Concavenator’s Collection

[Concavenator]

Binomial name: Mosasaurus hoffmannii (Mantell, 1829)
Etymology: "[Johann Leonard] Hoffmann's Meuse [River] lizard" (Latin)
Classified as: Squamata -> Mosasauroidea -> Mosasauridae -> Mosasaurinae -> Mosasaurini
Period: Late Cretaceous (Campanian - Maastrichtian)
Fossils found in: Present-day Angola, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Morocco, New Zealand, Niger, The Netherlands, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Syria, Turkey, United States

Company: CollectA
Line: Deluxe
Sculptor: Matthias Geiger
Year of release: 2023

Review:

Spoiler

A large mosasaurine that achieved cosmopolitan distribution through the Campanian - Maastricthtian. Mosasaurus might not be monophyletic. M. hoffmannii is the type species, and it is mainly known from skull material. Mosasaurus was the first mosasaur to be discovered (Street & Caldwell, 2017), as well as the first genus of extinct reptile to be named (Evans, 2010). At the time of its discovery, the concept of extinction was not widely accepted, so the creature was difficult to classify as a member of a living group of animals. Initially, it was considered to be a crocodile or an Odontoceti. It took more than 25 years after the discovery of the holotype of M. hoffmannii (MNHN AC  9648) for it being finally classified as a reptile (Street & Caldwell, 2017). Mosasaurus depictions have traditionally been based on Tylosaurus, but they possessed different morphology and proportions (PWNZ3R-Dragon, 2017).

I had been having CollectA's 2014 version on the radar up until this newer version became a thing. Impressive figure (especially in person, WOW  ), and as far as I know, the best Mosasaurus figure on the market and also one of the best mosasaur figures in general. There's been several Mosasaurus figures released recently, but it's nice to see such a good and accurate Mosasaurus, in contrast to the ridiculous JW version of the creature, and also in contrast to the "Tylosaurus V2" reconstructions.

My only complaint with this figure is the lack of definition on the pterygoid teeth. Inexplicably, the previous (non-Deluxe) version's pterygoid teeth are clearly more defined than this one's:



Pic by @suspsy

Vs



I've said more than once that I consider CollectA's Standard figures to be more detailed than their Deluxe ones... Still, my copy's pterygoid teeth appear to be more defined than other copies' I have seen, so I guess I'm lucky after all!

In any case, the pterygoid teeth are still there, so I wouldn't call this an inaccuracy per se. But again, it's puzzling how the Standard version is more refined in this detail compared to its Deluxe counterpart. Otherwise, and based on my limited knowledge on mosasaurs, this is an excellent reconstruction, and very highly recommended. Its proportions actually look accurate for Mosasaurus. I also like that it is countershaded, which would agree with Lindgren et al., 2014, and also that it has lips. Its skin is in line with modern mosasaur depictions' as well (and as a result, it's also rather pleasing to handle  ).

On another note, I also like that it comes with a human figure - my favorite accessory for a figure, as it goes to demonstrate the size of the animal compared to a human:



Actually, it is the only accessory I care about, I'm not into skulls nor juveniles.

Funnily enough, as a kid I wasn't too fond of mosasaurs. But then one day I got to hold a real mosasaur tooth and I felt shocked to be able to hold part of an extinct animal in my hand. Plus, after seeing up-to-date paleoart of mosasaurs, I started liking them. I also went to Brussels in 2014 and visited the Natural Sciences Museum, where they had a really cool temporary exhibition about mosasaurs.

All in all, amazing figure by CollectA. I agree with CollectA's non-dinosaurs being generally superior to their dinosaurs.

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[Concavenator]

*deleted*

[DefinitelyNOTDilo]

@Concavenator what I meant is that the average allosaurus is well within the size range for feathering, meaning the potential detriment to larger specimens likely wouldn't be a driver to lose them.

[Halichoeres]

It is a little odd that the pterygoid teeth are a bit smeary, but overall I think they did a great job on this mosasaur. I wonder if anyone will ever make a mosasaur other than the two genera they always make...

[Concavenator]

@DefinitelyNOTDilo Oh OK, I see what you mean now, but still, environmental conditions could have played a role in hypothetical feathers not having been preserved, as L @Leyster explained.

@Halichoeres I would say the recently-described Megapterygius has decent chances. Or alternatively, if a new genus of British mosasaur is erected, it would probably get made by CollectA within a year or two after its description is published. 

