Top favourite prehistoric animals

[Sim]

In my previous post I meant to say I have top 18 favourite prehistoric animals.  It might have been clear what I meant, but I've modified the ppost to make it clear.

[Gwangi]

I struggle with favorites, even though I have them, but it changes frequently depending on what I've been reading, doing, recently seen, recently read etc. and there's no real Top Ten. That's why when I participate in these I just list 10 favorites with the caveats that they're not the 10, in no order, and subject to change. And I also tend to favor clades over species. I picked Liliensternus as my favorite dinosaur. It isn't really, but it's a Coelophysoid and that's one of my favorite dinosaur clades. But no, I don't like it any more than I do Coelophysis or Dilophosaurus.

I do enjoy reading through these those, especially when there are explanations. Sometimes it seems like these lists are cherry picked and curated to show a mix of classic favorites and obscure animals and don't really reflect why something is someone's favorite. I like reading why something is a favorite. Maybe it's from a movie or story, has local relevance, was featured in a piece of art that captivated you, or just looks cool. That sort of thing.

[Duck]

1: Duck! Ok fine. Camarasaurus.
2. Acrocanthosaurus
3. Minmi
4. Carcharodontosaurus
5. Velafrons
6. Magnapaulia
7. Andrewsarchus
8. Tylosaurus
9. Deinonychus
10. Deinotherium

[Sim]

Well, since you said that @Gwangi, I'll say why each of my favourites is a favourite.

1. Velociraptor mongoliensis
It has always been my favourite prehistoric animal.  It's appearance is perfect for me, it looks so iconic and so well adapted for the environment it lived in.  It's also interesting as its behaviour was preserved in the Fighting Dinosaurs fossil that shows a Velociraptor using its one of its sickle claws to penetrate a Protoceratops's throat.  When I was little, Velociraptor was usually reconstructed without feathers, with the exception of a model by Gregory Paul that showed it with feathers which I found intriguing.  Now that it's known Velociraptor was feathered, it makes it even cooler!

2. Rhamphorhynchus muensteri
It has always been my favourite pterosaur.  I was impressed by its long tail and sleek appearance.  In the last few years I found out that it lived in a warm archipelago and was adapted for flying well and catching prey by entering the water, these things make me like Rhamphorhynchus even more as it builds an interesting lifestyle for it.

3. Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis
It looks cool!  Other qualities that make Herrerasaurus appealing to me are being the most common terrestrial predator in its ecosystem, being well-adapted for running and having long forelimbs that would have been more versatile than the more specialised forelimbs of later theropods.

4. Saurornithoides mongoliensis
I find troodontids fascinating, they are modestly advanced.  Saurornithoides is my favourite troodontid as it just looks perfect to me.  It's also cool that it coexisted with Velociraptor.  I was very impressed by an illustration in a dinosaur magazine I had when I was little, which showed several of both Velociraptor and Saurornithoides raiding a Protoceratops nesting site while an adult Protoceratops charged forward at some of them.  I find it interesting to think about how Velociraptor and Saurornithoides could have interacted with each other.

5. Styxosaurus snowii
Elasmosaurus was my favourite plesiosaur when I was little, but that was because it was the only elasmosaurid ever shown in what I read.  Elasmosaurus is only known from fragmentary remains and I'm now more interested in more completely known plesiosauroids.  Of these Styxosaurus snowii has become my favourite.  It's known from very complete remains and has the nicest-looking tooth arrangement to me.  I also like its proportions.

6. Buitreraptor gonzalezorum
I think Buitreraptor looks so cool with its long snout!  Additionally, it was well adapted for its environment, which I find appealing.

7. Baryonyx walkeri
It looks awesome, and I find it interesting how it could have taken prey from the water or from land.  I also like Baryonyx because it was found relatively near to where I'm from.

8. Stegosaurus stenops
I find Stegosaurus so striking with its plates and tail spikes.  I like S. stenops more than S. ungulatus due to the shape and arrangement of their plates.

9. Sinornithosaurus millenii
Its head shape is appealing to me and its proportions are interesting.  It lived in an ecosystem that would have encountered snow, which is cool (pun not intended).  I imagine Sinornithosaurus would have been a four-winged flyer like Microraptor which is also cool.

