase of dramatic cooling.  It is at this time that Antarctica began to change into the frozen wasteland we know today.

The Impact of Global Cooling

As the Earth grew colder so the tropical forests shrank and the available habitat for Asian primates was greatly reduced, the six newly described species were part of an ecosystem that clung on in southern China, an area where a tropical climate still persisted.

Commenting on the significance of this decade long study, co-author of the scientific paper, K. Christopher Beard, (senior curator at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute) stated:

“Primates like it warm and wet, so they faced hard times around the world — to the extent that they went extinct in North America and Europe.  Of course, primates somehow survived in Africa and southern Asia, because we’re still around to talk about it.”

The Key to Understanding the Evolution of Primates

As anthropoid primates first appeared in Asia, these new fossil discoveries help scientists to understand the fate of primates on that continent, which is fundamental to understanding early primate and ultimately ape evolution.

Senior curator Beard added:

“This has always been an enigma.  We had a lot of evidence previously that the earliest anthropoids originated in Asia.  At some point, later in the Eocene, these Asian anthropoids got to Africa and started to diversify there.  At some point, the geographic focal point of anthropoid evolution — monkeys, apes and humans — shifted from Asia to Africa.  But we never understood when and why.  Now, we know.  The Eocene-Oligocene climate crisis virtually wiped out Asian anthropoids, so the only place they could evolve to become later monkeys, apes and humans was Africa.”

Working with colleagues from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Institute of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Palaeoanthropology), specifically Xijun Ni, Qiang Li and Lüzhou Li, the researchers were able to shift through the 34-million-year-old sediments to find teeth and jaw fragments that enabled them to erect six new species.  The fossils were recovered from the upper part of the Caijiachong Formation, Yuezhou Basin, Yunnan Province, through a combination of careful site mapping and scree washing.  It seems that whilst much of Asia became inhospitable for primates, this part of China retained tropical forest so a number of species ended up being crowded into a limited space.

A List of the Six New Species of Primate Named

  1. Yunnanadapis folivorus (pronounced You-nan-ah-dap-is) a member of the Strepsirrhini (lemurs).  In the fossil teeth photograph above Y. folivorus is A.
  2. Yunnanadapis imperator (pronounced You-nan-ah-dap-is) a member of the Strepsirrhini (lemurs).  In the fossil teeth photograph above Y.  imperator is B.
  3. Laomaki yunnanensis (pronounced Lay-oh-ma-key) a lemur-like primate (Strepsirrhini).  In the photograph of the fossil teeth above L. yunnanensis is C.
  4. Gatanthropus micros (pronounced Gat-anthro-pos) another lemur-like primate.  In the fossil teeth picture above G. micros is D.
  5. Oligotarsius rarus (pronounced Olee-go-tar-see-us) the only member of the Tarsiidae (Tarsiers) described from this location.  O. rarus is represented by E in the fossil teeth picture above.
  6. Bahinia banyueae (pronounced Ba-hin-nee-ah), the only anthropoid identified, superficially similar to today’s marmosets, represented by F in the fossil teeth photograph above.

Differences in Oligocene Primate Faunas

The team’s research suggests that the Eocene-Oligocene transition (EOT) led to completely different primate faunas in Asia compared to Africa and the Near East.  In Africa, the anthropoid primates radiated, diversified and became dominant.  However, in Asia, it was the lemur-like primates the Strepsirrhini that seem to have dominated.  The EOT acted as an evolutionary filter dramatically altering the evolution of primates around the world.

The EOT Acted as an Evolutionary Filter Changing Primate Evolution

Global cooling changed primate evolution.

Changing Primate Faunas due to Eocene to Oligocene transition.

Picture credit: Chinese Academy of Sciences

The EOT changed the evolutionary history of the primates, acting as a filter.  When the composition of early Oligocene primate faunas of Asia and Afro-Arabia are compared, we see that in Asia it was the lemur-like primates (Strepsirrhini) that rose to dominance, whereas in Afro-Arabia, the lemurs became much rarer and it was the anthropoid apes that diversified and became prominent.

The Rare Oligotarsius

Tarsier fossils are incredibly rare in the fossil record, and very little is known about the evolution of the Tarsiidae, the trivial name of O. rarus recognises this.  The teeth of Oligotarsius are very similar to modern tarsiers found today in Indonesia and the Philippines.  This suggests that extant tarsiers are little changed from their ancient ancestors.

