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All the Dinosaur News That's Fit to PrintDinosaur News- Dinosaur News New, Passionate Ceratopsians: 9/23/2010 We have long been familiar with the venerable Triceratops (opens new window), been happily introduced to the pointy-headed Styracosaurus (opens new window) and enjoyed the company of the Torosaurus (opens new window), Pachyrhinosaurus and other Ceratopsians. (opens new window). Now we find that there are still more and more and (probably) more. The Wall Street Journal gives us THIS ARTICLE (opens new window) from September 22, 2010 introducing the newest duo to be discovered. We learn that two new Ceratopsians have been discovered in what are now the deserts of Utah. Back in the day (76 mya) it must have been a lush environment that was capable of supporting herds of multi-ton creatures. What makes these new finds unique is the fact that they each are garnished with a large dose of horns on their huge, frilly heads. The Utahceratops (below- picture courtesy of the WSJ & the Utah Museum of Natural History) has one large horn above its nose, two smaller horns laterally above the eyes and two slightly larger cheek horns. The skull is ~7 feet long with a large horny frill. Utahceratops stood ~6 feet at the shoulder and was ~20 feet long. It is believed to have weighed about three to four tons. This was a large Dinosaur!
Kosmoceratops (below) was somewhat smaller (~15 feet long and 2.5 tons) but had an even more spectacular visage. In addition to a horn above its nose and two cheek horns it had a pair of curved foot-long horns sprouting laterally above its eyes and... ta-daaah... ten(!) forward curved horns running along the top of its frill. (See below- same picture reference as above).
Paleontologists believe the horns were primarily for sexual display and, perhaps, for mating and dominance duels among the males. Don't let your children look at these pictures without adult supervision! Dinosaur News Creation: Hawking versus Rexford: 9/15/2010 The famous physicist Stephen Hawking recently published a book about the creation of the universe. The Wall Street Journal published an excerpt (September 3, 2010) that can be read here (opens new window). The essence seems to be that there is no need for G_D to explain creation. All you need to believe in is "spontaneous creation." Essentially everything for/from nothing. So we're all kind of a "free lunch." Rexford has his own opinions, both about lunch (he likes it) and creation (he's part of it), and wants to share them....
"I look out on this beautiful world,..."
"...I look at my friends, and I know the source of creation...."
Meanwhile DinoTot has his own opinion about both theories.
"BLEEEAHHHH!" Dinosaur News Extinction Today a la Rexford: 9/8/2010 Here is an article (opens new window) from the August 30, 2010 Wall Street Journal that discusses a contemporary form of extinction: (Here is the opening of the article....)
"They can fix the Mammoth with a little barbecue sauce." Rexford - Out on a Family Tree Limb: June 16, 2010 WoW! Scientists have recently discovered (opens new window) another, small, Tyrannosaurus in Australia. What makes this one special is that it is the first, and only Tyrannosaurid to be discovered in the Southern Hemisphere. Previously all the Tyrannosaurs have been from the Northern continents.
(Marx "sleek" T-Rex and Safari Ltd. "Sue" x2) "It's not the size of the dog in the fight..." As a general rule the Northern Tyrannosaurs have been large, over 25 feet in length and several tons in weight. This guy is only about ten feet (3m) long and believed to be 80kg (180lbs) in weight. That is interesting in itself.
"...but the size of the fight in the dog! " "So you guys plan on evolving into Chihuahuas, right?" What adds to the interest here is that there is no evidence of larger Tyrannosaurs having developed South of the equator, while they became the dominant, large, predator in the North. This may be because in the South they had to deal with already larger sized Theropods, such as Giganotosaurus...
(Carnegie Collection Giganotosaurus, JP Mini Rexes) "Don't even try to horn in on my turf" ... but that is my own personal surmise and unsupported by documentation. We may expect future discoveries of Tyrannosaurs in the other Southern continents now that paleontologists know to look for them. Rexford is always happy to welcome new family members, especially if they promise not to eat very much....
"Little cousins with little appetites, perfect." Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Rexford's Scientific Weight Loss: June 10, 2010 Today we will look at an interesting article in the 'Science Daily' website from June 2009. To a Dinosaur a year is hardly relevant. Just remember, we are closer in time to the T-Rex than it is to the Allosaurus! The article (opens new window) recounts from "a paper published June 21 (2009) in the Zoological Society of London’s Journal of Zoology" that "Scientists have discovered that the original statistical model used to calculate dinosaur mass is flawed, suggesting dinosaurs have been oversized." To summarize the article- Dinosaurs were thinner than we thought!
"Now that I'm officially thinner I'll do something about my skin..."
"...my breath..."
"...and maybe take a shower." Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Barrelosaurus: 6/5/2010 Our Safari Ltd Nigersaurus page is coming right along but so is everything else... busy, busy, busy. It should be ready tomorrow or Monday. I know that you are all on the edge of your seats. Don't fall off because Rexford might be a-waitin'.