[Concavenator]

More pics:

Spoiler

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Binomial name: Yi qi (Xu et al., 2015)
Etymology: "Strange wing" (Mandarin)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Saurischia -> Theropoda -> Neotheropoda -> Averostra -> Tetanurae -> Coelurosauria -> Tyrannoraptora -> Maniraptoromorpha -> Neocoelurosauria -> Maniraptoriformes -> Maniraptora -> Pennaraptora -> Paraves -> Scansoriopterygidae
Period: Middle - Late Jurassic (Callovian - Oxfordian)
Fossils found in: Tiaojishan Formation, present-day China (Asia)

Company: Kaiyodo
Line: Dino Expo 2016
Sculptor: Shinobu Matsumura
Based on: STM 31-2
Year of release: 2016

Review:

Spoiler

An unusual paravian whose holotype and only known specimen so far (STM 31-2) preserves both direct evidence of feathers and membranous wings akin to those of flying/gliding tetrapods like bats. It therefore represents a striking case of convergent evolution. The holotype contains different types of melanosomes, some of which are particularly large considering both modern and fossil feathers. Feathers from its neck and limbs contained eumelanosomes, the head's feathers contained both eumelanosomes and phaeomelanosomes and the membranes' skin contained phaeomelanosomes. It's not clear whether or not it was capable of powered flight or if it predominantly relied on gliding. (Xu et al., 2015).

This figure is courtesy of @postsaurischian (thank you!). I can't believe I finally have a figure of Yi, and one this good at that! I find Yi to be a fascinating creature and it is among my favorite dinosaurs.

Yi is a striking creature by itself, but as per usual, I like having figures of prehistoric animals we know the colorations of (or have an approximate idea). And while we don't exactly know what color Yi was, we can make educated guesses considering the presence of melanosomes in the holotype. Considering that:

- Eumelanosomes can produce black, grey or iridescent colors.
- Phaeomelanosomes can produce shades of brown.

And taking into account the distribution of both types of melanosomes as described in the first paragraph, a coloration like Kaiyodo's is perfectly plausible.

I became aware of this figure fairly recently, and realized it is pretty much what I was looking for, so very happy to have it. I have been requesting CollectA and Safari to make a figure of it ever since it was described back in 2015, but I no longer need that, as figures by them would surely be larger.

Even though this figure is in a pretty huge scale (it's about 1:5), the animal is so small that the figure itself is small too. Pretty sure it doesn't get smaller than this for a figure of this animal, at least when the major companies are concerned. Does anyone want to try a 1:18 Yi? And what about a 1:35 one? 

Wonderful figure of an amazing creature!

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[Flaffy]

The Kaiyodo Yi is a great figure! Well worth the addition to your collection.

I'm still surprised that after almost a decade since it's description in 2015, we only have a grand total of two figures of this enigmatic theropod. Like come on dinosaur companies, it's literally a mini dragon, how could anyone resist that?

[Leyster]

Congratulations, the Kaiyodo Yi is a wonderful little figure (quite hard to find, too).

[postsaurischian]

 I'm very glad that you're enjoying the Yi . It makes our swap even more perfect!

 Although you should never say never in today's rapidly changing world, I don't think it's possible to make a 1:35 version .

[Halichoeres]

If you had a 1:35 Yi, you'd have to be very careful to never sneeze around it.

The Kaiyodo Yi is a great figure! Well worth the addition to your collection.

I'm still surprised that after almost a decade since it's description in 2015, we only have a grand total of two figures of this enigmatic theropod. Like come on dinosaur companies, it's literally a mini dragon, how could anyone resist that?

1. Agreed, great figure.

2. Incredibly, DeAgostini made Yi first, in the Dinosaurs & Friends book subscription line. It came out just a couple of months before this one.

[Concavenator]

Thank you everyone for taking a look! 

@Flaffy IKR? I have similar feelings for Halszkaraptor, but that one hasn't even received a single figure yet!  Granted, Yi is probably even more unusual of a theropod, and so it has at least been made. But I certainly would have expected CollectA and/or Safari to have tackled Yi (and Halszkaraptor) by now. Especially CollectA, who likes producing big scale figures of small/ish animals, though it seems they are mainly focused on pterosaurs.

