Hypsilophodon Model Reviewed

Hypsilophodon models are like buses, dinosaur model fans wait for ages for one to come along and then a model is launched that features four of these dinosaurs at once.  The new Hypsilophodon dinosaur model from CollectA features a group of these small, agile dinosaurs – a family group gathered around a tree fern feeding.  As far as we know, there is no official collective noun for a group of hypsilophodonts, here we shall use the term “flock”.  The flock consists of two larger animals probably adults and two smaller juveniles, all the models have been mounted on a small base, painted a sandy colour with flecks of green to present other types of Cretaceous vegetation.

Hypsilophodon Dinosaur Model

One of the adults, is perched on a fallen log, perhaps in recognition of early 20th Century pictures of this dinosaur which depicted Hypsilophodon as a tree-dwelling reptile.  Early reconstructions of this dinosaur, based on fossil material discovered on the Isle of Wight, showed Hypsilophodon to have grasping hands and feet.  Scientists thought these were adaptations to tree climbing and for many years, it was thought that this dinosaur was arboreal, a sort of prehistoric tree kangaroo.  This theory has largely fallen out of favour and hypsilophodonts are thought to be facultative bipeds that were highly cursorial and capable of startling bursts of speed.

The CollectA Hypsilophodon Family Group (CollectA Dinosaurs)

CollectA Hypsilophodon family group.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

 Describing the size and the scale of this excellent replica, designer Anthony Beeson commented:

 “The Hypsilophodon group is about 1.50 inches high to the top of the new fern growth.  The figures themselves are around an inch in height for the adults but much smaller for the immature animals.   I wanted them to look in scale with the standard [CollectA] models.”

To view Everything Dinosaur’s dinosaur models including the CollectA Age of Dinosaurs model range: CollectA Age of Dinosaurs Models and Replicas.

One of the problems encountered when creating replicas of small, bipedal dinosaurs is how to make the models stable.  CollecA have cleverly overcome this problem by designing a dinosaur model replica on a base, providing a stable and secure platform, permitting the dinosaurs to be show in a natural, life-like pose.

The model measures approximately ten centimetres in width and it has been very well painted.  The adults and juveniles are depicted as agile dinosaurs with a light gray, scaly coat flecked with black dots, excellent camouflage as these creatures foraged in the undergrowth of Early Cretaceous forests.  The discovery of many fossils of this dinosaur in a single bone bed formation – known as the hypsilophodont beds (Isle of Wight); suggests that these little dinosaurs were probably highly social animals that lived in groups.  Being only two metres long, there was probably safety in numbers as these little ornithopods shared their Cretaceous environment with a number of large, predatory theropods.

This is a well designed and innovative model, an excellent representation of Hypsilophodon that we think will prove to be very popular with dinosaur enthusiasts and dinosaur model collectors.