All about dinosaurs, fossils and prehistoric animals by Everything Dinosaur team members.
13 05, 2012

A Review of the Schleich “World of History” Giganotosaurus

By |2023-01-31T22:07:36+00:00May 13th, 2012|Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur videos|0 Comments

“Giant Southern Lizard” Reviewed

Team members at Everything Dinosaur have been working on a number of video reviews of new prehistoric animal models that have been introduced recently.  The latest in this series is a review of the not-to-scale replica of the huge, predator from Cretaceous South America known as Giganotosaurus.

A Review of the Schleich “World of History” Giganotosaurus Dinosaur Model

Everything Dinosaur reviews the Schleich Giganotosaurus dinosaur model.

Video credit: Everything Dinosaur

Schleich Giganotosaurus Dinosaur Model

In this short, five minute video, Everything Dinosaur reviews this new dinosaur model, with its articulated lower jaw and fine paintwork.  This prehistoric animal model is one of twelve prehistoric animal figures introduced this year by Schleich of Germany.

To view this model series: Prehistoric Animal Models (Schleich).

This range consists of eleven dinosaurs, plus a model of the flying reptile (pterosaur) known as Quetzalcoatlus.

A spokesperson from the UK-based Everything Dinosaur commented that the addition of a dozen new prehistoric animal models to the Schleich range was most welcome and that this significant boost to the Schleich model numbers would delight dinosaur fans and model collectors.

12 05, 2012

The Winds of Change – Methane Produced by Dinosaurs May have led to Global Warming

By |2023-01-30T07:46:51+00:00May 12th, 2012|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories, Dinosaur Fans|0 Comments

Study Suggests Sauropods May have Contributed to Global Warming in the Mesozoic

A team of British scientists have put the wind up palaeontologists by creating a mathematical model that attempts to predict the impact on global warming that the gases produced by large plant-eating dinosaurs might have had.  The researchers, David Wilkinson (Liverpool John Moores University), Euan Nisbet (University of London) and Graeme Ruxton (University of Glasgow) have calculated that sauropods could have produced 520 million tonnes of methane each year.  At this level of output, the methane would have probably had a significant impact on the climate of the Mesozoic, contributing to global warming.

Scientists Calculate that Sauropods Contributed to Mesozoic “Global Warming”

Rebbachisaurus scale drawing.

Scale drawing of Rebbachisaurus.  Did sauropods contribute to global warming?

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Herbivorous mega fauna of the Mesozoic, would have had large quantities of microbes inside their enormous digestive tracts.  These microbial agents would have had a symbiotic relationship with their reptilian hosts, with the micro-organisms acting as methanogenic symbionts for the fermentation of the plant material ingested by mega herbivores such as the Sauropoda.

Methane Produced by Dinosaurs

Sauropods are the long-necked dinosaurs.  Well-known sauropods include Diplodocus, Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus, which was formerly known as Brontosaurus*.  Such creatures had a small head, a long neck, a massive, elephantine body and long tails.  The sauropods evolved into a myriad of forms, some of which represent the largest land animals known to science with body weights in excess of 20,000 kilogrammes.  The scientists published their research in the scientific journal “Current Biology”, using studies of Apatosaurus bones found in the western United States.  The team made a number of assumptions regarding the global population of sauropods in the Late Jurassic and based on these calculations they estimate that these large herbivores and the microbes that lived inside their massive digestive tracts would have produced more than half a billion tonnes of methane per annum.  Such large scale methane production would have had an impact on the gaseous content of the atmosphere and with methane being a significant “greenhouse gas”, it is likely that the Mesozoic climate was influenced by this gas production.

Herbivorous Dinosaurs

Methane would have also been produced by other herbivorous dinosaurs, most notably members of the Thyreophora (shield bearers), such as Stegosaurus.  However, the huge sauropods would have contributed the most and according to the British researchers their combined wind production, the gas created and emitted as a result of microbial action breaking down the plant material the creatures consumed, would have been many times what cows produce today.

Ruminants such as cows are being blamed by many global climate researchers for making a large contribution to the production of methane.  Methane is a more harmful “greenhouse gas” than carbon dioxide.  Methane in the upper atmosphere would trap heat very effectively and therefore this would make a significant contribution to the heating up of the planet.  However, cows tend to be a lot smaller than sauropods and the research team calculated the potential density of these large sauropods during the Late Jurassic and as a result, the long-necked dinosaurs could be regarded as “super-contributors” to the organic methane output of the Mesozoic.

