New DinoToyBlog entries

[BlueKrono]

Remigolepis from Paleozoo:

http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/13/remigolepis-paleozoo/

Hmm... it's a little smaller than I expected at that price point. But undeniably a handsome figure. Someday...

[suspsy]

A second fishy review:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/15/hemicyclaspis-series-3-by-kaiyodo/

[suspsy]

Remember Skeleflex? Here's my review of the Mini T. rex.
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/17/tyrannosaurus-rex-miniskeleflex-by-wild-planet/

[stargatedalek]

I do believe I have most of the dinosaur sets that were made. The larger sets can be quite imposing.

[suspsy]

The Papo Acrocanthosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/19/acrocanthosaurus-papo/

[CrypticPrism]

This is a good birthday. Very good birthday.

[Reptilia]

Honest review. I'm very excited the get the two new theropods, which should happen pretty soon. The more I look at the Acrocanthosaurus and Ceratosaurus the more I think Papo's sculptor made an intentional stylistic choice by oversizing head and forelimbs and downsizing the feet. It's quite visible in the new ones as well as in the Baryonyx from last year.

[DinoToyForum]

Another from me 

http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/19/confuciusornis-age-of-the-dinosaurs-by-pnso/

[suspsy]

Geoworld Doedicurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/21/doedicurus-jurassic-hunters-by-geoworld/

[suspsy]

A strange Spinosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/23/spinosaurus-unknown-company/

[suspsy]

My review of the Skeleflex Mini Stegosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/25/stegosaurus-miniskeleflex-by-wild-planet/

[suspsy]

Favorite Saurolophus. Part 2 of Bokisaurus' Nemegt Fauna Series:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/27/saurolophus-favorite-co-ltd/

[Halichoeres]

ROM Primeval Predators kit:

http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/28/primeval-predators-kit-royal-ontario-museum/

[suspsy]

Kaiyodo Rayonnoceras:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/04/29/rayonnoceras-series-2-by-kaiyodo/

[suspsy]

The aquatic reviews continue with my take on the Mojo Fun Tylosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/05/01/tylosaurus-mojo-fun/

[BlueKrono]

The aquatic reviews continue with my take on the Mojo Fun Tylosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/05/01/tylosaurus-mojo-fun/

What are the thoughts on mosasaur forkedness of tongues? I know the varanid link, but it seems strange for an aquatic reptile to have a forked tongue. No extant ones do, and I thought forks usually went into a Jacobsen's organ in the roof of the mouth for smelling purposes. As an air breather it wouldn't do mosasaurs much good.

[Cloud the Dinosaur King]

The aquatic reviews continue with my take on the Mojo Fun Tylosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/05/01/tylosaurus-mojo-fun/

What are the thoughts on mosasaur forkedness of tongues? I know the varanid link, but it seems strange for an aquatic reptile to have a forked tongue. No extant ones do, and I thought forks usually went into a Jacobsen's organ in the roof of the mouth for smelling purposes. As an air breather it wouldn't do mosasaurs much good.

What do you mean as an air breather? Snakes and monitors both have a Jacobson's Organ, and they breath air. Monitor lizards are very strong swimmers and flick their tongues out to sense prey in the water.

[Lanthanotus]

The aquatic reviews continue with my take on the Mojo Fun Tylosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/05/01/tylosaurus-mojo-fun/

What are the thoughts on mosasaur forkedness of tongues? I know the varanid link, but it seems strange for an aquatic reptile to have a forked tongue. No extant ones do, and I thought forks usually went into a Jacobsen's organ in the roof of the mouth for smelling purposes. As an air breather it wouldn't do mosasaurs much good.

What do you mean as an air breather? Snakes and monitors both have a Jacobson's Organ, and they breath air. Monitor lizards are very strong swimmers and flick their tongues out to sense prey in the water.

Indeed,...

while there are only a few (semi-) aquatic monitor lizards that scavenge for food under water, theses aswell as some - usually totally terrestrial species (those shown this behaviour in husbandry) - have a great ability locating smells under water.

For snakes there's a lot of species that live totally aquatic in salt- and fresh water (latter often murky) and use their smell as main sense to locate prey and mates.

However, for some reason that I actually can't explain scientifically (so it's rather a personal preference), I find a creature the size of a mosasaur hard to imagine tongue flicking constantly...but who's to say they did not.

... Thinking about it... smelling makes most sense for creatures that track their prey over large distances or search for prey by rooting it out from some hiding place, both tactics I would not expect from a mosasaur hunting....

[suspsy]

The aquatic reviews continue with my take on the Mojo Fun Tylosaurus:
http://dinotoyblog.com/2017/05/01/tylosaurus-mojo-fun/

What are the thoughts on mosasaur forkedness of tongues? I know the varanid link, but it seems strange for an aquatic reptile to have a forked tongue. No extant ones do, and I thought forks usually went into a Jacobsen's organ in the roof of the mouth for smelling purposes. As an air breather it wouldn't do mosasaurs much good.

62 species of sea snake strongly disagree with you. :p

[Sim]

My understanding is mosasaurs probably had forked tongues due to their phylogenetic position and the usefulness of the forked tongue to mosasaurs.  Here's a link to a study on forked tongues in mosasaurs: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/27711013_Did_mosasaurs_have_forked_tongues