All about dinosaurs, fossils and prehistoric animals by Everything Dinosaur team members.
/2019
31 12, 2019

Excellent Customer Service Recognised

By | December 31st, 2019|Adobe CS5, Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur News and Updates, Main Page, Press Releases|0 Comments

Maintaining the Feefo Gold Trusted Service Award for 2019

Everything Dinosaur has continued to maintain its very high customer service standards throughout the whole of the festive period.  Furthermore, the UK-based dinosaur themed company has maintained the Feefo Gold Trusted Service award throughout the whole of 2019.  The company has been awarded the highest accolade by Feefo, the independent ratings company for the last three years.

Everything Dinosaur Has Maintained the Highest Standards of Customer Service Throughout 2019

Feefo certificate of excellence (2019).
Everything Dinosaur has once again, maintained the very highest standards of customer service. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Everything Dinosaur Receives Hundreds of Reviews

There are hundreds of customer reviews on the Everything Dinosaur website.  Every single one of them has been independently verified by Feefo.

Some examples of recent customer reviews for Everything Dinosaur:

Rustam from Azerbaijan wrote:

“I would definitely recommend them and continue purchasing the models and other prehistoric accessories from Everything Dinosaur.”

Basit Ali (Qatar), stated:

“Everything Dinosaur is one of the best things that ever happened in my life.  I came here late but I think to me personally their customer service is nearly unbeatable as not even once I have regretted my purchase from them.  I highly recommend shopping with these guys, you do it once and you’ll come again yourself.

Thank you, Everything Dinosaur!”

Everything Dinosaur Committed to Maintaining Customer Service Excellence

Top marks from Feefo for Everything Dinosaur customer service.
Maintaining 100% customer service all year round. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Customer Reviews

Donovan from Canada provided a review about our delivery of the limited edition Papo Spinosaurus model:

“Great service all around and they always make it easy to get what you like.  Did an amazing job with Papo limited Spinosaurus and getting figure to me in great time and boxed up so nothing could happen to it on its travels.”

Our customers in the UK think a lot about us too.

Recently, we received a review from Abigail she wrote to say:

“I have bought from this website twice now and their customer service is excellent.  Speedy delivery and items arrived in perfect condition.  The information sheets are a welcome bonus, making the dinosaurs brilliant presents for the dinosaur enthusiasts in my life!  I have emailed queries and spoken to them on the phone and in both situations my questions were answered politely, quickly and fully.  I have no complaints at all.”

In her 5-star review Courtney stated:

“Fantastic service as always – went above and beyond in fulfilling my order.”

Writing about his purchase of the CollectA Hydrotherosaurus dinosaur model Raymond commented:

“Excellent item, service, and value.  Fully recommended to all.”

Top Marks for Everything Dinosaur

5-star service from Everything Dinosaur.
5-star service from Everything Dinosaur throughout the whole of 2019. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

2020 – A New Service Challenge (Platinum Trusted Service Award from Feefo)

With Everything Dinosaur, every day is all about delivering top-notch customer service.  Since we signed up with Feefo we have been consistently one of the highest rated of all their clients.  As a result of the endeavours of businesses like us, Feefo have decided to introduce a very special award which recognises consistently high levels of customer service.  The Platinum Trusted Service award is due to be launched next year and Everything Dinosaur is hotly tipped to be amongst the first organisations in the world to be awarded this accolade.

The Platinum Trusted Service award recognises those businesses that go above and beyond to provide a consistently excellent service and dedicate themselves to acing their customer experience year after year.  We hope to post up news of this award in the near future.

A spokesperson from Everything Dinosaur commented:

“We appreciate that this time of year can be a stressful time for shoppers, we have continued to maintain our customer service and support channels and we have done all we can to help and assist our customers.  Our work is reflected in our consistently high customer service rating.  We are truly proud and humbled to have received such praise and positive feedback from our customers over many years.”

To see what all the fuss is about, Everything Dinosaur’s Feefo reviews can be found on the company website here: Everything Dinosaur’s website.

30 12, 2019

A Beautiful Atlasaurus Illustration

By | December 30th, 2019|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal Drawings, Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur Products, Main Page, Photos of Everything Dinosaur Products|2 Comments

Illustrating Atlasaurus

Our thanks to Caldey who sent into Everything Dinosaur a beautiful illustration of the bizarre north African sauropod Atlasaurus (A. imelakei) which had been inspired by her recent purchase of the Eofauna Scientific Research Atlasaurus model.

An Illustration of the Middle Jurassic North African Sauropod Atlasaurus

Illustrating Atlasaurus.
An illustration of the north African sauropod (Middle Jurassic) Atlasaurus imelakei.