Scientists have long regarded the Late Jurassic as a time when the Earth’s climate was much more humid and warmer than today.  Very little evidence has been put forward to suggest permanent icecaps at the poles during the Late Jurassic.  Although there was very probably ice and snow at the poles (both North and South – very high latitudes and very low latitudes), this was likely to be seasonal.  Plant fossils discovered in Alaska and Siberia suggest that even land close to the poles had relatively warm climates in the Late Jurassic (155 million to 144 million years ago).  The British research team proposed that there would have been a greater amount of land area available to the Jurassic browsers and grazers than the modern, mammalian mega herbivores that produce methane today.  This and calculations of herbivore density suggest that the dinosaurs such as Apatosaurus would have contributed more than five times the amount of methane than ruminants such as cows do today.

Commenting on the study, Dr Wilkinson of Liverpool John Moores University, at the department of natural science and psychology stated that it was not the dinosaurs that produced the methane, it would have been the microbes that lived inside their guts that were responsible for the gas production.

Dr Wilkinson went onto add:

“We used modern zoology to make informed guesses and estimated methane levels of dinosaurs.  This research does not propose that climate changed was responsible for the wiping out of the dinosaurs – in fact warm conditions would have been a benefit.”

Comparing the Methane Production from a Number of Sources

“Wind Power” from dinosaurs.

Table credit: Current Biology/Wilkinson et al.

Warm Conditions Suited Reptiles

The warm conditions would have suited the reptilian dinosaurs, especially if they were cold-blooded (ectothermic) animals.  This may provide one of the reasons for the success of the Dinosauria Order, which palaeontologists suggest may have contained more than two thousand genera.  Today’s average global temperature is approximately 14 degrees Celsius, although scientists predict that “greenhouse gases” in the Earth’s atmosphere may increase global temperatures by as much as three degrees over the next fifty years or so.  The global temperature on Earth during the Late Jurassic, the time in Earth’s history that was used as the basis for this study, is estimated to be at least ten degrees higher than average temperatures today.

Ironically, after the demise of the Dinosauria some sixty-six million years ago, global temperatures are believed to have rocketed reaching a peak of an average of twenty-eight degrees Celsius by the mid Paleogene geological period.

The study team used a variety of assumptions to calculate the methane production of sauropods, their mathematical model involved parameters such as potential sauropod density, the amount of land area that was suitable for mega herbivore habitat and the average size of sauropods, specifically the Apatosaurus genus and species such as A. louisae.  This data was then compared to known data on the methane production from modern day ruminants.

Study Based on the Sauropod Apatosaurus louisae

Study based around sauropods – Apatosaurus.

Methane production today, is estimated to be around five hundred million tonnes, or to put it another way, equivalent to the estimated output of the Sauropoda in the Late Jurassic.  Methane is being added to the atmosphere from a variety of sources such as the digestion of plant material by wild animals and by human enterprises such as dairying and extensive meat production.

Dr Wilkinson  did state that there were other sources of methane during the Mesozoic he commented that the dinosaurs were not the sole producers of methane at the time.  Overall, the British team estimate that the atmospheric methane levels in the Jurassic were much higher than they are today.

One thing is for certain, if you were to visit the area that was to become the Morrison Formation of the western United States during the Late Jurassic, you would be well-advised to stay upwind of any herd of sauropods you came across as the gas these animals would have produced would have been most unpleasant.

Please Note *Brontosaurus is now regarded as a valid genus.

The scientific paper: “Could methane produced by sauropod dinosaurs have helped drive Mesozoic climate warmth?” by David M. Wilkinson, Euan G. Nisbet and Graeme D. Ruxton published in Current Biology.

For models and replicas of sauropods and other dinosaurs: CollectA Deluxe Prehistoric Animal Scale Models.

11 05, 2012

Papo Baby T. rex Models

By |2023-01-30T07:42:54+00:00May 11th, 2012|Adobe CS5, Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur Products|3 Comments

Baby T. rex Models from Papo by Everything Dinosaur

The new Papo baby Tyrannosaurus rex dinosaur models have arrived at Everything Dinosaur.  These are the last of the tyrannosaurids to be added this year by the French manufacturer who have introduced a total of four T. rex models into their “Les Dinosaures” figure series.