So for today's treat we have a "Barrel Monster" made out of those safety barrels you see at road construction sites. This was constructed (in the middle of the night) in mid-September 2009 by Joe Carnevale of Raleigh, North Carolina as sort of a gag and it got a lot of attention at the time. Even some private requests, like Michelangelo. It also got Joe, I recall, community service as our DOT (Department of Transportation- those are the people who like to rip up college-town streets in the early Fall) didn't appreciate it for some reason. As you can see in the above photo, it drew a lot of attention.
Named "Barrelosaurus" one can see that with its three fingered hands it is some kind of Theropod, perhaps an Allosaurus but certainly not a Tyrannosaur. Rexford it isn't. You can read a little article online, with a picture of Joe and his creation here. (opens new window) Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Pretty in Pink or Green with Envy: 5/20/2010
About three weeks ago I was the recipient of one of the biggest surprises in my nearly sixty-year career of Dinosaur toys collecting. I received a Contact-O-Saurus fossil-gram (email) from a collector in Australia who had just purchased a dark GREEN INVICTA STEGOSAURUS on eBay.
(Thank you - Picture Courtesy Damien Kelly from Melbourne, Australia) He had never seen one in green and neither had I. All the many Invicta Stegosaurs in my experience have been pink. Various shades of pink but none verging on green. The only dark green Invicta figures I knew of are the Brachiosaurus and the Megalosaurus.
(Picture Courtesy Damien Kelly from Melbourne, Australia) My first suspicion was that this was somehow a bootleg 'copy' of the Invicta figures. I asked him for pictures and one he sent was of the 'belly of the beast' which clearly includes the Invicta-NHM logo. Definitely Invicta!
(Picture Courtesy Damien Kelly from Melbourne, Australia) Contact with other Dinosaur figure experts came up negative. No one had heard of these in green. Almost immediately, much like the Coelacanth,
as soon as one was found I discovered and purchased a second (below, with part of my herd)
and hard on its heels I was informed by a reader in Ireland that she wanted to know the cash value of one that she purchased years ago. Are these more common than I had thought? Or awesomely rare? If you know or think you know please enlighten me. I am currently entertaining all theories. I have contacted the NHM who referred me to Invicta Ltd. and I am awaiting their reponse. Certainly the Invicta Megalosaur thinks dark green is both visually attractive and quite tasty looking in Stegosaurs.
(Picture Courtesy Damien Kelly from Melbourne, Australia) Rexford and family couldn't care less whether they are pink, multi-hued or dark green.
"Just please slow down you little tasties...." Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Tyrannosaurs in Tights: Sometime in May, 2010 Once again we have another news article (opens new window) about a new discovery in the Dinosaur world. This time it is another Tyrannosaurus described as "horned" and graceful like a "ballerina" that draws our attention. Rexford was dragooned into illustrating this article but now he is having second thoughts....
"This is humiliatin'...."
"I've gotta get a new agent." Dinosaur News Dinosaur News M.E.s and US: 4/14/2010
--(Above) Mass Extinction Dramatization--Here (opens new window) is an interesting article about the Dinosaurs and their rise in response to two mass extinctions (Triassic and Triassic/Jurassic boundary). The theory goes that thanks to the M.E.s ecologic niches opened up for the Dinosaurs (who had been hanging around in the wings for tens of millions of years). There are a number of links on the page offering up more information about extinctions, mass and otherwise. We previously documented (March 20 blog) the asteroid that extinguished the Dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago and opened it all up for the mammals (who had been waiting in the wings for tens of millions of years). This blog will serve as kind of a lead in to the upcoming series of blogs comparing modern animal (toys) to their Dinosaur (toys) predecessors. Life goes on and there are all those niches to be filled.... The rumor of asteroids and extinctions has arrived at the Dino-town news bureau and a crack investigatory team has been deployed to get Rexford's take on this potentially fatal development. We take you directly to the scene of the impact....
Mr. Rexford- may we have your viewpoint on this awful impact? "Ooohhh, my aching head.... 'Caw, Caw' "...and will you please shut up and go away. Stories of my death have been greatly exaggerated. Ooohhh.... 'Caw, Caw' (A dramatization- Rexford was not hurt in the making of this blog.) ("Yeah. Maybe I wasn't hurt but you know what that stupid vulture did on my stomach??!") Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Bowling for Babies: 4-13-10 Well, well, well.... What will modern science think of next? Here (opens new window) we have an article impugning the reputation of the great Dinosaur predators. The Allosaurus, Tyrannosaurs and others are being 'accused' of going after "easy" prey, babies and such, as opposed to getting into the ring with adult Sauropods, Stegosaurs (with their dangerous spikey tails) and pointy headed Triceratops. We went down to the Dino-town Childcare Center to interview Rexford who is volunteering today in order to get his take on this calumny.