Picture credit: Caldey

Atlasaurus imelakei

Known from a single fossil specimen discovered in sandstone sediments in the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region of Morocco.  Atlasaurus is just one of a handful of sauropods that have been found in north Africa and it is the most complete.  The fossils, believed to represent one animal, consist of a partial skull, a considerable portion of the postcranial skeleton and a partial tail.  This dinosaur is estimated to have been around fifteen metres in length.

Bizarre Sauropod Body Proportions

The body plan of this herbivorous dinosaur was very different from its better-known sauropod contemporaries from North America, China and Europe.  Its limb bones were proportionately longer than most other sauropodomorphs and its front legs were longer than its hind legs, so its back sloped from the shoulders to the tail.  Unusually, the neck was relatively short for such a large animal.  Scientists have postulated that the long limbs evolved to assist this dinosaur when feeding.  It could reach vegetation that other herbivorous dinosaurs could not reach.

The Eofauna Scientific Research Atlasaurus Dinosaur Model

Eofauna Scientific Research Atlasaurus dinosaur model.
Eofauna Atlasaurus dinosaur model.  The inspiration behind Caldey’s illustration. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

The Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

Caldey’s drawing has certainly captured these bizarre body proportions and the intriguing colour scheme devised by those talented model makers at Eofauna Scientific Research.  Our thanks to Caldey for sending into us her fabulous dinosaur drawing.

To view the figures within the Eofauna Scientific Research model series, including the Atlasaurus replica: Eofauna Scientific Research Prehistoric Animal Figures.

30 12, 2019

An Extremely Detailed Iguanodon Illustration

By | December 30th, 2019|Adobe CS5, Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal Drawings, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page, Photos of Everything Dinosaur Products|0 Comments

Illustrating Iguanodon

Everything Dinosaur team members get sent lots of amazing prehistoric animal drawings, we really do have some supremely talented customers.  Today, we feature a pencil sketch from Ian, he has chosen to illustrate an iguanodontid.  From the heavy build, we suggest that this is an illustration of Iguanodon bernissartensis, however, it could just as well be an illustration of another robust iguanodontid such as Barilum dawsoni.

Illustrating Iguanodon

Ian’s Iguanodontid Illustration Sent into Everything Dinosaur

Iguanodontid illustration.
An illustration of a robust iguanodontid, possible I. bernissartensis or B. dawsoni.

Picture credit: Ian

A Quadrupedal Stance

Ian has chosen to depict his ornithopod in a quadrupedal stance.  Such a large and powerful animal would have had little to fear from the predators that shared its habitat, although if threatened and needing to make a quick getaway, these animals could rear up onto their strong hindlegs and adopt a bipedal running gait.

A spokesperson from Everything Dinosaur commented:

“Our thanks to Ian for sending into us his splendid pencil drawing of a stocky, robust iguanodontid.  It is always a pleasure to receive illustrations of dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals.”

The Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur’s Website.

Papo Iguanodon Inspires Illustration

Team members suspect that the 2018 Papo Iguanodon model may have inspired the artist to produce this illustration.  What do you think?

The Papo Iguanodon Dinosaur Model

Papo Iguanodon dinosaur model.
The new for 2018 Papo Iguanodon model.  The possible inspiration behind Ian’s drawing.

View Papo prehistoric animal models: Papo Dinosaur Models and Figures.

29 12, 2019

New Research Highlights Carboniferous Parental Care

By | December 29th, 2019|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Main Page, Palaeontological articles, Photos/Pictures of Fossils|0 Comments

Carboniferous Fossil Provides Evidence of Parental Care

Parental care is a common behaviour amongst mammals, the chances of the offspring surviving are enhanced by the parents making an investment in looking after their young, but when did this behavioural strategy evolve in the ancestors of the Mammalia?  This is a tricky question to answer as evidence for such behaviours is rarely preserved in the fossil record, but a remarkable discovery inside a lithified tree stump dating from around 305 million years ago from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia (Canada), may have provided palaeontologists with a fresh insight into prehistoric parenting.

Dendromaia unamakiensis

A team of scientists writing in the academic journal “Nature Ecology & Evolution” report the discovery of fossilised remains of an adult lizard-like creature in association with a very young member of the same species preserved within the tree stump.  Finding an adult and associated conspecific juvenile has been interpreted as evidence of the parent staying close to its offspring and therefore a demonstration of parental care.

The creatures are members of the Varanopidae family, so called as these creatures resemble extant monitor lizards (Varanus), but they are not closely related to monitor lizards and are a new genus.  They have been named Dendromaia unamakiensis and if this is prehistoric parental care, then it predates the previous earliest evidence by some forty million years.

Evidence of Parental Care in a Synapsid (Dendromaia unamakiensis)

Dendromaia unamakiensis life reconstruction - evidence of parental care in a synapsid.
Dendromaia unamakiensis life reconstruction.