The Papo Baby T. rex Models

Baby T. rex models from Papo.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Papo Baby Tyrannosaurus rex

As well as a new brown version of their standing T. rex model, Papo introduced a “running T. rex” replica, both these models came out in February, the babies; or should that be hatchlings, are the latest additions along with one more model, a large replica of the sauropod Brachiosaurus due to be launched in July.

Like the adult T. rex models, the babies have articulated lower jaws, although the mouths do not open as wide as with other Papo figures.  As these dinosaurs have been sculpted looking up, perhaps seeking food or protection from a parent, team members at Everything Dinosaur used their photoshop skills to have our newest recruits to the Papo model range studying the Everything Dinosaur logo.

Papo prehistoric animal models: Papo Dinosaur Models and Figures.

Dinosaur enthusiasts can now re-create their own version of the new Tyrannosaurus exhibit at the Los Angeles Museum – they can create their own family of tyrannosaurs with these exciting and beautiful Papo replicas.

A spokesperson from the award-winning, mail order company Everything Dinosaur stated:

“We are delighted to receive these two Tyrannosaurus rex models into stock.  The models are the same sculpt but the colour schemes are different.  We have a green baby T. rex and a brown baby T. rex.”

10 05, 2012

A Review of the New Bullyland Spinosaurus Dinosaur Model

By |2023-01-30T07:38:48+00:00May 10th, 2012|Everything Dinosaur News and Updates, Product Reviews|1 Comment

Colourful Spinosaurus added to the Museum Line Dinosaur Range

Since its appearance as a super-predator in the film “Jurassic Park III”, the popularity of Spinosaurus has risen immensely. Dinosaur model collectors have been able to choose from a wide range of different Spinosaurus replicas as most of the major figure and model manufacturers have added it to their model ranges. Team members at Everything Dinosaur Review the Bullyland Spinosaurus dinosaur model.

Bullyland of Germany have entered the fray with their interpretation, adding a 1:30 scale replica of Spinosaurus (presumably Spinosaurus aegyptiacus) to their to-scale, hand-painted Museum Line model range.

Bullyland Spinosaurus Dinosaur Model

The Bullyland “Museum Line” Spinosaurus Replica

A colourful interpretation of “spine lizard”.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

It is surprising that Bullyland have taken so long to include a model of a Spinosaurus in their dinosaur model range, after all, this dinosaur, whose fossils have been found in both Egypt and Morocco is synonymous with German palaeontology.  The first fossils being discovered by a German exhibition to an area of Egypt some three hundred kilometres south-west of Cairo (Bahariya Oasis). This expedition was led by Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach, a German palaeontologist and geologist who was responsible for naming Spinosaurus, the name means “spine lizard”.  Mystery still surrounds this strange dinosaur as the original and best preserved bones were destroyed in a bombing raid on Munich in WWII.

Although scientists are unsure whether the fragmentary fossil material discovered to date represents one or two species, it has been claimed that Spinosaurus is the largest known meat-eating dinosaur known.  Some estimates give this huge, Cretaceous predator a length in excess of seventeen metres, making this dinosaur much larger than Tyrannosaurus rex.

Model Measurements

The Bullyland model measures twenty-nine centimetres in length and if we take the 1:30 scale measurement this indicates that the German design team believe that this animal reached lengths of around nine metres.  Spinosaurus may be a little under represented in terms of size by the German sculptors but this is probably due to the practical need to produce a stable model that stands on its two hind legs, rather than a serious re-calculation of the true size of this spinosaurid.

To view the range of Everything Dinosaur models, including Spinosaurus in the Bullyland model series: Bullyland Prehistoric Animal Models and Figures.

The model is painted an attractive reddy/brown colour with a white underneath that contrasts well with the bright red sail that is found on this animal’s back and for which Spinosaurus was named.  The long, narrow jaws are accurately depicted and in this particular model, the lower jaw is articulated so the model can be posed either mouth closed, mouth open or part way in between.  The designers have been careful to add a small crest between the eyes, again reflecting with some accuracy the known fossil material.  The paint job is completed by giving this dinosaur model a series of black stripes that run down the body to the limbs and to the very tip of the tail. This gives this particular dinosaur a very fearsome appearance.