L @Leyster Indeed, it is a little gem and I feel quite lucky to have been able to get it!

@postsaurischian Gorgeous little figure, this would be the 2nd Kaiyodo figure I've ever owned, and I'm surprised by their quality considering the size.

To be fair, a 1:18 Yi would be diminutive already, let alone a 1:35. 

@Halichoeres Jokes aside, that would be a good piece of advice!  Considering how tiny a 1:35 Microraptor is (@Takama posted about it here), and that Yi is even smaller than Microraptor.

Also, I looked up DeAgostini's Yi, but I can't find it.

[Halichoeres]

DeAgostini discontinued the series and while they might still be hosting the photos somewhere, they don't have any links to them. https://www.planetadeagostini.es/es/past-collections/libros-comics/mundo-de-los-dinos

It's on the list here (https://toyanimalwiki.mywikis.wiki/wiki/Planeta_DeAgostini_Dinosaurs_%26_Friends), but in the spirit of disclosure, I'm the one who added it, while DeAgostini's links were still live. As with pretty much every other species in the series, there were four different Yi figures, a mother, a father, and two babies.

[Concavenator]

@Halichoeres Thank you for the info. That would increase the number of released Yi figures to 6! 

I guess most people aren't familiar with DeAgostini. I only recall seeing them in your collection thread, and they don't even appear on the DTC site.

[Concavenator]

Binomial name: Utahraptor ostrommaysi (Kirkland, Gaston & Burge, 1993)
Etymology: "[John] Ostrom's & [Chris] Mays' Utah thief" (Latin)
Classified as: Dinosauria -> Saurischia -> Theropoda -> Neotheropoda -> Averostra -> Tetanurae -> Coelurosauria -> Tyrannoraptora -> Maniraptoromorpha -> Neocoelurosauria -> Maniraptoriformes -> Maniraptora -> Pennaraptora -> Paraves -> Eumaniraptora -> Deinonychosauria -> Dromaeosauridae -> Eudromaeosauria
Period: Early Cretaceous (Valanginian - Hauterivian)
Fossils found in: Cedar Mountain Formation, present-day USA (North America)

Company: Safari Ltd.
Line: Wild Safari Prehistoric World
Sculptor: Doug Watson
Based on: Scott Hartman's 2017 skeletal and BYU skeletal mount
Color scheme inspired by: Falco peregrinus (Tunstall, 1771) (peregrine falcon)
Year of release: 2023

Review:

Spoiler

Utahraptor represents a case of gigantism in paravians, a condition also seen in other dromaeosaurid and non-dromaeosaurid taxa, like Austroraptor and Imperobator, respectively (Ely & Case, 2019). Utahraptor is both the oldest and the largest Dromaeosauridae. Aside from its large size, it is also notable for its highly blade-like manual claws and its distinctive lacrimals (Kirkland, Gaston & Burge, 1993). Undescribed material points out to Utahraptor possessing tall neural spines, a shorter (but more mobile) tail than other dromaeosaurs (Hartman, 2017), as well as a rather boxy skull with a Masiakasaurus-like lower jaw. Said material also suggests Utahraptor was unusually robust for a dromaeosaur (Hartman, 2017). It is considered by some authors to represent one of the most remarkable paleontological discoveries in recent decades (Costa & Normand, 2019).

So exciting to not only finally see a good Utahraptor figure... but to add it to my collection, too! 

Captures this animal's weirdness really well. What may initially seem as odd proportions to some people is the figure being accurate to the real animal, which is clearly an unusual one. Dromaeosaurids are usually elegant, gracile creatures. But Utahraptor is an outlier:



Utahraptor by Gabriel Ugueto. Compared to Ursus maritimus and Homo sapiens.

I usually favor calm poses, but this Utahraptor has an interesting threatening (?), or defensive (?) pose. The color scheme is beautiful too (also interesting that @Doug Watson took inspiration from another raptor  ), and it does not involve brown! 

As per usual, Safari keeps making the best dromaeosaur figures, together with Creative Beast Studio. And hopefully they will continue with this trend, and it would be appreciated if more companies turned (at least a bit of) their attention to this amazing family at long last. It wasn't until 2020 that we got the first good Deinonychus figure (expectedly, thanks to Safari) , and it wasn't until 2023 that we got the first Utahraptor figure to do a good job at depicting the animal (again, thanks to Safari, and this year the BotM version is planned to be released as well), which is one of the most iconic members of the clade, and since its description, also one of the most famous. On the other hand, Zhuchengtyrannus and Saurophaganax (for example) have received more figures despite being quite fragmentary, poorly-known taxa. Food for thought here...