Picture credit: Henry Sharpe

A Varanopid (Synapsid) Caring for its Young

The Varanopidae are geographically widespread and temporally diverse.  Most of these animals were around 1 metre in length, much of their body length was made up of their long tails.   They evolved during the Carboniferous and persisted into the Middle Permian.  Varanopids are regarded as one of the most successful of the early types of amniotes, however, whether they are ancestral to modern mammals and members of the Synapsida or whether they are actually diapsids is an area of debate amongst palaeontologists.

Commenting on the significance of the fossil discovery, lead author of the scientific paper Professor Hillary Maddin (Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada), commented:

“Parental care is a behavioural strategy where parents make an investment or divert resources from themselves to increase the health and chances of survival for their offspring.  While there are a variety of parental care strategies, prolonged postnatal care is amongst the most costly to a parent.  This form of parental care is particularly common in mammals, as all mammalian offspring demand nourishment from their mothers.”

The Slab and Counter Slab with the Preserved Remains of the D. unamakiensis Fossils

Dendromaia unamakiensis slab and counter slab.
The slab and the counter slab with the preserved Dendromaia unamakiensis fossils.

Picture credit: Maddin et al

The researchers concluded that this was evidence of parental care as the preservation of delicate details and structures in the fossils indicate a rapid burial with little movement after death.  The adult and the juvenile were close to each other at the time that they died.  The location of the young animal beneath the hindlimb and encircled tail of the adult resembles a position associated with animals living in a den.

Earliest Evidence of Prolonged Parental Care

The fossils could represent the earliest known record of prolonged parental care.  Prior to this discovery, the previous earliest record of this sort of parental behaviour was identified in a varanopid from the Middle Permian of South Africa.  A scientific paper was published in 2007, describing the discovery of five articulated conspecific varanopid specimens, one of which was much larger than the others.  This was interpreted as an adult and four juveniles, a family group with the older animal looking after its offspring.

Whether Dendromaia is a synapsid of diapsid might be debatable, but whatever the taxonomic relationship to other more advanced amniotes, this fossil discovery suggests that parental care is deeply rooted within the Amniota clade and that parenting behaviour might have been more widespread amongst Palaeozoic tetrapods than previously thought.

The scientific paper: “Varanopid from the Carboniferous of Nova Scotia reveals evidence of parental care in amniotes” by Hillary C. Maddin, Arjan Mann and Brian Hebert published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.

The Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

28 12, 2019

Everything Dinosaur’s Popular Blog Posts of 2019 (Part 2)

By | December 28th, 2019|Adobe CS5, Animal News Stories, Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page, Photos/Pictures of Fossils|0 Comments

Everything Dinosaur’s Top Ten Blog Posts of 2019 (Part 2)

Today, we conclude our review of the top ten blog posts written by Everything Dinosaur team members in 2019.  We have produced a blog post for every day of the year and as a result we have covered a tremendous range of topics from new fossil discoveries, highlighting research, the introduction (and retirement) of prehistoric animal replicas, book reviews, artwork created by academic illustrators and scientific discoveries.

Here is our countdown of the top five.

5). Ngwevu intloko – New Dinosaur “Hiding in Plain Sight”

Over the summer, Everything Dinosaur published a wide range of articles.  A new bizarre, shovel-mouthed duck-billed dinosaur (Aquilarhinus), was reported and news of a fast-running Triassic theropod from Switzerland (Notatesseraptor) broke.  We had strange prehistoric parrots, an analysis of the cranial capacity of “parrot lizard” Psittacosaurus and herbivorous crocodylomorphs.  However, number five on our list concerns the discovery of a new type of Triassic herbivorous dinosaur that was found in a museum cabinet.

Fossils once thought to represent an unusual specimen of Massospondylus (M. carinatus) in the collection of the University of Witwatersrand (South Africa), were assigned to their own genus. Student Kimberley Chapelle and colleagues identified a total of twenty-two characteristics that supported the establishment of a brand new dinosaur genus.  The new dinosaur was named Ngwevu intloko, this member of the Sauropodomorpha had been hiding in plain sight within the vertebrate fossil collection of the University for more than three decades.

Views of the Skull of Ngwevu intloko

Views of the skull of N. intloko.
Views of the skull of Ngwevu intloko.

Picture credit: Kimberley Chapelle/University of Witwatersrand

4). Keresdrakon vilsoni – Toothless Pterosaur from an Ancient Desert Ecosystem

September and thirty days of blog posts covering stiff T. rex skulls and subsequently how the skull of T. rex may have helped it to keep cool, dinosaur model deliveries to hotels, the most complete dinosaur fossil from Japan (Kamuysaurus japonicus) and the Asian origins of Saurornitholestes, but our number four features a newly described species of pterosaur from Brazil.