Bullyland Dinosaur Model with Articulated Lower Jaw

Moveable jaws on the Bullyland Spinosaurus dinosaur replica.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

The new Bullyland Spinosaurus dinosaur model is an interesting interpretation of this prehistoric animal.  This sturdy model is ideal for young dinosaur fans as it will stand up well to robust, creative play.

9 05, 2012

The Smallest Mammoth of them All – Dwarfism Exhibited on Crete

By |2023-03-09T08:03:04+00:00May 9th, 2012|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories|0 Comments

Scientists Report on Evidence of the Smallest Mammoth Species Discovered to Date

When Woolly Mammoths are depicted in films, television documentaries and books they are usually shown as large, shaggy-coated beasts roaming a snow covered landscape.  This may be the popular perception of the Mammoths but the subfamily to which Mammoths belong, the Elephantidae and even the Mammoth genus (Mammuthus) contains a very wide variety of creatures.

For instance, a team of scientists have just published a paper in the journal “Proceedings of the Royal Society Biology” detailing the fossil evidence that supports the theory that tiny elephants once lived on the Greek island of Crete.  In fact, based on the study of a recently excavated front leg bone (humerus), it has been suggested that these fossils may represent the smallest type of Mammoth discovered to date.  Standing around 1.1 metres tall at the shoulder, these miniature Mammoths inhabited Crete around 3.5 million years ago (Pliocene epoch – Placenzian faunal stage).

These animals would have grown to be about the size of a baby African elephant (Loxodonta africana), but would have weighed around three hundred kilogrammes, roughly the same as a Guernsey dairy cow.

Dwarf Mammoths

The species which has been named Mammuthus creticus (Crete’s Mammoth) has been described as being “probably quite cute” by a spokesperson for the research team, however, it is very likely that this animal had tusks and was quite capable of looking after itself should it have been threatened.

Evidence of Insular Dwarfism on Crete

Miniature mammoths.

Picture credit: Journal of Proceedings of the Royal Society

The picture above shows the location of the main fossil discoveries, on the coast on the western side of the island (a) at Cape Malekas.  The picture also shows a tooth (the lectotype from which the species was named), (b), with a smaller photograph showing another fossilised tooth element preserved in the rock (in situ), (c).

Mammuthus creticus

Victoria Herridge, one of the authors of the paper, along with her Natural History Museum (London) colleague Adrian Lister; commented that:

“If you were to reconstruct it, I would say OK, make it look a bit like a baby elephant but probably chunkier…with sort of thicker limbs, stockier, as an adult it would have had curly tusks.”

She went onto add:

“The nearest image you’re going to get is a baby Asian elephant, but with tusks.”

Dwarfism in some species is not unknown, especially in habitats were resources such as food are scarce.  Small islands have limited resources and many instances are known whereby larger, mainland animals on reaching an island chain or archipelago have evolved into miniaturised versions.  In biology this is termed insular dwarfism and can be seen in animals as distinct as cormorants, seals and even dinosaurs (Hateg Island – Late Cretaceous).

A number of Mediterranean islands had a variety or elephants living on them during the Pliocene and the more recent Pleistocene epochs, some scientists believe the the legend of the giant, one-eyed man – the cyclops arose when the skulls of such creatures were found.

The Origins of the Cyclops Legend?

Proboscidian skull.

When viewed from the front the idea of a one-eyed man (cyclops) can be postulated. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

To read more about recent elephant fossil discoveries from Greece, including an article on giant elephant fossil remains: Greek Giant Elephant Fossils Discovered.

The researchers are not sure from which mainland Mammoth the island species is descended from.  Two candidates have been suggested Mammuthus meridionalis known from the Early Pleistocene epoch or from the older (Late Pliocene) or Mammuthus rumanus, the two earliest European mammoths, Herridge said.  Although the exact palaeo-climatic conditions on Crete are difficult to determine, it is likely that this elephant lacked a shaggy, long coat as the weather was much warmer than at higher latitudes.

Determining the Taxonomic Relationship

The lack of fossil evidence has made it difficult for scientists to determine the taxonomic relationship between the various types of known Mediterranean elephant.  It had been suggested that a number of forms were descended from a non-Mammoth ancestor, a straight-tusked elephant, however, the evidence presented in this paper suggests that Elephantidae from the Mammoth lineage also evolved into dwarf forms.  These findings confirm earlier scientific work that stated that the prehistoric elephant known as Palaeoloxodon creticus, which also lived on the island of Crete, was a member of the Mammoth family.

