Stegosaurus (Scout Series ‘Melon’ by REBOR)

Stegosaurus is one of the most popular and recognizable dinosaurs and almost without any exception any given toy company or producer of prehistoric creatures has one or more of them in their line up. But as same as for other species, almost no company offers reconstructions of juvenile versions of this spectacular species. This is not only because the fossil record is greatly biased towards adult animal remains, but probably because sculptors may find it hard to imagine the features of juveniles. In 2016 REBOR dared and released several models of baby animals of several species. Here we take a closer look to ‘Melon’, the baby Stegosaurus.

‘Melon’ is supposed to be in 1:35 scale, measuring 10.6 cm from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail and standing 5.2 cm tall at the plates above the hip. It shows obvious juvenile features as a short, blunted head with big eyes, long legs and a short tail. In addition the plates are tiny and wide spaced and the thagomizer boasts just short stubby spikes. The overall colorization is held in shades of green, tiger striped with brownish grey, the underside is held in light tan. The plates are held in a low-key reddish brown. All this gives the figure a very plausible countershaded camouflage. ‘Melon’ comes with a small base that features a few stones, a broken stick and some greens, nothing to write home about (Note, the base shown here is already slighty customized).

In terms of accuracy ‘Melon’ isn’t too bad as far as that can be said for a juvenile dinosaur. The hind feet show three hoofed toes and the front feet have five digits, the fifth toe being very tiny and hard to notice. The innermost digit bears a larger claw than the others. The four thagomizer spikes protrude sideways from the tail, just a bit angled upwards. There are 18 plates staggered along the back, the first six may appear paired, but that may only be because of their small size and the fact that the figure’s neck is slightly bend to the left side.

It’s not stated what species of Stegosaurus ‘Melon’ should represent. Guessing it’s S. stenops, the scale of 1:35 would render the real animal a formidable 3.7 m long. A far cry from an adult, but also no baby anymore. The figure’s features are clearly those of a very young juvenile and I think REBOR got those right and looking very plausible. However, looking at the proportions of the figure, I’d deem it hatched not too long ago, a 3.7 m long animal would most probably already show more intermediate features as a longer tail and head and higher plates. There’s no visible sign of throat armor but it is neither clear if such would be shown even on adults, nor should such a feature already be developed in a juvenile. The count of plates seems reasonable as it is suggested that the count may have in between 17 to 22. The only complain on the figure for me are the hands and feet that are too small for such a young animal.

As other REBOR products, ‘Melon’ is made from PVC, so it may not only serve as a model but also as a toy (though a comparable expensive one for the size). It is a nicely sculpted and painted figure and I recommend it for anyone who likes Stegosaurus or wants to add something other than another adult animal to their collection. It comes in the usual high quality packing as one is used to for REBOR products. You can get it from modellpferdeversand.de or everythingdinosaur.com.