Researchers, writing in the academic journal “Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências”, identified a new species of edentulous flying reptile that co-existed with the pterosaur Caiuajara and may have fed on its young.  Described as part of a non-tapejarid lineage of pterosaurs outside the Tapejaromorpha, Keresdrakon provides a new perspective on the paleoecology of a Cretaceous desert environment.

Keresdrakon Life Reconstruction It Feeds on the Carcase of a Contemporary Dinosaur (Vespersaurus) whilst a Second Keresdrakon is Mobbed by Juvenile Caiuajara

Keresdrakon life reconstruction.
Keresdrakon life reconstruction, feeding on the carcase of a Vespersaurus.

Picture credit: Maurilio Oliveira

An honourable mention to Cryodrakon boreas the first pterosaur to be described which is unique to Canada.

3). A Potential Terrestrial Tetrapod that May Not Have Gone onto Land

In October, Everything Dinosaur team members covered the amazing TetZooCon event in London, the naming of a new, basal carcharodontosaurian theropod from Thailand (Siamraptor suwati) and the reclassification of crocodiles in New Guinea.  A team of researchers, writing in “Nature” put forward an intriguing new hypothesis that some of the first vertebrates that were capable of terrestrial locomotion may have never left the water.  Parmastega aelidae was a sharp-eyed predator that may have ambushed invertebrates that ventured too close to the sea.

With eyes positioned towards the top of their heads, Parmastega was capable of observing life on land and potential prey without leaving the water.

Life in a Late Devonian Coastal Lagoon (Sosnogorsk, Russia)

Parmastega aelidae life reconstruction.
Sosnogorsk lagoon with Parmastega aelidae hunting behaviour.

Picture credit: Mikhail Shekhanov for the Ukhta Local Museum

2).  Unusual Styracosaurus Skull Might Change the Way New Dinosaurs are Identified

The first fossil evidence of feathered polar dinosaurs, plans to map extra-terrestrial space objects in a bid to prevent Earth impact events, limited edition dinosaur models, a new predatory dinosaur from Brazil – Gnathovorax cabreirai, all featured in October.  A fossil ape from the Miocene of Germany, Poland’s first pliosaur, Rebor Komodo dragons, a new megaraptorid from “Down Under” and the discovery of a Styracosaurus skull that might just turn palaeontology on its head were also discussed.  “Hannah” an asymmetrical Styracosaurus skull named after the pet dog of palaeontologist Scott Persons has cranial imperfections that could alter the way that scientists identify new species of dinosaur.  Whoops, looks like there may have to be another revision of the Centrosaurinae.

Palaeontologist Scott Persons Poses with the Two “Hannahs” in His Life “Hannah” the pet dog and “Hannah” the Styracosaurus

Scott Persons with dog and "Hannah" the Styracosaurus.
Scott Persons with “Hannah” the Styracosaurus and his dog.

Picture credit: Scott Persons/University of Alberta

1). Asfaltovenator vialidadi – A New Basal Allosauroid from Argentina

Our blog articles this month have covered such varied topics as galloping crocodilians, 7,000 Facebook “likes”, the announcement of new for 2020 Papo prehistoric animal figures, dinosaur teeth replacement, how to distinguish teenage tyrannosaurs and Mimodactylus libanensis, a new toothy pterosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Lebanon.

However, since we started this top ten countdown with a fossil discovery from North America and despite the focus on asymmetrical dinosaurs, we shall conclude with a dinosaur from the opposite end of the Americas.

Asfaltovenator vialidadi from the Cañadón Asfalto Formation (Chubut Province, Patagonia) roamed South America perhaps as early as 170 million years ago.  Its discovery is important, as most Middle Jurassic theropods are only known from quite fragmentary material and this dinosaur, described as a basal allosauroid, has traits linking it to both the allosauroids and the megalosauroids.  The fossils suggest that the Allosauroidea and the Megalosauroidea evolved from a common ancestor.

A Life Reconstruction of the Newly Described Asfaltovenator vialidadi 

Asfaltovenator illustration.
Asfaltovenator life reconstruction.  The theropod dinosaur shows a mix of anatomical characteristics linking the Allosauroidea and the Megalosauroidea.

Picture credit: Gabriel Lio/Conicet

Team members at Everything Dinosaur look forward to posting up more blog articles that help to work out taxonomic relationships within the Dinosauria and improve our understanding of ancient life still further in the coming months.

The Everything Dinosaur website: Our Website.

27 12, 2019

Everything Dinosaur’s Most Popular Blog Posts 2019 (Part 1)

By | December 27th, 2019|Adobe CS5, Animal News Stories, Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page, Photos/Pictures of Fossils|0 Comments

Everything Dinosaur’s Top Ten Blog Posts of 2019 (Part 1)

As this year draws to a close, it is time to reflect on all the work put into writing this web log by Everything Dinosaur team members.  It is also an opportunity to look back and reflect on some of the news stories and articles that we have published over the last twelve months.  Today, we start our look at the top ten articles that we have posted, the countdown from ten to number six.  This list has been compiled based on the total number of comments made, emails received requesting  further information, Facebook “likes” and comments, Pinterest shares and so forth.