I got this figure from a seller on Vinted, which is a second-hand app, but the figure itself is brand-new. No local store has the Utahraptor in stock yet. Maybe by next year they will?  Yeah, that's why I had to pick it up as soon as I saw the chance. I don't know why, but the distribution of Safari figures has become really bad in Europe as of late, I hope the situation improves...

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[Halichoeres]

Agreed, Safari and CB have the nicest dromaeosaurs. They haven't gotten stuck in a 1:35 rut like other companies.

I was surprised to hear you had to go to the secondary market! I would have guessed European retailers were carrying it by now.

[Concavenator]

Agreed, Safari and CB have the nicest dromaeosaurs. They haven't gotten stuck in a 1:35 rut like other companies.

I was surprised to hear you had to go to the secondary market! I would have guessed European retailers were carrying it by now.

Utahraptor is one of the few dromaeosaurs that should be feasible at 1:35 scale, but companies focused on 1:35(ish) figures like PNSO, Haolonggood, etc., still avoid it, at least for the moment. In any case, Utahraptor at least has good (well, great, actually) figures to its name now, between Safari's and soon Creative Beast's as well. So I'd rather look forward to the day you finally replace your Mattel Austroraptor. 

When I mentioned local sellers, I really meant to say Spanish retailers. I haven't looked whether it is available in other European countries or not. The only Safari 2023 figure that I've seen available in Spain is the Majungasaurus, which was the first figure they released last year.

[Halichoeres]

I think Austroraptor is inevitable, from someone or other!

Oh, on another note, I found a picture of DeAgostini's Yi! They still have some low-resolution photos on their French site.



Edit: the lower figure is supposed to be a baby Deinocheirus.

[Sim]

@Concavenator, @Halichoeres, I'm sharing your thoughts on Austroraptor!

[Concavenator]

@Halichoeres OK, I admit those put a smile on my face, they are cute.  If I was shown those figures and no context was given, I wouldn't really know how to ID them, but since names are provided, I can somehow see why they are named like that. In particular, that baby Deinocheirus looks like one of those duck bath toys!

Spoiler

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@Sim About Austroraptor, if it wasn't Safari or Creative Beast who released a good figure of it for the first time, I would be surprised. However, these 2 quotes by V @vampiredesign got me curious:

I believe this year will definitely be a year that everyone is satisfied with. Everyone will get their own satisfactory collection. We will work hard for this. Thank you very much for your support.

Theropoda has it, but time is running out to make a poster. Leave some expectations, they are very cool.

Considering how important dromaeosaurids are, claiming "everyone will be satisfied" and not including a single dromaeosaur in the lineup (a big one, seemingly) would be a bit awkward I think. And some of the theropods Haolonggood has recently made have been particularly requested genera, like Dilophosaurus and Megaraptor. I get the feeling some highly requested species is/are going to be part of Haolonggood's new theropods for this year. If a dromaeosaur is included, I wouldn't deem something like a Halszkaraptor as likely, but instead it would most probably be either Utahraptor or Austroraptor. But hey, 1 is better than 0! I wouldn't be surprised to see them tackle Ceratosaurus either, and maybe Herrerasaurus too? The latter in particular is incredibly overdue. I'm very curious about knowing what theropod taxa are among Haolonggood's plans for this year...

Hopefully even PNSO realizes their dromaeosaur hiatus is too glaring as well. As Haolonggood, if PNSO was to release a dromaeosaur now, I would also expect it to be either Austroraptor or Utahraptor, the two giant dromaeosaurs known from decent remains. Their releases have been more phylogenetically diverse since they released the Zuul, so there's (some) hope. 

[Sim]

I too am eager to know what Haolonggood's theropods for this year are!  I think there's a chance Haolonggood will make Austroraptor and I hope they will, although the Chasmosaurus has made me satisfied with Haolonggood's releases for this year.   I'm sure Haolonggood won't make Halszkaraptor this year as they weren't considering small species when they published their plan for this year.
I also hope someone makes Herrerasaurus and that PNSO makes dromaeosaurids!