The scientific paper: “Extreme insular dwarfism evolved in a mammoth” by Victoria L. Herridge and Adrian M. Lister published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

For models and replicas of prehistoric mammals including ancient elephants: Eofauna Scientific Research Prehistoric Animal Figures.

8 05, 2012

Happy Birthday Sir David Attenborough

By |2023-01-30T07:30:05+00:00May 8th, 2012|Adobe CS5, Animal News Stories, Everything Dinosaur News and Updates, Famous Figures|0 Comments

Many Happy Returns to the Naturalist and Broadcaster

Today, May 8th is the birthday of Sir David Attenborough, the naturalist, broadcaster and keen fossil collector who has done so much to popularise Earth sciences and a fascination with life on Earth, both extant and extinct.  We at Everything Dinosaur, would like to wish Sir David many happy returns for the day.

Sir David Attenborough

Happy Birthday Sir David Attenborough

Still enthusing about the natural world.

Picture credit: Sir David Attenborough/Everything Dinosaur

Many of our team members have been inspired by Sir David’s enthusiasm and energy.  We wanted to create a special tribute to him and as we are getting better at using the software programme Adobe CS5, we created a special banner on the Everything Dinosaur website which has been posted up today honouring the great man.  We have had the pleasure to be able to write reviews on a number of books that accompany the many television documentaries that feature Sir David.  Only the other week, we set about trying to discovery the whereabouts of the book “Life on Earth” which accompanied the 1979 seminal documentary series narrated by Sir David and made in conjunction with the BBC’s natural history unit. This book has gone missing from our office library and we have instigated a search around the offices and the warehouse to hunt down our copy.

One of the most influential television series for us, was not the “Life” series of programmes that established Sir David as the voice of natural history programming in the BBC, but a little known, short series called “Fabulous Animals” first broadcast we think in the mid 1970s.  In this programme, aimed at children, Sir David enthused about mythical creatures and the fossils that inspired the legends and myths.  For many of us, our fascination with all things Dinosauria came into being at this point.  The programme was broadcast in the summer holidays, mid-morning and although a distant memory for most of us these days, it remains a favourite amongst us.

Sir David’s Birthday Banner online at Everything Dinosaur

Celebrating the birthday of Sir David Attenborough.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Having covered the main Kingdoms and Phylum of the natural world, Sir David’s work stands as testament to the broadcasting qualities of the BBC’s natural history unit.  Hopefully, “Life on Earth” will be broadcast on terrestrial television once more, in the near future, giving us a chance to watch all over again an example of this extraordinary body of work which Sir David has dedicated a life time to creating.

From all of us at Everything Dinosaur – we wish Sir David Attenborough a happy birthday.

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

7 05, 2012

Australia a “Melting Pot” of Dinosaur Diversity – Evidence of Ceratosaurs

By |2023-01-30T07:27:21+00:00May 7th, 2012|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories|0 Comments

Evidence of Ceratosauria – Ankle bone suggests that Ceratosaurs lived in Australia Too

A team of scientists led by researchers from the Museums Victoria (Melbourne, Australia) have announced the discovery of an ankle bone (tarsus) that suggests that a group of meat-eating dinosaurs not thought to have existed on the continent, may have been present after all.  The ankle bone represents the first evidence in Australia of a group of  theropods known as the ceratosaurs – it suggests that during the Early Cretaceous, Australia was a “melting pot” of Dinosauria diversity.  The fossil bone, which measures just six centimetres wide was discovered near to the seaside town of San Remo, south-east of Melbourne back in 2006.

Dr Fitzgerald Examines the Ankle Bone

Dr Fitzgerald examines the fossil bone – “ankle bone connected to the toe bones”.

Picture credit: Museum Photographer Ben Healley

Dr Erich Fitzgerald, a palaeontologist at Museum Victoria, lead author on the scientific paper published in the journal “Naturwissenschaften” commented:

Until now, this group of dinosaurs has been strangely absent from Australia, but now at last we know they were here – confirming their global distribution.”