So, without any further fuss, here is the first part of our top ten news stories for 2019.

10).  Prehistoric Shark Named After Video Game Character

In January, Everything Dinosaur covered a story about the naming of a new species of Late Cretaceous prehistoric shark.  Strange, unusually shaped shark’s teeth had been found preserved in some of the matrix associated with the famous “Sue” T. rex skeleton.  The tiny teeth reminded the research team of the shape of a spaceship from the 1980’s video game Galaga.  This was the inspiration behind the naming of this new species – Galagadon nordquistae.

Life Reconstruction of Galagadon nordquistae

Galagadon nordquistae life reconstruction.
A life reconstruction of the Late Cretaceous shark Galagadon nordquistae.

Picture credit: Velizar Simeonovski (Field Museum)

9).  Bajadasaurus pronuspinax Rears its Head

Early February saw the announcement of the discovery of a new, bizarre dicraeosaurid from Neuquén Province, Argentina.  A single, cervical vertebra suggests that Bajadasaurus had a series of forward facing defensive spikes on its neck.  A sauropod that carried its own set of Victorian railings around with it.  Although, the fossil material is fragmentary, CollectA were quick of the mark and have created a stunning replica of this Early Cretaceous giant.  Everything Dinosaur expects to have the CollectA Bajadasaurus replica in stock early in 2020.

A Silhouette Showing a Reconstruction of the Neck Vertebrae of Bajadasaurus and the CollectA Bajadasaurus Dinosaur Model

CollectA Bajadasaurus model and an illustration of the strange cervical vertebrae.
The bizarre cervical vertebrae of Bajadasaurus.  In the silhouette illustration known fossil material is shown in white.

Picture credit: Gallina et al published in Scientific Reports and Everything Dinosaur

To view the CollectA Deluxe model range: CollectA Deluxe Prehistoric Life Models.

8).  The Jurassic Mile

In March, a blog post was published recording the start of a huge collaboration between a number of European and American museums to explore and excavate an extraordinary, fossil-rich deposit located in the Badlands of Wyoming.  The site has been nicknamed the “Jurassic Mile” and these Morrison Formation deposits have already yielded a treasure trove of dinosaur bones, fossil plants and dinosaur trackways.

Everything Dinosaur will be providing more details of the fossil discoveries in blog articles over the coming twelve months, but the site is so vast that it could be decades before all the fossil material has been collected and studied.

Palaeontologist Phil Manning Sitting Next to a Diplodocid Femur from the “Jurassic Mile”

Professor Phil Manning and the diplodocid femur.
Professor Phil Manning (The University of Manchester) poses next to the diplodocid femur.

Picture credit: Manchester University

7). New Kid on the Block – Homo luzonensis

The discovery of fragmentary fossil remains of a diminutive hominin on the island of Luzon in the Philippines gave the human family tree a jolt in 2019.  The fossil material, dated to around 67,000 years ago, provides the earliest direct evidence of human inhabitation of the Philippines archipelago, but is Homo luzonensis, with its arboreal adaptations the descendant of a primitive African hominin that somehow migrated to south-eastern Asia or a more advanced hominin, perhaps related to Homo erectus that evolved and changed as it adapted to life on a heavily forested tropical island?

Professor Philip Piper – A Co-author of the Scientific Paper Published in April Holding a Cast of a Toe Bone

A cast of the toe bone of Homo luzonensis.
Professor Piper (Australian National University) holding a cast of a toe bone assigned to H. luzonensis.

Picture credit: Lannon Harley (Australian National University)

6). A Terrifying Trilobite (Redlichia rex)

In the summer, Everything Dinosaur published an article about the largest trilobite to have been discovered in Australia.  A likely predator of other trilobites, this was a thirty-centimetre-long Cambrian terror. It was appropriately named Redlichia rex and was nicknamed “the king of the trilobites”.  The fossil material comes from an exceptional Lagerstätte known as the Emu Bay Shale on Kangaroo Island, South Australia.

Around fifty different species of trilobite have been identified from this location.  Intriguingly, the predatory and potentially cannibalistic Redlichia rex may also have been hunted, preserved coprolite and the injuries recorded on the exoskeleton of specimens hint at a much larger predator lurking in the shallow sea that once covered this part of Australia.

A Fossil Specimen and the New for 2020 CollectA Redlichia rex Trilobite Model

Redlichia rex fossil and model.
A Redlichia rex trilobite fossil and the new for 2020 CollectA model.

