Review and photos by Nathan ‘Takama’ Morris, edited by amargasaurus cazaui and Suspsy
When it comes to pterosaurs, most companies tend to go with the famous Pteranodon for their line of dinosaur figures. Schleich is different in this way as they seem to prefer the much larger Quetzalcoatlus. They have made five different models of this azhdarchid to date. The only other Schleich pterosaur to have more than one version is Anhanguera, which has three. The newest version is being released this year as part of the World of History Collection.
Today’s review is of the fourth version of Quetzalcoatlus. Prior to this there was the final Replicasaurus model which the WoH model is based on. Before that came the now-retired smaller model for Schleich’s Junior line, and before that was the very first Quetzalcoatlus model, on which the junior version was based. After the WoH model was released, Schleich decided to make another one for their new mini line (which is available in stores now).
The WoH Quetzalcoatlus is perhaps one of the cheapest-feeling models Schleich has ever produced. The wings are very flimsy and are slightly pliable, however, I can’t help but wonder if the plastic will break if subjected to common playtime abuse.
In terms of accuracy, this model is decent. There are pycnofibres on the body, and the legs seem to be proportioned properly. The head is not bad, but the crest could be updated to match the one on the model made by CollectA. The only thing I don’t like about this figure is the wings. The wingspan seems to be undersized for this model, and the wing-finger should be a lot thinner. The wings also have this pattern on them that reminds me of the wings on a monarch butterfly. I find this to be an unlikely pattern as it’s the same one that’s found on an animal from a completely different family of organisms. Also, there are absolutely no patterns on the bottom half of the wings, just a clear shade of sky blue.
Regarding the rest of the colors on this figure, the torso is brown and the beak is beige with a little shading at the tip.
Overall, this is not a bad pterosaur model as long as you can get past the appearance of the questionable wings and handle their flimsy plastic composition with care. You can purchase this figure separately or as part of the upcoming “Dinosaur Cave” playset, which also includes a little baby in a quadrupedal stance. That will be due out in July. In the mean time, if you just want the adult, you can get it anywhere that sells Schleich dinosaurs. And Amazon and eBay, of course.
Available from Amazon.com here.
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És a feje szerintem úgy,ahogy van inkább emlékeztet e Pteranodonra mint Quetzalcoatlusra.
[…] are also too short to be accurate. The main thing that makes this model an improvement over the WoH Quetzalcoatlus is that the wings are a lot stiffer, not quite as pliable, and less […]
It appears to be influenced by this painting by, I think, Sibbick (fifth one down).
http://thecryptidbestiary.yolasite.com/living-fossils.php
The picture below that one has a Styracosaurus in the exact same pose as the CollectA Styracosaurus. I wonder if the CollectA figure was inspired by it?
Quetzalcoatlus is an azhdarchid. The beaks of this pterosaur family are known for being long, sharp and pointed. The blunt beak on this toy is most likely based on some earlier Quetzalcoatlus reconstructions which inadvertently included jaw material from a non-azhdarchid pterosaur with that type of blunt beak. The neck on the Schleich Quetzalcoatlus is far too short and bent in a way that doesn’t seem possible – azhdarchids had very long necks that were stiffened due to being composed of a relatively small number of bones. The body is also much too long.
This toy doesn’t reflect what is known of Quetzalcoatlus and azhdarchids at all, and with that absurdly long body I don’t find it a convincing restoration of a living animal.
Yikes, I guess this review is not a good one after all 🙁