Dr Beard explained:

“If you look back at the fossil record, we know that tarsiers once lived on mainland Asia, as far north as central China.  The fossil teeth described in this paper are nearly identical to those of modern tarsiers.  Research shows that modern tarsiers are pretty much living fossils, those things have been doing what they do ever since time immemorial, as far as we can tell.”

A Vulnerability of All Primates?

This new study underscores a vulnerability of perhaps, all primates, that is how they cope when there is dramatic climate change.  The global cooling of the EOT altered primate evolution and transformed the primate faunal mixes of both Asia and Africa.  The EOT is an opposite climate effect to what we are experiencing today.  Thirty-four million years ago the world cooled, today people are very concerned about global warming, the key point is this, whether the climate warms or grows cold, primates seem to be more sensitive to a changing world than other mammals.  This could mean very bad news for our own species.

Food for Thought

It is a sobering thought, but what if the Eocene-Oligocene cooling had not taken place?  Asian anthropoids would have continued to evolve and diversify, potentially with far-reaching consequences for all primates, including hominins and our own species.  Homo sapiens (that’s us), evolved in Africa some 220,000 years ago, however, had this ancient cooling not occurred, the outcome in terms of anthropoid and ultimately human evolution could have been very different.

For an article on potentially the oldest primate: The Oldest Primate To Date?

To read about Miocene Tarsiers from Thailand: Miocene Tarsier Fossils from Thailand.

7 08, 2016

“Meg” The Megalodon Movie

By |2023-05-06T07:39:30+01:00August 7th, 2016|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page, Movie Reviews and Movie News|0 Comments

Prehistoric Shark Thriller Movie to Feature Megalodon

It may be more than forty years since “Jaws” hit our cinemas screens, but sharks still fascinate and terrify, although statistically you are more likely to be killed by a cow than by a shark.  Sharks may have a reputation for being cold-blooded, merciless killers but in reality, there are on average, about half a dozen or so reported fatalities each year from shark attacks.

Cows More Dangerous Than Sharks

Bovines (cows) tend to be more dangerous.  Cows with young can be very protective and have been known to charge and trample unwary people who venture too close.  According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) some seventy-four people have been fatally attacked by cows in the UK since the year 2000.

Globally, cows present a much greater risk than any shark.

Within the shark group (Elasmobranchii), there are around 480 extant species, but only three of these, the Bull shark, Tiger and Great White, represent a significant threat to beach goers.  However, expect a spike in the number of people claiming to have Selachophobia (a morbid fear of sharks), as filming of a new shark-inspired movie gets into full swing.

Megalodon to Feature in a New Horror Film

Based on the series of “Meg” novels by the talented American science-fiction writer Steve Alten, filming is getting underway on the Warner Bros production and a tentative release date of March 2nd 2018 has been proposed.  This is a full three months before Universal Pictures intend to release their Jurassic World sequel, which currently has the working title “Jurassic World II – Ancient Futures”.

Jason Statham (Transporter, The Expendables, Snatch) has been confirmed as the lead actor, he has been joined on the cast list by Jessica McNamee.  Statham plays formal U.S. Navy diver Jonas Taylor who is given the chance to redeem his reputation by leading a rescue mission to save a team of Chinese scientists who have encountered a Megalodon (giant prehistoric shark) in a deep ocean trench.

The Front Cover of the Book “Meg” by Steve Alten

"Meg" front cover image.

Exciting and thrilling adventure story based on Megalodon.

Directed by Jon Turtletaub (National Treasure: Book of Secrets), the film is likely to be a watery gore-fest, although we at Everything Dinosaur doubt whether this feature will have quite the impact of Steven Spielberg’s 1975 film about a killing spree from a Great White.

Megalodon Movie

Of course it’s all hokum, the likelihood of a giant, apex predator shark lurking in the deepest recesses of the ocean is extremely remote.  There are undoubtedly a vast number of marine organisms new to science awaiting discovery.  After all, we know more about the surface of the moon than we do about the deep sea, but there is simply not enough food in the Hadalpelagic Zone (that part of the ocean that comprises the deepest trenches and underwater canyons), to sustain such a large fish, even a single sixty foot long specimen.  Still when did science ever get in the way of a good movie script?