Picture credit: University of Adelaide/Everything Dinosaur

View the CollectA not-to-scale Age of Dinosaurs model range: CollectA Age of Dinosaurs/Prehistoric Life.

The naming of a new Cambrian predator inspired the model makers at CollectA to create a replica of Redlichia rex, we expect this figure to make its debut on the Everything Dinosaur website around the middle of next year.  Prior to that event in 2020, we must first complete our chronicle of the top blog posts of 2019, we will conclude this feature tomorrow.

The Everything Dinosaur website: The Everything Dinosaur Website.

26 12, 2019

Dinosaurs Bred Close to the South Pole

By | December 26th, 2019|Adobe CS5, Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page, Palaeontological articles, Photos/Pictures of Fossils|0 Comments

Baby Dinosaurs from Australia Indicate Dinosaurs Bred at High Latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere

Evidence has been found of ornithopod dinosaurs breeding at high latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere but evidence of similar behaviours in the Southern Hemisphere, dinosaurs nesting within the Antarctic Circle, had been lacking until now.

Writing in the on-line, open access journal “Scientific Reports”, researchers from the University of New England (New South Wales, Australia), in collaboration with colleagues from the Australian Opal Centre (Lightning Ridge, New South Wales), report the discovery of two tiny thigh bones (femora), that suggest that ornithopods did breed in southern polar environments.

An Artist’s Reconstruction of a Nesting Ornithopod with Recently Hatched Young

Dinosaurs Nesting Close to the South Pole.
A life reconstruction of a nesting Australian ornithopod (based on Weewarrasaurus).  The two femora are indistinct and scientists are not able to identify them down to the genus level but since the wallaby-sized ornithopod Weewarrasaurus is known from close by, the reconstruction has been based on this dinosaur.

Picture credit: James Kuether

Co-author of the scientific paper, Dr Phil Bell (School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England) explained:

“We have examples of hatchling-sized dinosaurs from close to the North Pole, but this is the first time we’ve seen this kind of thing anywhere in the southern hemisphere.  It’s the first clue we’ve had about where these animals were breeding and raising their young.”

Dinosaurs Were Able to Tolerate a Range of Climates

The discovery of the two tiny, opalised thigh bones adds to the growing body of evidence that suggests that the Dinosauria, just like their close relatives the birds,  were remarkably climate-tolerant.  They thrived in equatorial, temperate and polar environments.

Fossilised eggshell and the fossilised remains of tiny hatchling hadrosaurids demonstrates that dinosaurs bred at high latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere and now the discovery to two partial thigh bones from the Griman Creek Formation exposed near Lightning Ridge suggests that non-iguanodontid ornithopods bred beyond sixty degrees south, well inside the Antarctic Circle.

The Two Opalised Fragmentary Dinosaur Thigh Bones (Femora)

The two tiny thigh bones indicate dinosaur nesting within the Antarctic Circle.
Proximal parts of ornithopod femora from the Griman Creek Formation. LRF 0759 (a–d). LRF 3375 (e–i).  Anterior views (a-e); (b,f) medial views; (c,g) posterior views; (d,i) proximal views; (h) lateral view.

Picture credit: Scientific Reports

The two fragmentary fossil femurs do not preserve any evidence of histology, so, it is not possible to determine the exact age of the animals from these fossils.  However, when this material is compared with neonatal and slightly older, possible yearling specimens known from the geologically slightly older Eumeralla and Wonthaggi formations in Victoria (Australia), it can be deduced that these are the thigh bones of embryonic dinosaurs, ones that were yet to hatch.

The femur is relatively large (although in these tiny dinosaurs, one femur is estimated to have a total length of 4.5 cm, whilst the other is even smaller with an estimated total length of just 3.7 cm), as such, this bone has a better chance of surviving the fossilisation process than most of the other bones in the dinosaur’s body.

Permanent Residents

Palaeontologists had thought that dinosaurs living at high latitudes were not permanent residents, they migrated into these areas during the period of extended daylight and subsequent copious plant growth, just like herds of caribou in the Arctic Circle do today.  However, the ornithopods, even as fully grown adults were relatively small animals, as such they were probably not capable of migrating vast distances.  Therefore, it is likely that at least some dinosaurs were permanent residents at very high southerly latitudes and as such they bred at these environments.

Palaeogeographic Map of Australia Around 100 Million Years Ago

Palaeogeographic map of South Pole (100 million years ago).
Palaeogeographic map of Australia at the Albian/Cenomanian boundary (circa 100 million years ago) showing the fossil localities discussed in this paper. (1) Lightning Ridge, Griman Creek Formation (Cenomanian); (2) Dinosaur Cove, Eumeralla Formation (Albian); (3) Flat Rocks, Wonthaggi Formation (Aptian).

