A Review of Prehistoric Times Magazine (Winter 2018)

It might be cold (and dark) outside but no excuse is necessary when it comes to getting stuck into the latest edition of “Prehistoric Times”, that arrived at our offices a few days ago.  This is the first edition of 2018 and once again, this highly informative publication is jam-packed with news about dinosaur discoveries as well as updates on prehistoric animal models and all the views, interviews and features dinosaur fans have come to expect from this quarterly magazine.

“Prehistoric Times” Magazine

The front cover artwork (provided by the amazingly talented Sergey Krasovskiy), depicts a scene from Hateg Island, a Hispaniola-sized landmass that, along with a few other scattered islands represented the only terrestrial environments in Europe during the Late Cretaceous.  The enormous azhdarchid pterosaur Hatzegopteryx looms over the partially eaten corpse of an armoured dinosaur (the Nodosaur Struthiosaurus transylvanicus).

The Front Cover of Prehistoric Times (Issue 124)

Picture credit: Prehistoric Times/Sergey Krasovskiy

The Palaeofauna of Hateg Island

Phil Hore does a fantastic job providing a write up on the bizarre and unique palaeofauna of Hateg Island.  His article also profiles the influential Franz Nopsca, a polymath who did so much to place Romania on the geological map and to document the prehistoric animals of the region.

Everything Dinosaur team members note with interest Phil Hore’s comments about Balaur bondoc.  Once thought to be a theropod, recent research suggests that the “stocky dragon” could be a flightless bird.  The absence of skull material limits what can be concluded about this enigmatic animal.  With team members preparing a fact sheet on B. bondoc for our launch of the “Beasts of the Mesozoic” model range, we are all too aware of the current identity crisis concerning this unusual biped, Phil Hore summarises the present situation very nicely.

The Beasts of the Mesozoic Balaur bondoc Articulated Figure

The picture (above) shows the Beasts of the Mesozoic Balaur bondoc figure.

To view this range: Beasts of the Mesozoic Figures.

“Insular Dwarfism”

Nopsca may have posited the idea of “insular dwarfism”, but there is nothing small about the amazing dinosaur model collection of William Heinrich.  The winter edition of “Prehistoric Times” features an interview with this passionate collector and it is illustrated with a number of photographs that show the size and scale of the result of a life-time of collecting.  New Zealander, John Lavas provides another article on the astonishing artwork of Zdeněk Burian, this time the focus is on the Therapsida.

Look out for a super article from Tracy Lee Ford that “broadly” outlines the hip structures of a variety of different examples of the Dinosauria and this issue (number 124), includes three tales penned from the imaginations of “Prehistoric Times” readers.

For further information about this magazine and to subscribe: Prehistoric Times Magazine.

The Year in Review (2017)

The American palaeontologist Steve Brusatte, currently based at the University of Edinburgh, provides a comprehensive overview of dinosaur and fossil news from 2017.  Everything Dinosaur team members are reading Steve’s new book, all about the rise and fall of the Dinosauria, this book is due to be published in the late spring.  We don’t know how Steve manages to keep up with all his commitments, but we are very glad he did take time out to write this most informative and helpful article.

Sea scorpions, new model news, Mesozoic media, this issue is crammed full of fascinating features, articles and lots and lots of readers’ artwork.   We even spotted an illustration that seems to have been influenced by the Hatzegopteryx drawing the editor, Mike Fredericks, provided for our fact sheet on this Late Cretaceous pterosaur.

Visit the Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.