A Megalodon Fossil Tooth

Megalodon fossil tooth

A large fossil tooth from a Otodus megalodon. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Safari Ltd produced an excellent replica of the giant prehistoric shark C. megalodonWild Safari Prehistoric World Models and Figures.

The Wild Safari Dinos Megalodon Shark Model

The Wild Safari Dinosaurs Megalodon shark model.

Rows and rows of teeth inside the mouth.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

It looks like Megalodon (C. megalodon) is going to join that ever-growing list of prehistoric creatures that have featured in movies.

Please note, following a taxonomic revision the bionomial scientific name is Otodus megalodon.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s award-winning website: Everything Dinosaur.

6 08, 2016

Giants of Ancient South America

By |2023-05-06T06:55:40+01:00August 6th, 2016|Dinosaur Fans, Main Page, Photos of Everything Dinosaur Products|0 Comments

South American Themed Dinosaur Diorama

Dinosaur model enthusiast and collector Robert Townsend very kindly sent into Everything Dinosaur some further pictures of his prehistoric landscape.  This time he has focused on dinosaurs that roamed the Southern Hemisphere during the Mesozoic.  In his diorama entitled “South American Giants”, Robert highlights the diversity of sauropods that once roamed the landmass of Gondwana, he has also added some large theropod models to highlight the apex predators which once called South America home.

Dinosaur Diorama

When the Sauropoda Dominated the Mega-fauna of Gondwana

South American giant dinosaurs.

An Amargasaurus (foreground), Saltasaurus (background).

Picture credit: Robert Townsend

The picture above shows a Safari Ltd (Wild Safari Dinos) Amargasaurus in the foreground, in the background, a pair of long-necked dinosaurs (Saltasaurus) walk by.  This is a well composed photograph.   The position of the models provides perspective and depth perception, the animals moving in opposite directions provides contrast and draws the eye into the photograph, allowing the clever and careful use of foliage to be appreciated.

For models and replicas of prehistoric animals: Dinosaur Models and Prehistoric Animal Replicas.

A Close View of the CollectA Agustinia Dinosaur Model

Agustinia dinosaur model.

The CollectA Deluxe Agustinia dinosaur model.

Picture credit: Robert Townsend

South American Sauropods

A number of sauropods feature in Robert’s South American themed diorama.  The picture above shows a close up of an Agustinia (pronounced Ah-gus-tin-nee-ah), a bizarre, herbivorous dinosaur whose fossils were first discovered around twenty years ago.  From the limited number of fossils found, palaeontologists remain uncertain as to the phylogeny of this particular dinosaur.  It could be a member of the titanosaurids, or perhaps it was more closely related to Diplodocus (diplodocid dinosaurs).  Until more fossil material is found and studied, the family classification of this particular South American dinosaur remains uncertain.

Carnivorous Dinosaurs of South America

Giant meat-eating dinosaurs roamed South America.

Mapusaurus and Giganotosaurus feast on a long-necked dinosaur.

Picture credit: Robert Townsend

A number of super-sized theropods are known from South America.  Robert depicts different types of meat-eating dinosaur in his diorama.  Amongst the abelisaurids, Robert has included a number of different types of predator, including Mapusaurus and Giganotosaurus which are greedily feeding on the remains of a sauropod in the photograph above.

A Lifelong Dream

When asked how he got interested in collecting dinosaur models and making dioramas, Robert explained:

“When I was about eleven or twelve years old I saw the film “Valley of The Gwangi” which was about some cowboys in the old wild west who discover a lost world of living dinosaurs inside a secret and hidden canyon.  I was so impressed with the realism of the animation of the creatures that I wanted to make my own lost world of dinosaur models in a prehistoric world.”

In his childhood, Robert constructed a number of dinosaur model kits and he started building landscapes from a young age, but not always with the results he desired.  When it came to creating prehistoric scenes, Robert admits his early efforts were a case of trial and error.

“What materials did one use?  I didn’t have a clue.  My dad suggested that I make the landscape out of a large piece of white card he obtained from somewhere.  It was rolled up, and when unrolled and flattened out it was about four feet square.  On the dining room table I used a felt tip pen to draw where the rocks and the rivers were meant to go.  To make prehistoric type plants I rolled up pieces of white paper, coloured them in with green and brown felt tip pens and then cut one end to spread out the fronds at the top.  They were stuck on the card with sellotape.”