Picture credit: Scientific Reports

The image (above) shows the approximate landmass associated with the polar regions around 100 million years ago.  The tiny fossilised thigh bones come from (1) the Lightning Ridge location.  In order to determine the age of these dinosaurs, they were compared with bones representing neonatal and slightly older animals found at locations (2) and (3).

The researchers conclude that these fossils support they hypothesis that some dinosaurs at least were permanent residents in the very southernmost portion of Gondwana.

The scientific paper: “High-latitude neonate and perinate ornithopods from the mid-Cretaceous of south-eastern Australia” by Justin L. Kitchener, Nicolás E. Campione, Elizabeth T. Smith and Phil R. Bell published in Scientific Reports.

View the Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

25 12, 2019

Merry Christmas from Everything Dinosaur

By | December 25th, 2019|Adobe CS5, Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur News and Updates, Main Page, Press Releases|0 Comments

Merry Christmas from Everything Dinosaur

“Tis the season to be jolly.”  A very merry Christmas to all our customers, social media followers, Instagram aficionados, Facebook fans and blog readers.  It has been another very busy year of web log posts with lots of amazing new fossil discoveries, news stories and fascinating research.  Seasonal greetings and compliments of the season to all our dedicated readers of this blog.

Merry Christmas from Everything Dinosaur

A merry Christmas from all at Everything Dinosaur.
Wishing all our customers, social media fans, followers and of course, our web log readers the compliments of the season. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Team members are already looking forward to an exciting 2020, plans are very well advanced for the forthcoming year.  We intend to write lots of new dinosaur and prehistoric animal themed articles over the next twelve months or so.  We can’t wait to introduce our readers to lots of new dinosaurs and yes, there will be quite a few in 2020.

Wishing all our customers and readers a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year.

Given our plans, we think it is appropriate to also say: Feliz Navidad, Joyeux Noël, Fröhliche Weihnachten, Buon Natale, Feliz Natal, Merīkurisumasu ….

The Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

24 12, 2019

Taking a Stroll Around “Garden” Rebor Stegosaurus Models in Stock

By | December 24th, 2019|Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur News and Updates, Everything Dinosaur Products, Main Page, Photos of Everything Dinosaur Products, Press Releases|0 Comments

Rebor Stegosaurus Models in Stock

The trio of Rebor 1:35 scale Stegosaurus models called “Garden” are in stock at Everything Dinosaur.  All three colour variants – “Plain”, “Woodland” and “Mountain” have arrived and what a tremendous trio of thyreophorans they make!

Rebor Stegosaurus armatus

All Three Rebor Stegosaurus Models are in Stock at Everything Dinosaur

Rebor Stegosaurus armatus "Garden" colour variants.
The three new for 2019 Rebor Stegosaurus dinosaur models – left to right “plain”, “mountain” and “woodland”. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Each figure is supplied with its own presentation base and the tail equipped with its “thagomizer”, slots neatly into the model to form a spectacular display piece  The colouration and finish on these models is really good, each figure has been given a glossy wash coat, which gives the plates a beautiful sheen and the dinosaur an attractive and realistic “wet-look”.

The New for 2019 Rebor Stegosaurus “Plain” Colour Variant

Rebor Stegosaurus armatus "Garden" dinosaur model.
Rebor 1:35 scale Stegosaurus armatus “plain” colour variant. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Stegosaurus armatus

Rebor have chosen to base these new armoured dinosaur figures on the Stegosaurus armatus species erected by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1877, from fossilised remains found in Colorado.  A victim of the bone wars, the first Stegosaurus species to be named is regarded by many palaeontologists as invalid, it has nomen dubium status, but since the first description of this Late Jurassic herbivore was published, Stegosaurus has gone onto become one of the most recognisable dinosaurs of all.

The Rebor replicas are superb, the different colour variants depict different potential habitats for this low browser.  It is hard to decide which one is our personal favourite.

The Rebor Stegosaurus “Woodland” Colour Variant

Rebor Stegosaurus armatus "woodland" colour variant.
The stunning Stegosaurus “woodland” colour variant from Rebor. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Flexible Tails and Necks

The Stegosaurus figures have flexible necks and tails.  The tail can be placed in a variety of poses, those carefully crafted spikes on the end of the tail can be positioned in such a way as to indicate that the animal is striking at an attacker with its “thagomizer”.  The thicker, shorter neck is a little less flexible, but the head can still be turned and adjusted so that dinosaur fans can create their own, unique dioramas.

The Rebor Stegosaurus armatus Model “Mountain”

Rebor Stegosaurus 1:35 scale dinosaur model "mountain".
The Rebor Stegosaurus armatus “mountain” colour scheme.  Both the tail and the neck can be bent sideways to create new poses for the dinosaur model.  Note the both the tail and the head have been positioned away from the camera. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

View the Everything Dinosaur website: Everything Dinosaur.