10. Scaphognathus crassirostris
Scaphognathus isn't big but it looks amazing.  Its neck and jaws look strong and I think it's the most dangerous looking pterosaur.  It coexisted with Rhamphorhynchus in an interesting ecosystem and I find that appealing too.

11. Linheraptor exquisitus
It's very similar to Velociraptor and shares with it some appealing things like its appearance and how well-adapted it is to its environment.

12. Eudimorphodon ranzii
I find Eudimorphodon appealing because it was a good flyer, it was able to chew its food, it has a cool appearance, and its from Italy which is where my parents are from.

13. Muraenosaurus leedsii
I like Muraenosaurus as it has a nice-looking head, a long neck that was unusually long for a cryptoclidid and because it's from England like me.

14. Harpactognathus gentryii
I usually wouldn't like something so fragmentary, but the one fragment of Harpactognathus is surprisingly informative.  It provides guidance for the shape of its head and supports a very interesting member of the Morrison Formation.

15. Sinornithoides youngi
The tapering snout of Sinornithoides makes it another appealing troodontid for me.

16. Xiongguanlong baimoensis
Its long snout makes it my favourite tyrannosauroid.

17. Gobisaurus domoculus
It has a nice-looking head and I find it interesting.

18. Kunpengopterus antipollicatus
The most recently named species among my favourites, its opposable thumb is a cool and unique feature, which combined with its long jaws and long tail make this one of my favourites.

[Gwangi]

Thanks @Sim , I enjoyed that. More interesting than a simple list and it lets you get to know about a person better. I suppose I should participate by doing the same, but it will have to wait until later.

[Shonisaurus]

Nice choice of figures, Sim I agree on your tastes of pterosaurs. I also really like the rhamphorhychus, edimorphodon and scaphognathus are three pterosaurs that should have more love in the toy dinosaur market, the rhamphrhynchus is well represented in a more acceptable way but the edimorphodon and scaphognathus I do not think there is many if there are and they are two superinteresting pterosaurs that some company should try at least risk making them and I think it would have a medium or even medium-high level of acceptance in the general public. Only because of their teeth, which is what children like the most, could they have a good level of acceptance.

[HD-man]

My favorite non-bird dinos are eudromaeosaurs, which were basically "terrestrial hawks" in terms of ecology/behavior (& thus, both the most awesome & the easiest to imagine as living animals: https://qilong.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/dromaeosaurs-are-terrestrial-hawks/ ). If I had to pick a favorite eudromaeosaur, I'd probably pick Deinonychus based on how much we know about it, but Velociraptor & Utahraptor would be close behind followed by other raptor dinos, especially Troodon.

[Sim]

Thanks Shonisaurus!  I think Rhamphorhynchus isn't well-represented as a figure, the Safari version doesn't have pycnofibers, or the beak (at the pointed ends of Rhamphorhynchus's jaws), or a membrane of skin connecting the legs, and the wings should connect to the legs I think.  Those are the main ways it's outdated, a new Rhamphorhynchus figure is definitely needed.  Eudimorphodon only has a couple of obscure figures, one of which is a baby and the other is a huge cheap-looking thing.  Scaphognathus has never been made into a figure!  I think these pterosaurs would make appealing figures because of their teeth as you say, but also because of their long tails.  Long tails on pterosaurs are inherently exciting.  Rhamphorhynchus is known to sell well, Safari has had theirs in production for over 10 years, and Mattel has released a number of repaints of theirs.  I wish someone would make an accurate Rhamphorhynchus figure, Scaphognathus too, I think both would sell very well.