Robert added:

“After an afternoon of trying this, the whole thing looked such a mess and so totally unconvincing that I was disappointed with my clumsy efforts.  I threw the whole lot away in the bin.  I thought it was best to wait until a time when I learnt what materials to use and how to build properly with them.  Well, now that time has come and you can see some of the results above.”

A Juvenile Argentinosaurus Roams Across the Diorama

The CollectA Argentinosaurus.

A juvenile Argentinosaurus.

Picture credit: Robert Townsend

Everything Dinosaur Says Thank You

Thank you Robert for sending your photographs to Everything Dinosaur, they are greatly appreciated.  The next project for Robert is to build “Jurassic Park III later in the summer.  His plans are well advanced, the landscape will have a water hole surrounded by prehistoric trees and plants, some plastic aquarium plants and rocks from a garden centre, even some model plants that Robert will have made himself.

The CollectA Williamsonia Helps to Bring Prehistoric Scenes to Life

The CollectA Williamsonia plant.

The CollectA Williamsonia prehistoric plant, a great addition to dinosaur dioramas.

For extra realism, Robert is keen to get hold of some of the prehistoric plants and other materials from Everything Dinosaur, sounds like a good plan.

The Williamsonia and other prehistoric trees and plants can be found here: CollectA Age of Dinosaurs Models and Figures.

5 08, 2016

World’s First Mass Extinction Engineered by Animals

By |2023-05-05T07:55:57+01:00August 5th, 2016|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Main Page, Palaeontological articles|0 Comments

Ediacaran Faunal Out Competed by Newly Evolved Animals

A remote fossil site in Namibia has helped strengthen the theory that the fauna of the Ediacaran was unable to survive the radical “re-engineering of marine ecosystems” that resulted with the evolution of more advanced biological organisms.  Newly evolved metazoans (animals that have three types of tissue layer in the embryo and are multi-cellular), altered the marine environment so much that most of the older, largely immobile, species that had dominated the Ediacaran geological period died out.

Ediacaran Fauna

A Late Precambrian (Ediacaran) Marine Environment

Ediacaran marine life.

Life in the Ediacaran.

Picture credit: John Sibbick

For models and replicas of ancient invertebrates and other prehistoric animals: CollectA Prehistoric Animal Figures.

The Ediacaran Geological Period

The Ediacaran geological period is defined as the last geological period of the Proterozoic (early life), it lasted from around 635 million years ago to 542 million years ago and this geological period saw the emergence of a diverse variety of soft-bodied multi-cellular creatures, most of which have no living descendants today.  The ecosystems that existed were very simple with short food chains, multi-cellular life was bizarre with many organisms shaped like discs, tubes or fronds.

Towards the end the Ediacaran more advanced and crucially mobile organisms began to evolve.  Food chains became more complicated with the evolution of active predation amongst organisms.  These new species were “ecological engineers” who changed the environment in ways that made it more and more difficult for Ediacaran organisms to survive.  That is the conclusion of the research team which studied the Namibian fossil remains.

Assistant Professor Simon Darroch Searching the Namibian Site for Fossils

Fossil hunting (Namibia)

Searching for fossils dating from the Ediacaran (southern Namibia).

Picture credit: Sarah Tweedt, Smithsonian Institution

Important Fossil Site

Writing in the journal “Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology”, the scientists, which include Simon Darroch (Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Vanderbilt University located at Nashville Tennessee), report that they have found one of the best-preserved examples of a mixed community of Ediacaran and metazoan organisms preserved in strata from the Zaris sub-basin of southern Namibia.

The Biota Replacement Model

Palaeontologists had predicted that evidence would be found in the fossil record to indicate ecosystems dominated by Ediacaran organisms being replaced by ecosystems dominated by organisms whose fossil record persist into the Cambrian and beyond.  The Namibian fossils provide the best evidence yet of a close ecological association between these distinct types of life-form.

Assistant Professor Darroch explained:

“Until this, the evidence for an overlapping ecological association between metazoans and soft-bodied Ediacaran organisms was limited.  Here, we describe new fossil localities from southern Namibia that preserve soft-bodied Ediacara biota, enigmatic tubular organisms thought to represent metazoans and vertically oriented metazoan trace fossils.  Although the precise identity of the trace makers remains elusive, the structures bear several striking similarities with a cone-shaped organism called Conichnus that has been found in the Cambrian period.”

Conichnus Trace Fossils from Namibia – Evidence of Biota Replacement

Conichnus trace fossils (Namibia).