Detailed Bases

Each model is supplied with its own base, but if you acquire two or more of these Stegosaurus figures then the bases can be interchanged between the models.  After all, with such a huge appetite these armoured dinosaurs probably migrated quite large distances to find food, from the open plains to the woodlands and perhaps to higher altitudes to seek some relief from the hottest and driest part of the dry season.

The Three New for 2019 Rebor 1:35 scale Stegosaurus Dinosaur Models

Three Rebor Stegosaurus models.
A trio of Stegosaurus models. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Available separately or as a three-piece set whilst stocks last from Everything Dinosaur.  To view the Stegosaurus figures and the rest of the spectacular Rebor range available from Everything Dinosaur: Rebor Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal Models.

23 12, 2019

“The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries” Book Review

By | December 23rd, 2019|Book Reviews, Dinosaur Fans, Main Page|0 Comments

“The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries” Book Review

There are many dinosaur books on the market but very few are written in such an engaging and informative manner – “The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries” by Donald R. Prothero tells the fascinating story of how our knowledge regarding the Dinosauria has evolved and changed over time – and what a superb read it is!  We doff our hard hats to you sir, once again you have produced an extremely informative and enjoyable read.

The Front Cover of “The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries”

"The Story of the Dinosaursin 25 Discoveries".
Front cover of the new book by Professor Donald R. Prothero “The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries”. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Everything Dinosaur’s website: Everything Dinosaur.

160 Million Years of Dinosaur Evolution and 190 Years of Study Encapsulated in Four Parts

Professor Prothero draws on all his experience as a palaeontologist, geologist and teacher to identify twenty-five dinosaurs that tell the story of scientific enquiry, the development of vertebrate palaeontology and to plot our changing views when it comes to these extinct reptiles.

The book is cleverly divided up into four distinct parts.  The first section outlines the early discoveries and some of the first of the dinosaurs to be scientifically described.  Megalosaurus and Iguanodon feature prominently, but the author widens the narrative somewhat by penning a chapter on the first dinosaur to be described from North America (Hadrosaurus).  The southern portion of this great continent is not overlooked, this section of the book is drawn to a close with a focus on Eoraptor from South America, widely regarded as one of the first dinosaurs to be have existed.

Part two introduces the long-necked giants, famous dinosaurs such as Diplodocus, Apatosaurus and Brontosaurus and the larger than life characters who were responsible for the “bone wars” and the taxonomic puzzles that still, in many cases have yet to be unravelled.  Look out for a chapter dedicated to working out which was the biggest dinosaur of all, we think the reader is going to be intrigued by Professor Prothero’s conclusion.

The Book is Adorned with Larger than Life Characters and the Stories Behind Fossil Discoveries

Othniel Charles Marsh and Red Cloud.
Famous American palaeontologist Othniel Charles Marsh with his friend Red Cloud Chief of the Lakota people.

Picture credit: “The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries”/Colombia University Press

If you needed to pacify an angry native American and get their permission to prospect for fossils on their territory, being able to take your false teeth out seems to do the trick, that is in the view of the author in one of his many, carefully researched anecdotes.

Red in Tooth and Claw

Part three deals with the Theropoda, that broad clade that includes most of the carnivorous giants.  Readers can expect to encounter Spinosaurus, Giganotosaurus and of course, perhaps the most famous dinosaur of all Tyrannosaurus rex.  Professor Prothero explains the problems surrounding the hunt for the fossils of such a well-known dinosaur, the T. rex chapter provides a concise overview of the issue of poaching and the illegal sale of fossil material to private collectors and dealers.

The fourth instalment of this excellent book, highlights the bird-hipped dinosaurs.  Entitled “horns and spikes and armour and duck-bills”, this moniker neatly encapsulates the contents, as the ornithischians dinosaurs such as Stegosaurus, Triceratops and Corythosaurus are featured.

Members of the Thyreophora Such as Edmontonia Feature in the Book

Edmontonia and a life reconstruction.
The nodosaur Edmontonia (A), on display with an outdated life reconstruction (B).  The book contains numerous black and white photographs and illustrations.

Picture credit: “The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries”/Colombia University Press

“The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries

T‎itle: “The Story of the Dinosaurs in 25 Discoveries”.
ISBN: 978-0-231-18602-5.
Price: Around £27 GBP.
Format: Hardback and ebook.
Publisher: Columbia University Press.
Size: 446 pages excluding index.
Subject classification: natural history/popular science/science.

Everything Dinosaur’s verdict – highly recommended both for the academic and for the general reader.

This book can be purchased on the Columbia University Press website: Columbia University Press.  Use the search feature to find the author and to see a selection of his books.

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