Plesiosaurs: the long-necked variety

[Halichoeres]

I was about to gripe that it's missing the pelvic fins, but that's clearly just so it can fit in the plesiosaur's mouth. Speaking of whom, Plesiosaurus was early Jurassic, yes? So let's say it was Holophagus, although it really does look like Latimeria. I think people take the term "living fossil" a little bit literally. Cool figure--it's still available for only 8 bucks!

[Libraraptor]

Oh yes, I completely forgot about the coelacanth. It fits the plesiosaur´s muzzle very well and is a lovely figure in its own. For you,of course, it´s a must-have.

[SBell]

I was about to gripe that it's missing the pelvic fins, but that's clearly just so it can fit in the plesiosaur's mouth. Speaking of whom, Plesiosaurus was early Jurassic, yes? So let's say it was Holophagus, although it really does look like Latimeria. I think people take the term "living fossil" a little bit literally. Cool figure--it's still available for only 8 bucks!

I should have said Jurassic--I was thinking Elasmosaurus. And yes, the pelvics are missing because, technically, they should be in the plesiosaur mouth.

Interesting about the genus, I think I just left them but I'm going to update that.

[CityRaptor]

Wow! Looks pretty seemless compared to their older Puzzles.

The best part is, there are two versions, and they come with a coelacanth for dinner!

The orange one is the original:
And the newer blue version:

Yes, the blue one was released in  Germany under the "T-Rex-World" label. It is part of the second series. First series is Triceratops, Diplodocus, Therizinosaurus & Acrocanthosaurus, second is Elasmosaurus, Tyrannosaurus, Dimetrodon and some sort of  Ornitholestes labeled a Raptor. There is currently a "Best Of" series, consisting of Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Diplodocus and Therizinosaurus. Should have gotten the Elasmosaurus.

[Plasticbeast95]

I have a Elasmosaurus mini, that's really about it.

[SBell]

Wow! Looks pretty seemless compared to their older Puzzles.

The best part is, there are two versions, and they come with a coelacanth for dinner!

The orange one is the original:
And the newer blue version:

Yes, the blue one was released in  Germany under the "T-Rex-World" label. It is part of the second series. First series is Triceratops, Diplodocus, Therizinosaurus & Acrocanthosaurus, second is Elasmosaurus, Tyrannosaurus, Dimetrodon and some sort of  Ornitholestes labeled a Raptor. There is currently a "Best Of" series, consisting of Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, Diplodocus and Therizinosaurus. Should have gotten the Elasmosaurus.

Mine was a simple FameMaster 4D puzzle, in the newer boxed packaging. No sub-contract distribution. The original orange, no idea, I got it in a trade or something.

[Stuckasaurus (Dino Dad Reviews)]

I'm hesitant to say this, but while pliosaurs tend to be reasonably distinctive, the long-necks seem to be rather.... well, same-y. I realize there's probably significant skeletal differences, but do they really make much of a difference in the life appearance of the animal? Basically what I'm getting at is this: if I have a decent Elasmosaurus sculpt, is there any reason to buy another figure that's nominally of another genus other than the differing color schemes?

(I might help if people made more plesiosaurids, rather than only elasmosaurids.)

[Halichoeres]

I'm hesitant to say this, but while pliosaurs tend to be reasonably distinctive, the long-necks seem to be rather.... well, same-y. I realize there's probably significant skeletal differences, but do they really make much of a difference in the life appearance of the animal? Basically what I'm getting at is this: if I have a decent Elasmosaurus sculpt, is there any reason to buy another figure that's nominally of another genus other than the differing color schemes?

(I might help if people made more plesiosaurids, rather than only elasmosaurids.)

The heads can be pretty different (check out skulls of Futabasaurus vs. Thalassomedon vs. Hydrotherosaurus vs. Mauisaurus), but since the heads are so small and since the sculpting is sometimes less than stellar (like CollectA's Hydrotherosaurus), that doesn't necessarily shine through in figurines. I'm sure postcranial proportions also vary a lot (relative neck length, etc.), but that's even harder to spot unless you go to the trouble of measuring all the parts.

[DinoToyForum]

I'm hesitant to say this, but while pliosaurs tend to be reasonably distinctive, the long-necks seem to be rather.... well, same-y. I realize there's probably significant skeletal differences, but do they really make much of a difference in the life appearance of the animal? Basically what I'm getting at is this: if I have a decent Elasmosaurus sculpt, is there any reason to buy another figure that's nominally of another genus other than the differing color schemes?

(I might help if people made more plesiosaurids, rather than only elasmosaurids.)

Plesiosaurs are often generalised in palaeoart and toys, which gives the impression there's less variation. And you're right, there is a focus on elasmosaurids. All plesiosaurs have four flippers and a relatively long neck, that's what makes them plesiosaurs. However, there is some diversity. I'm confident you'd be able to distinguish, at a glance, say:

The extra long-necked elasmosaurid Elasmosaurus,
from the wide-paddled medium-necked cryptoclidid Cryptoclidus,
from the wide-mouthed filter-feeding aristonectine Aristonectes,
from the crested leptocleidid Umoonasaurus,
from the slender plesiosaurid Plesiosaurus.

...so long as they were all depicted accurately. And, technically, polycotylids are plesiosauroids (not pliosaurs).