Ceratosaurs

Ceratosaurs are a group of predatory theropods, mostly known from Jurassic aged strata from North and South America, Europe and Africa.   As a group, the majority of genera are poorly known with only a few fragmentary fossil specimens representing  a number of specimens.  They shared the status of apex predators in many ecosystems with the much more common, and in most cases larger allosaurids.  The taxonomic relationship between this group and other types of theropod is uncertain, it is likely that these creatures survived into the Late Cretaceous but this new Australian fossil find confirms that these creatures were present in Australia to at least around 125 million years ago.

An Artist’s Impression of the Ceratosaur

Fearsome, agile predator from Australia.

Picture credit: Brian Choo

Dr Fitzgerald stated:

“This discovery joins other widespread carnivorous dinosaurs now known to have lived in Australia – tyrannosaurs, spinosaurids and allosaurs.”

Dinosaur Ankle Bone

The discovery of an ankle bone, ascribed to the Ceratosauria improves the understanding of the distribution and evolution of dinosaurs in the eastern part of the super-continent known as Gondwanaland.

Dr Fitzgerald explained:

“It had been thought that isolation played a lead role in the formation of Australia’s dinosaur fauna.  But the ceratosaur and other new discoveries show that several dinosaur groups were here.  These dinosaur lineages date back to the Jurassic, 170 million years ago, when dinosaurs could walk between any two continents.”

This is not the first time an ankle bone has led scientists to re-think the predatory dinosaur population of Australia.  A controversial interpretation of a fossil bone found in the Otway Range, near Melbourne Australia led some scientists to suggest that a type of allosaur had survived in Australia and was present hunting other polar dinosaurs around 106 million years ago.  At just over five metres in length, this Allosaur was much smaller than its better known North American cousins who hunted the plains of the western United States in the Late Jurassic.  This dinosaur, regarded as a “dwarf allosaurid” was scientifically named and described Allosaurus astragalus.  This carnivore appeared in the “Walking with Dinosaurs” television series, it was featured in episode five – “Spirits of the Silent Forest”, that explored the fauna and flora of the polar forests of the Cretaceous.

A Close up of the Dinosaur Fossil Bone

The 10-cm-long dinosaur bone provides evidence of Ceratosauria.

Picture credit: Museum Photographer Ben Healley

With a focus on how the new ankle bone discovery helps shape current thinking on dinosaur geographical distribution, Dr Fitzgerald stated:

“So perhaps Australia’s dinosaurs represent those groups that achieved global distributions early in their history, before the continents split up.  It’s the old age of their lineages – not continental isolation – which explains these dinosaurs’ presence in Australia.  Apart from Antarctica, Australia has the world’s most poorly known dinosaur record – one of the last frontiers for dinosaur hunters.  Although discovery rates are accelerating, we’re still in the early days of exploring which dinosaurs actually lived here.  Each discovery has the potential to change what we know.”

Thanks to Karen Meehan of Museums Victoria for her assistance in helping to compile this article.

For models and replicas of ceratosaurs and other theropod dinosaurs: CollectA Age of Dinosaurs Popular Replicas and Figures.

6 05, 2012

Schleich “World of History” T. rex Dinosaur Model Reviewed

By |2023-01-30T07:17:10+00:00May 6th, 2012|Dinosaur Fans, Everything Dinosaur videos|0 Comments

New Tyrannosaurus rex Model from Schleich of Germany

There has been a lot of interest in Schleich’s new, not-to-scale dinosaur model series that was introduced a few weeks ago.  This range sits halfway between the smaller “dinosaurs” range and the scale model series known as “Saurus”.  Schleich has modified and changed the designs for the twelve models that they have introduced. One of the new figures introduced is a new Schleich T. rex model.

Everything Dinosaur team members produced a brief video review of one of the new sauropod models (Brachiosaurus), this can be seen here: Brachiosaurus Model Reviewed.

Schleich T. rex Model

The theropods featured in this range all have articulated lower jaws, below is the first of our reviews of these models, a review of the re-vamped Tyrannosaurus rex replica.

A Review of the Schleich “World of History” T. rex Dinosaur Model

Everything Dinosaur reviews the Schleich Tyrannosaurus rex dinosaur model.

Video credit: Everything Dinosaur

In this short, five minute video we comment on this new interpretation, discuss the colouration and the addition of an enlarged skull crest and dermal armour.

It is great to see a new replica of T. rex added to the impressive prehistoric animal model range made by Schleich.