Conichnus burrows are trace fossils. The surface bumps represent vertical tubes that were originally occupied by anemone-like animals that may have fed on Ediacaran larvae.

Picture credit: Vanderbilt University/Darroch

Conichnus is an ichnogenus (known only from trace fossils), that may have been some form of anemone that fed on Ediacaran larvae.  The scientists also report that they have found strands of Ediacaran frond-like organisms with animal fossils preserved in place coiled around their holdfasts.  The Namibian fossil material provides a snapshot of a transitional ecosystem prior to the Cambrian explosion which led to the evolution of much more modern looking food chains.

Assistant Professor Darroch stated:

“Both animal burrows – ‘trace fossils’ – and the remains of animals themselves sharing the same communities, lets us speculate about how these two very different groups of organisms interacted.”

Lessons for Today

Although the research team are studying the remains of organisms preserved in rocks that were laid down more than 540 million years ago, the biota replacement model that these fossils seem to confirm has relevance for our planet today.  Some of the fossil strata shows the preserved body fossils of a bizarre metazoan called Shaanxilithes, these fossils are coiled found the anchoring, trace fossil (a holdfast) of a frond-like organism),

Shaanxilithes Fossils (Ediacaran Strata – Namibia)

Signs of Late Ediacaran biota replacement.

Shaanxilithes are odd, annulated and ribbon-like fossils that start showing up near the end of the Ediacaran period. In this fossil they are wrapped around Aspidella holdfasts.

Picture credit: Vanderbilt University/Darroch

Simon explained:

“There is a powerful analogy between the Earth’s first mass extinction and what is happening today.  The end-Ediacaran extinction shows that the evolution of new behaviours can fundamentally change the entire planet, and today we humans are the most powerful ‘ecosystems engineers’ ever known.”

This research entitled: “A mixed Ediacaran-metazoan assemblage from the Zaris sub-basin, Namibia”, builds on an earlier scientific paper published last year that examined a large number of animal burrows preserved in the Namibia rocks that were interpreted as representing the fossil record of a community under stress.

The Disc-Like Structures Represent the Holdfasts of Ediacaran Organisms

Trace fossils (Aspidella).

The disc-like fossils are the preserved remains of holdfast structures used by the Ediacaran species Aspidella that went extinct about a million years after these individuals died and were preserved.

Picture credit: Vanderbilt University/Darroch

The picture above shows the preserved remains of several disc-like fossils in the Namibian strata.  These have been interpreted as the holdfast, anchoring structures of the fern-like Aspidella.  Once thought to be an ancestral jellyfish, at the time it was first studied, it was the first Precambrian body fossil to have been formally scientifically described.  These disc shapes are now interpreted as trace fossils, examples of the benthic, immobile fauna of the Ediacaran, that was being replaced by more complex and mobile metazoans.

Stirring Up Sediments

Hunting and eating the Ediacaran fauna might not have been the only destructive behaviour of the more complex mobile organisms that represented emerging fauna that would dominate the Cambrian.  The researchers also point out that mobile Cambrian animals would have stirred up nutrients leaving them in suspension above the sea floor, far away from the reach of the benthic Ediacaran life-forms.  In essence, the microbial mats and more complex but ultimately, confined to the sea floor Ediacaran fauna, would have found that nutrients that once always fell to the seabed were now suspended in a new marine ecosystem, effectively placing these nutrients out of reach.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s award-winning website: Everything Dinosaur.

4 08, 2016

The Origin of High Frequency Hearing In Whales

By |2023-05-05T07:46:17+01:00August 4th, 2016|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Main Page, Palaeontological articles|0 Comments

Ancient “Echo Hunter” Provides Insight into Whale Evolution

Scientists from the College of Osteopathic Medicine, New York Institute of Technology (New York), in collaboration with colleagues from a number of other institutions including the Museum of Natural History (Paris), have published a paper on a newly described species of toothed whale, one that suggests that echolocation abilities started early in the cetaceans.

Ancient Toothed Whale Skull

Writing in the journal “Current Biology” the researchers report that they have found evidence of ultrasonic hearing and the use of echolocation as a probable navigation aid in the beautifully preserved inner ear of a 27-million-year-old toothed whale.

An Illustration of Echovenator (E. sandersi) A Newly Described Genus of Toothed Whale

Echovenator sandersi.