"Yes, I try to get down to the center for a quick snack whenever I can. A guy can get hurt fighting a Triceratops over a bite to eat. ALL us predators do it when we have the opportunity. What's the big deal? Isn't it obvious that a smart predator (like myself) will go after the easiest prey? Gimme a break.... I'll take another hors d'oeuvres now, thank you. The daycare center is my favorite snack bar" We hope that you enjoy our little Dinos in the News blogs and are very close to finishing the preparations on our comparison blogs. We will be beginning them soon. Hang on for that. Dinosaur News Dinosaur News In the News; A Dramatic Discovery: 4-8-2010
Well, well, well. Just when you all thought that Dinosaurs were long gone and there was nobody new under the sun.... Another new creature was discovered in the jungles of the Philippines. This time a SIX FOOT LONG, golden-spotted Monitor lizard! Now where has that little devil been hiding out since man began cataloging everybody? Our opening two pictures are from the article (opens new window) documenting this reptilian find. (Due to factors beyond our control and for dramatic effect we will be illustrating the remainder this blog with photos of the excellent Komodo Dragon by Papo.) This new monitor lizard is much smaller than the mighty Komodo so we aren't really dealing with a re-emergence of Dinosaurs here. Not that the Komodo Lizard is a Dinosaur, which it isn't. Discovered on the main Philippine Island of Luzon initially in 2004 (by scientists, the natives had been eating them for years) it has just been determined that this lizard is a new species, at least to us. It has been around for a while. Interestingly enough it is arboreal although our opening photos do seem to suggest that it is also good at laying around. Named the "Northern Sierra Madre Forest Monitor Lizard" or Varanus bitatawa it is one of the few species of Monitor Lizard that prefers fruits and snails to carcasses (when asked it said that carcasses are "yucky") but still grows to six and a half feet (6.5 feet, 2 meters) in length. A pretty impressive fellow. (Below, we present a dramatization.)
"I owe my robust health and great size to kumquats and escargots." (Below, we present another dramatization) --The emergence of a new lizard into the light of our knowledge.--
"Oh cxxp! Now we're in for it." But, of course, not every reptile sees this as a bad thing....
"I LOVE it when they expand the menu!" I guess it all depends which side of the menu you're on, doesn't it? Tomorrow we'll have some more of Rexford's adventures and an interesting fact or two about his life and times. I've been given some new exercises to stretch my shoulder and boy, do they hurt. Rexford has offered to "put you out of your misery" but I'm not sure what he means so I'm not taking him up on it. Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Look to the Skies: March 20, 2010 Once again we have a news story about the Dinosaur's demise. As you know they all drew to the same conclusion approximately 65,000,000 (that's sixty-five million) years ago when what is presumed to be an asteroid dropped into the Earth for a visit. You can read about that, here (opens new window). Just as a matter of relativity we are closer in time to Rexford and his fellow T-Rexes than he was to the Allosaurus. In any event this cataclysmic fender-bender resulted in what is known as a mass extinction and the Dinosaurs went the way of... the Dinosaurs. (BTW: The picture used to illustrate the extinction story is of the fossilized skeleton of a Cryolophosaurus. An early Jurassic, Antarctic predator.)
(Carnegie Collection Cryolophosaurus for 2010) Below, a dramatization....
"Oh NO! Not again!!" Dinosaur News Dinosaur News Rexford Meets Raptorex, and So Do You: January 2, 2010 (A popular blog entry for some reason.)
"Raptorex" was barely nine feet long and its discovery (in China) has turned modern paleontology on its ear. Nearly all the Tyrannosaurids have been found in North America but this early progenitor of the massive T-Rex existed approximately 60 million years earlier and was separated by half a planet. It took quite the hike (although he had plenty of time) before he made his fortune after emigrating to America.
Rexford and a little buddy recreate this stupendous discovery. Meanwhile we've gotten our pictures for the Safari Styracosaurus page all in a row and we'll be ready to do their page on the morrow. Happy morrow.
"Great pics guys.... You'll knock 'em dead." Dinosaur News Dinosaur News We here at The Dinosaur Toys Collectors Guide have only one purpose in being here at all. Providing you, our readers, with the best, most informative and entertaining information about Dinosaur toys both past and present.
In order to best achieve that goal, in addition to providing pages on individual figures, advice and suggestions on obtaining the Dinosaur toys and pricing, availability and age and personality appropriateness information.... We have instituted our: 1) The (easily subscribed to, FREE) Daily "Dino-Blog" where you are regularly updated as each new page is created and kept up-to-date on Dinosaur toys news and the happenings in "Dino-town." 2) Our Contact-osaur-Us form which you can use to send us comments and tell us what you need and want to see. After all, this site is for your information. 3) For all you social-butterflies we have added a set of Social Networking links (way bottom, upper left) so you can share this page, and our site, with your all of your friends. (Aren't we nice?) Thank you. 4) Our mighty and inimitable Search-osaurus Center. (Click link or Below.) You can use the search bars to either search the site for all things Dinosaur (toys) or search the entire web for all things anything at All-a-saurus. 6) Our always open Donate-O-saurus Center (opens new window) where you can make a donation and keep us in business, such as it is. We thank you for anything you can give. Search-O-Saurus Center You can use this site-search box to find everything you need about Dinosaur toys collecting. Can't remember everywhere we mentioned, say, Velociraptors or Diplodocuses? Just put in your search term and you'll get a listing of everyplace on our site where you can find what you are particularly interested in. Please note that your search results page will have ads ABOVE and BELOW the actual search results. Those are not from the site, but should be of interest, since Google targets the ads to your particular search. Dinosaur News - Dinosaur News |
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