[Antey]

It is difficult to consider some extinct animal loved; it would be more correct to consider it the most interesting or significant. So (the numbers are arbitrary and do not reflect preferences, except perhaps for the first number):
1.Tyrannosaurus Rex.
The crown and result of the development of giant theropods. Plus a unique anatomy, indicative of unique behavior and place in the ecosystem.
2. Deinonychus.
An iconic dinosaur whose discovery propelled dinosaur science into the mainstream.
3.Spinosaurus
Another unique theropod, unlike anyone else. An entire taxon is named after him. The history of constant improvement of our knowledge about it testifies to its importance for paleontology. Ibrahim promises new sensations. We wait.
4. Allosaurus.
Perhaps one of the most studied theropods. We can say the archetype of the giant carnivorous dinosaur and the symbol of the Morrison formation.
5. Ankylosaurus.
Here it is rather a collective image of the whole taxon of ankylosaurids. Unique dinosaurs with fantastic appearance and not entirely clear ecology. The research of the group will give us a lot of interesting and intriguing news.
6. Triceratops.
And again, we are talking more about the collective image of the taxon, which includes all ceratopsids. An incredible seeming variety of forms with practically a single general morphotype.
7.Saurolophus
Here we are not talking about a taxon, although it is wrong to represent it as the only, not the most spectacular species. It's just that this hadrosaur was one of the first I met through colorful scientific reconstructions. In addition, I saw his skeleton in the Moscow Paleontological Museum, and this giant amazed me the most in the exhibition. Although there are skeletons of paraceratherium, diplodocus and many other spectacular animals.
8. There must be some sauropod here.
But it's hard for me to choose a favorite. Let it be a brachiosaurus or a giraffatitan, as you please. It is impossible to skip over sauropods by listing those who inspire you when studying dinosaurs. But there are so many of them, they are so diverse and there is so much new knowledge about them that I give up. Let there be a brachiosaurus.
9. Carnotaurus.
And again, this is a collective image of its taxon - Abelisaurid. He is best known, well represented, albeit a single skeleton. Besides, he has horns! Abelisaurids are a mysterious taxon. The end of the Cretaceous was an interesting time in theropod evolution. Tyrannosaurines appeared in the north, abelisaurids in the south. Both are completely different, but they were the supreme predators of their ecosystems.
10. (I'm at a dead end, 10 species / genera are too few, besides, in the Mesozoic there were pterosaurs and giant marine reptiles that are not dinosaurs. And we are not talking about mammals and birds of the Cenozoic!)
Let there be a Tylosaurus!
A representative of the outgoing era of dominant reptiles at sea. A lizard who was not afraid of anyone.

If my thoughts are interested in something, then I can add a dozen more mammals, birds, fish and other animals that are iconic for me and paleontology.

[Psittacoraptor]

This would depend on the day, my mood, and whatever natural history-related things I've read recently. Off the top of my head, I'd say:

Opabinia
Hallucigenia
Meganeura
Archaeopteryx
Anurognathus
Yutyrannus
Troodon (it's still real to me)
Paraceratherium
Kelenken
Megatherium

This is not listed from most to least favorite, the order is (geo)chronological because that's just how my brain works when thinking of Earth's past. As you can see, I'm not really obsessed with dinos but more interested in prehistoric life in general. Opabinia is that critter that's alien yet adorable in a weird way, and represents the Cambrian sea, one of the most interesting past environments. Meganeura may seem like an odd choice when so many more spectacular beasts once roamed the Earth, but there's just something about giant dragonflies that appeals to me. Cenozoic megafauna has always fascinated me, perhaps because it's more related to the fauna we have today and is thus more easily imagined in the mind. It's a shame I will never get to see giant sloths, rhinos, penguins or terror birds in person.

Archaeopteryx is probably my favorite extinct animal overall. It was the prehistoric animal that made me realize evolution is real as a child, and since birds are my favorite type of animal, I'm biased towards creatures that so obviously demonstrate the link between today's dinosaurs and those of the Mesozoic. The Berlin specimen is also the first actual fossil I remember grabbing my attention as a child. Furthermore, the importance of Archaeopteryx for science and the understanding of evolution should not be underestimated.

[Halichoeres]

This would depend on the day, my mood, and whatever natural history-related things I've read recently.

This is me exactly!

[SidB]

That's the advantage/ side-effect of liking most everything, more or less and not being hyper-fastidious, many if not most dino collectibles are potential candidates for a top-ten list, day to day.