A small, early toothed whale (Echovenator sandersi).

Picture credit: A. Gennari

Known from a skull, jaws and an atlas bone (bone from the neck), which are believed to represent a single individual, Echovenator sandersi had features in its inner ear that suggest that this marine mammal could hear a greater range of high-pitched sounds when compared to most other mammals.  Believed to be a basal member of the Odontocetes (toothed whales),  this fossil suggests that sophisticated echolocation evolved very early on in this whale lineage.

From a Ditch in South Carolina

The fossil remains were discovered during work on a drainage ditch in Berkeley County, South Carolina fifteen years ago.  The bones and fossil teeth are associated with a basal bed of the Chandler Bridge Formation (Upper Oligocene).  The rocks of this formation were laid down in a marine environment, close to the shore (nearshore marine or possibly an embayment).

Commenting on the conclusions of the research, lead author Morgan Churchill (New York Institute of Technology), stated:

“We can tell a lot about how well this animal fits within whale evolution based on the cranial features and we can use that cranial anatomy to determine whether or not it could echolcate.”

Dr Churchill, a postdoctoral Fellow at the College of Osteopathic Medicine added:

“The fossil specimen shows several features that we would see in a modern whale with echolocation.”

The Prepared Fossil Skull of the Early Toothed Whale (E. sandersi)

The skull of Echovenator sandersi

The prepared skull of the prehistoric toothed whale Echovenator.

Picture credit: M. Churchill/Journal of Current Biology

A Well-travelled Whale

In order to assess the morphology and likely capabilities of the inner ear of this early whale, a number of X-ray scans were taken of the skull fossils.  The skull was carefully X-rayed at the Nikon Metrology X-ray facilities in Tring, (Buckinghamshire, England) and these results were compared to X-ray studies of living and extinct whales skulls undertaken at the University of Texas Austin and the National Museum of Natural History in Paris

By examining Echo Hunter’s inner ear, the researchers found evidence of its ability to receive ultrasonic frequencies.  A soft tissue structure called the basilar membrane, while not present in the fossil itself, was indicated by other parts of the ear to be of a size and thickness consistent with high-frequency hearing.

Another part of the inner ear, a thin, bony structure within the cochlea, provided further evidence of a likely echolocation ability.  Echolocation is the use of vocalisations to navigate and to find prey underwater, other studies have proposed that the ability to produce very high frequency sounds occurred early on in the evolution of the Cetacea, this new research suggests echolocation evolved in basal members of the toothed whale group.

Jonathan Geisler, a co-author of the study and a professor at the New York Institute of Technology commented:

“We had suspicions that they were echolocating but to really get down to a rough estimate of frequency, you really had to look in the inner ear in more detail and that’s where this project comes in.”

Echovenator sandersi

About the size of a small dolphin, Echovenator hunted fish and other small, nektonic creatures close to the shore.  It used its echolocation to help it forage in the murky, sediment-filled coastal waters.  The genus name is Latin which means “echo hunter”, the species name honours Albert Sanders, a former curator of The Charleston Museum, in recognition of his contribution to the scientific study of Cenozoic whales.

Mark D. Uhen, a professor at George Mason University, who in 2008 erected a new family of ancient whales, the Xenorophidae, the oldest and most primitive of the toothed whales, the whale family to which Echovenator has been ascribed, explained that previous research had suggested that the earliest toothed whales could echolocate, but that the new paper provided a clearer picture.

The Evolution of High Frequency Hearing and Echolocation in Whales

The evolution of echolocation and ultrasonic hearing in whales.

Plotting the evolution of ultrasonic hearing and echolocation in early whales.

Picture credit: College of Charleston

The Evolution of Echolocation

Dr Uhen, who was not involved in this study, said that the development of high-frequency hearing in whales was a nice illustration of natural selection.

Professor Uhen commented:

“I think the way evolution mostly works is that animals adopt a behaviour, and then natural selection changes generation after generation so that they get better and better and better at that behaviour.  Whales started feeding in the water so their feeding apparatus and their ears changed early.”

Heard the one about the origins of echolocation?: The Origins of Echolocation in Dolphins (related article).

To read an article about a potential terrestrial ancestor of whales: Deer-like Fossil Confuses Early Cetacean Evolution.

To read an article about a huge, Pliocene toothed whale that swam in the waters around Australia: Giant Aussie Whale a Terror of the Pliocene Seas.

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