What I'm saying is, we need more plesiosaur toys! 

[Concavenator]

I'm confident the new CollecA Thalassomedon is very good and accurate,isn't it,dr.admin?

[Sim]

Great posts, Halichoeres and Dr Admin!  It also appears one of the long-necks is a pliosaur, (I was really surprised by this) namely Attenborosaurus.

What I'm saying is, we need more plesiosaur toys! 

Yes!  I agree!  I really like long-necked plesiosauroids, but I don't find any of the existing toys of them satisfying as modern representations of these animals.  I find a few like the Wild Safari Elasmosaurus, Favorite soft model series 1 Plesiosaurus, and CollectA Thalassomedon come close, but they each have some things I can't get past.  One which they all share is odd-looking skin.

[DinoToyForum]

I'm confident the new CollecA Thalassomedon is very good and accurate,isn't it,dr.admin?

Haven't seen it properly yet, I need to order one! I did notice, I think, that the front flippers look like they are angled too far forward. But I'll have to judge it when I see it in person.

[DinoToyForum]

Great posts, Halichoeres and Dr Admin!  It also appears one of the long-necks is a pliosaur, (I was really surprised by this) namely Attenborosaurus.

What I'm saying is, we need more plesiosaur toys! 

Yes!  I agree!  I really like long-necked plesiosauroids, but I don't find any of the existing toys of them satisfying as modern representations of these animals.  I find a few like the Wild Safari Elasmosaurus, Favorite soft model series 1 Plesiosaurus, and CollectA Thalassomedon come close, but they each have some things I can't get past.  One which they all share is odd-looking skin.

Yeah, neck length is not a reliable indicator of relationships in plesiosaurs!

[Stuckasaurus (Dino Dad Reviews)]

Thanks for your answers, that helps clear things up for me in regards to plesiosaurs generally. However, I'm still a little ambivalent about toy models. As an example from some of my favorite models, I can tell at a glance that Safari's Liopleurodon and Collecta's Pliosaurus and Rhomalosaurus are meant to be separate species. THAT'S what I'm looking for if I were to purchase more. I'm quite satisfied with my Elasmosaurus model, and if none of the existing long-necked plesiosaur models out there are reasonably distinguishable from Elasmosaurus, then I don't want to shell out another $10-$15 on what amounts to a different paint job.

[DinoToyForum]

Thanks for your answers, that helps clear things up for me in regards to plesiosaurs generally. However, I'm still a little ambivalent about toy models. As an example from some of my favorite models, I can tell at a glance that Safari's Liopleurodon and Collecta's Pliosaurus and Rhomalosaurus are meant to be separate species. THAT'S what I'm looking for if I were to purchase more. I'm quite satisfied with my Elasmosaurus model, and if none of the existing long-necked plesiosaur models out there are reasonably distinguishable from Elasmosaurus, then I don't want to shell out another $10-$15 on what amounts to a different paint job.

The plesiosauroid species I listed are all as different from each other as Rhomaleosaurus is from Pliosaurus/Liopleurodon. That's why I listed them. Toy versions of plesiosauroids could be hugely variable.

The reason Safari's Liopleurodon and CollectA's Pliosaurus - two very closely related species - are so obviously different from each other in toy form, is because:

1. One is highly accurate (I helped design it) and the other isn't
2. Stylistic differences (colour, size, sculpting style)

Not because they were anatomically different in life. If the two animals swum past you, one after the other, they would be essentially indistinguishable (other than, perhaps, colour).

Note also that Rhomaleosaurus is a rhomaleosaurid, not a pliosaurid. According to recent classifications rhomaleosaurids aren't even pliosaurs, they are separate group of plesiosaurs entirely. 

[stargatedalek]

Other than the shrink-wrapped ears what's wrong with the CollectA Pliosaurus? Please do enlighten me.

[DinoToyForum]

Other than the shrink-wrapped ears what's wrong with the CollectA Pliosaurus? Please do enlighten me.

See my restoration of a Pliosaurus head and the CollectA for comparison. In the toy the rostrum is too blunt and downturned (partly distorted I think), the nostrils are in the wrong position, the eyes have raised bony ridges and are positioned too far on the side, there's something very weird going on at the back of the head (it isn't the right position for the ear anyway, the correct ear position is indicated in my restoration), the proportions appear slightly off, the dentary teeth are not differentiated enough, and it isn't streamlined. Aesthetically, it looks sleepy, with droopy eyes. The body is too deep and not wide enough, the flippers are too shallow and positioned too low. I haven't checked the proportions.

[stargatedalek]

Looking at the head in close-up, it really is a far cry from the real thing. It has snapping turtle jaws (and not just referring to the potentially warped segment). It would really need an almost entirely new head to fix it too. Thanks for that, I was considering getting it (mostly because the lampreys seemed such an original idea).

[Stuckasaurus (Dino Dad Reviews)]

Okay, that helps. Thank you!

[Halichoeres]

Adam, your CollectA Plio is much more distorted than mine! It looks like a proterosuchid!

It does bother me that CollectA gives their marine reptiles big ridges of scales around the eye, as though they're just theropods who decided to take up swimming. It's hard to think of something less conducive to laminar flow than a bunch of bumps and crevices right up at the front.