[GojiraGuy1954]

5 honourable mentions; Ankylosaurus magniventris, Triceratops horridus, Lisowicia bojani, Scutosaurus karpinskii, Mammuthus trogontherii
10. Xiphactinus audax
9. Archelon ischyros
8. Edmontosaurus annectens
7. Mosasaurus hoffmanni
6. Borealopelta markmitchelli
5. Paraceratherium bugtiense
4. Quetzalcoatlus northropi
3. Megatherium americanum
2. Tyrannosaurus rex
1. Spinosaurus aegyptiacus

[GojiraGuy1954]

This would depend on the day, my mood, and whatever natural history-related things I've read recently. Off the top of my head, I'd say:

Opabinia
Hallucigenia
Meganeura
Archaeopteryx
Anurognathus
Yutyrannus
Troodon (it's still real to me)
Paraceratherium
Kelenken
Megatherium

This is not listed from most to least favorite, the order is (geo)chronological because that's just how my brain works when thinking of Earth's past. As you can see, I'm not really obsessed with dinos but more interested in prehistoric life in general. Opabinia is that critter that's alien yet adorable in a weird way, and represents the Cambrian sea, one of the most interesting past environments. Meganeura may seem like an odd choice when so many more spectacular beasts once roamed the Earth, but there's just something about giant dragonflies that appeals to me. Cenozoic megafauna has always fascinated me, perhaps because it's more related to the fauna we have today and is thus more easily imagined in the mind. It's a shame I will never get to see giant sloths, rhinos, penguins or terror birds in person.

Archaeopteryx is probably my favorite extinct animal overall. It was the prehistoric animal that made me realize evolution is real as a child, and since birds are my favorite type of animal, I'm biased towards creatures that so obviously demonstrate the link between today's dinosaurs and those of the Mesozoic. The Berlin specimen is also the first actual fossil I remember grabbing my attention as a child. Furthermore, the importance of Archaeopteryx for science and the understanding of evolution should not be underestimated.

Stenonychosaurus is a cooler name anyways imo

[Sim]

Deinonychus antirrhopus has finally become one of my favourite prehistoric animals.  I've liked it for a long time, but something has changed for me recently and I've come to fully appreciate its awesomeness.  Like Velociraptor mongoliensis, Deinonychus is iconic.  Its appearance is similar but also quite different to Velociraptor and it was well-adapted to its environment in terms of capturing prey and climbing.  It's a fascinating dinosaur that also changed our understanding of dinosaurs from slow tail-draggers to active animals and helped establish how birds are descendants of dinosaurs.  Deinonychus also inspired the iconic Jurassic Park franchise.  So that's why I like Deinonychus.

I'm also adding Eoraptor lunensis and Coelophysis bauri to my favourite prehistoric animal list.  Eoraptor dealt with the fearsome Herrerasaurus and Saurosuchus and was well-adapted to survive with its speed and omnivorous diet.  Its remarkably complete remains help inform our understanding of the early evolution of dinosaurs too.  That's a reason I like Herrerasaurus too.  And same for Coelophysis bauri, who's extremely elongated anatomy is just amazing in my opinion.  It's high concentration of preserved individuals also suggest Coelophysis bauri was a very successful animal.

My updated list of favourite prehistoric animals is below, it's changed quite a bit from number 10 onwards:

1. Velociraptor mongoliensis
2. Rhamphorhynchus muensteri
3. Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis
4. Saurornithoides mongoliensis
5. Styxosaurus snowii
6. Buitreraptor gonzalezorum
7. Baryonyx walkeri
8. Stegosaurus stenops
9. Sinornithosaurus millenii
10. Deinonychus antirrhopus
11. Linheraptor exquisitus
12. Scaphognathus crassirostris
13. Eudimorphodon ranzii
14. Xiongguanlong baimoensis
15. Sinornithoides youngi
16. Kunpengopterus antipollicatus
17. Coelophysis bauri
18. Eoraptor lunensis

[Bowhead Whale]

Well, for me, it goes about like this:

1- BASILOSAURUS (Zeuglodon)
2- ELASMOSAURUS
3- LEEDSICHTYS
4- HENODUS
5- ARCHELON
6- EURYPTERUS (giant sea scorpion)
7- DIPLOCAULUS
8- BELEMNITES
9- AMMONITES
10-PLACODUS

There. As you can see, I have a thing for the ocean.