To view the extensive Schleich range of prehistoric animal models and figures available from Everything Dinosaur’s user-friendly and award-winning website: Schleich Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal Models.

5 05, 2012

Frenchman Finds Dinosaur Bone in his Garden

By |2023-01-30T07:13:57+00:00May 5th, 2012|Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal News Stories|0 Comments

Gardener Digs up Dinosaur Surprise

Keen gardener Bruno Lebie  got more than he bargained for when he was digging in his garden.  He unearthed a ten centimetre bone from a dinosaur’s foot.  The discovery was made on his property, located in Louplande, Pays de la Loire (north-western France), an area that has provided four other similar discoveries in the last two hundred years or so.  Residents in the area need to take care when digging over their flower beds, they might find a dinosaur bone.

Speaking about his fossil find to a local newspaper, Monsieur Lebie stated:

“The bone could have stayed in there, [the garden] it really wasn’t bothering me.  But I said to myself, ‘could that be a dinosaur bone?’  It’s not really my niche.”

Dinosaur Bone

A neighbour showed the bone to a friend who knew a little about the local geology of the area and although they were unable to confirm it was a dinosaur bone, they were convinced it was a rare discovery.  Museum officials based at the nearby town of Le Mans, were later able to confirm that the bone was from a dinosaur, identifying it as part of the foot of an ornithopod.  A photograph of the find was forwarded to Eric Buffetaut, a vertebrate palaeontologist based at the National Centre for Scientific Research, who was able to provide more details as to the object’s identity.

Dinosaur bones do turn up in some odd places, recently team members at Everything Dinosaur reported on the bizarre discovery of another ornithopod fossil bone, this time in a garden in Sunderland (north-eastern England).

To read more about this story: Strange Place to find a Dinosaur Bone – Sunderland.

How a dinosaur bone ended up in Sunderland remains a mystery, as the underlying geology of the area is Permian aged strata, too old for dinosaur bones to be found.  Palaeontologists have speculated that the Sunderland specimen could have resulted from natural re-distribution of material or perhaps it was a “souvenir” taken from southern England and put into the garden by a keen collector.

The bone is estimated to be around 100 million years old.  Ornithopods were a highly diverse clade of dinosaurs, with bird-like hips and a herbivorous diet.  Early ornithopods were fleet-footed, small bipedal creatures but during the Jurassic and Cretaceous this group rapidly diversified and gave rise to the hadrosaurs and iguanodontids, two of the most successful types of dinosaur known.

Ornithopoda Diversity

Mesozoic marvels – the Ornithopoda.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

For models and replicas of ornithopods and other dinosaurs: Prehistoric Animal and Dinosaur Models.

4 05, 2012

Everything Dinosaur Website Passes 600 Hundred Customer Reviews

By |2023-03-09T08:03:56+00:00May 4th, 2012|Everything Dinosaur News and Updates, Press Releases|0 Comments

Six Hundred Customer Reviews on the Everything Dinosaur Website

The sixth hundredth customer review has just been posted up on Everything Dinosaur’s main  website: Everything Dinosaur.

This landmark has been achieved in just under two years, as all previous customer reviews were unfortunately lost when a new website design was implemented.  The number of customer reviews and feedback comments received has accelerated over recent  months, for example, the company reported passing the landmark of 400 online reviews on December 11th 2011, which means that in the last 152 days, Everything Dinosaur has had 200 customer comments and product reviews posted up for its dinosaur toys and games.

Everything Dinosaur

With the company’s high Google shopping rating and its continued commitment to prompt and efficient service it is not surprising that customers have been happy to add feedback regarding service and product quality.

A spokesperson for Everything Dinosaur stated:

“We are grateful to all our customers and loyal fans who have posted up product reviews and feedback on our website [Everything Dinosaur], every letter, dinosaur drawing, feedback form and email is reviewed by our team members and each Friday we sit down and discuss how customer comments and feedback can help improve our service”.

The Everything Dinosaur Logo

Everything Dinosaur

Everything Dinosaur logo

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Expressing a big thank you to all those who had taken the trouble to provide feedback, the spokesperson went onto state how important such testimonials were for mail order companies that have an on-line presence and she speculated that there could be as many as 750 customer/product reviews on the website by the end of the year.

Visit Everything Dinosaur’s website: Everything Dinosaur.

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