[Sim]

My favourite prehistoric animals have had some changes.  My favourite prehistoric animals are now the following:

1. Velociraptor mongoliensis
2. Rhamphorhynchus muensteri
3. Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis
4. Saurornithoides mongoliensis
5. Styxosaurus snowii
6. Buitreraptor gonzalezorum
7. Baryonyx walkeri
8. Stegosaurus stenops
9. Sinornithosaurus millenii
10. Deinonychus antirrhopus
11. Linheraptor exquisitus
12. Nothosaurus mirabilis
13. Scaphognathus crassirostris
14. Torvosaurus tanneri
15. Eudimorphodon ranzii
16. Eoraptor lunensis
17. Daspletosaurus torosus
18. Daspletosaurus horneri
19. Saurosuchus galilei


And here is why I like the new additions.
First, Nothosaurus mirabilis.  It was actually in my first list of favourites that I posted in this thread, but it didn't make the other lists.  It's back in my favourites now and I think it's there to stay.  I like it because it's awesome that it could function both in and out of the water, and its head is cool.
Second, Torvosaurus tanneri.  I find its long snout appealing and interesting that it exists on a non-spinosaurid large theropod.  The idea that its powerfully built pelvis allowed it to wrestle with sauropods is interesting too.
Third and fourth, Daspletosaurus torosus and Daspletosaurus horneri.  I find these two species of Daspletosaurus appealing with their modest appearance and they have become my favourite tyrannosauroids.  I find their head shapes interesting too, they are similar but also quite different.
And lastly, Saurosuchus galilei.  I find it interesting, it looks like a combination of a crocodilian and a large mammal predator.  I also find it interesting to think about how it would have interacted with other animals in its ecosystem, such as two more of my favourites, Herrerasaurus and Eoraptor.

I would have preferred if my favourite prehistoric animals were an even number, so 20 instead of 19, but it's okay.  Maybe in the future I'll have an even number of favourite prehistoric animals.

[Faelrin]

So looking back at my old list, I think it's about time I update it too. I still don't think I can pick ten per se. I love so much spanning the Ediacaran until now. Therefore to make this a little easier, I'll divide it up by era (and A-Z order). Everything on this list is also consisting of things that have figures made and are in my collection already (or soon to be), or things I'd like in my collection someday:

Paleozoic (definitely far from everything I like, and I tried to keep different groups represented):
-Anomalocaris
-Arandaspis
-Dimetrodon
-Diplocaulus
-Dunkleosteus
-Opabinia
-Pterygotus
-Scutosaurus
-Tiktaalik (still disappointed there's no mass produced figure for this one)
-Walliserops (felt like I needed to have at least trilobite represented, so I went with one of my favorites, the one with the fork on its head. I could probably easily make a separate top 10 list of trilobites for example)

Mesozoic (this is obviously the hardest to only pick ten from, let alone from dinosaurs only as I limited it to, and it's still only a handful that came to my mind):
-Allosaurus
-Carnotaurus
-Deinonychus (or Velociraptor)
-Diplodocus
-Iguanodon
-Parasaurolophus
-Spinosaurus
-Stegosaurus
-Styracosaurus
-Yutyrannus

Cenozoic (I know, most of these are mammals, and from the Pleistocene):
-Aenocyon dirus/Dire wolf (still can't believe there's no updated figures of this one)
-Basilosaurus
-Coelodonta antiquitatis/Woolly rhino
-Dinornis (Giant moa)
-Doedicurus
-Gastornis
-Mammuthus primigenius/Woolly mammoth
-Megaloceros
-Paraceratherium (one of the largest terrestrial mammals, and an iconic one)
-Smilodon

[Lynx]

This has changed A LOT since my last list, so here we go.

1. Pinacosaurus, previously Microraptor.

2. Microraptor

3. Spinosaurus. Now it isn't exactly my favorite, nor would I normally consider it in my top three, but the nostalgia is too heavy to not include it. It may be the reason I am even on this forum.

4. Any and every Asian ankylosaur. I can't list them all, of course, but they're so precious.

5. Iguanodon

6. Camptosaurus/Dryosaurus

7. Struthiomimus

8. Sarcosuchus

9. Majungasaurus

10. Amargasaurus

[Halichoeres]

I have been reading about rudist bivalves lately so they are currently my favorites. Next week it will be something else.