Ouranosaurus (Haolonggood)

It has been 27 years since the release of the undisputed best figure of Ouranosaurus ever made, the Battat Ouranosaurus, produced in 1996 for the Boston Museum of Science. And although other Ouranosaurus figures have come along over those 27 years none of them came close to matching the craftsmanship, accuracy, and paintwork of that figure. But with the Battat Ouranosaurus now a highly sought after collectible that’s starting to show its age, people have been wanting a more modern, affordable, and easily accessible alternative. And why not? With its tall neural spines, Ouranosaurus is one of the most recognizable and striking ornithopods. There’s nothing else like it in the fossil record, at least as far as ornithopods are concerned.

More specifically, Ouranosaurus is a basal hadrosauriform closely related to Iguanodon. It lived during the Aptian stage of the Early Cretaceous in what is now Niger and Cameroon, Africa. It is known from specimens discovered in the Elrahaz and Koum Formations. Ouranosaurus would have lived alongside other well-known genera such as Suchomimus, Carcharodontosaurus, and Sarcosuchus. A dangerous assortment of neighbors for poor Ouranosaurus.

So, who is the new Ouranosaurus on the scene set to dethrone the 27-year running champ? It is a figure released by Haolonggood only about a month ago. Haolonggood has recently caused quite a stir in the dinosaur collecting community, releasing a rapid succession of excellent and affordable dinosaur figures representing a diverse range of highly requested genera. Haolonggood seems to be doing what PNSO was doing back in 2020 and with PNSO’s offerings becoming less diverse, frequent, and affordable, Haolonggood is poised to fill the niche that PNSO has seemingly abandoned.

The Haolonggood Ouranosaurus is presented in a static pose with a gentle rightward bend in its body. Although the forelimbs are quite dainty the static pose and widely spaced limbs assure that the figure is stable and unlikely to tip over. The figure stands about 3.25” at its tallest point and measures 8.375” long. The actual Ouranosaurus is estimated to have measured 23-27’ (7- 8.3 meters) which would put the figure in the 1/35 scale range.

The head sculpt of this figure is long, low, and narrow with a cheekless mouth and keratinous beak. A low crest, or preorbital boss, is present anterior to and between the eyes. I’ve seen brief discussion on the forum that there should be two bosses, side-by-side instead of one in the middle. I’m not personally sure how it should look but pictures of the skull online look very much like what I’m seeing on this toy. The Battat figure does display two bosses though. I’m not going to take issue with it, especially since we have no idea what the outside of this animal looked like.

In scrutinizing the accuracy of this figure, the most glaring and vexing problem is the lack of a thumb spike, which we know for certain Ouranosaurus had. It would not have been as large as the thumb spike on Iguanodon, but it would have certainly been apparent. Between this and Mattel’s six-fingered rendition, it’s a strange observation that both recent figures of Ouranosaurus don’t get this dinosaur’s hands correct.

If you can look past the missing thumb claw and the maybe inaccurate preorbital boss, this is an otherwise exceptional looking and lifelike figure. The tall neural spines are accurately rendered with those above the forelimbs being the tallest and a slight dip above the hips. They support more of a hump than a Spinosaurus or Dimetrodon-like sail. The nostrils are located on top of the muzzle, which is accurate for Ouranosaurus. A sculpted cloaca is also present.

An extraordinary level of detail and attention to anatomy assures that even with a couple of inaccuracies the toy still looks like a believable and living animal. The figure is covered in fine, pebbly scales, with larger feature scales randomly distributed. Thick folds of skin sag down around the neck, limb joints, and underside of the figure, conveying great heft. The bulging calf muscles give the impression of strength and power.

This Ouranosaurus, like all Haolonggood products, comes in two different paintjobs. There’s this one and a green, white striped variant. Both look equally fantastic, but I ultimately found this one more unique. I don’t need more green dinosaurs on my shelf, and I also have Mattel’s Ouranosaurus which has a similar paintjob to Haolonggood’s green variant. This one is advertised as a “brick red” variant but I would say it’s more of a dull pinkish orange. A sharp demarcation on the flanks divides the orange body from a pinkish-white underside.

Brownish stripes and splotches add some complexity to the paintjob. The beak is orange and beautifully transitions to yellow over the top of the muzzle with a tiny bit of green on the preorbital boss. A vibrant blue dorsal stripe runs from the top of the cranium, up over the humped back, and then terminates above the hips. The tip of the tail is also blue. The addition of blue adds a lot to this figure, especially since blue is a somewhat uncommon color choice with dinosaur figures. Indeed, without that splash of blue I would have likely gone with the green variant. There is also a bit of a blue wash over the knees, ankles, and toes. All the limbs have a dark brown on them that makes them appear encrusted with dirt. The nails are all gray and the eyes are yellow with black pupils.

The Haolonggood Ouranosaurus is a much-needed updated figure of a distinctive genus sorely missing from most dinosaur collections. It does come with a few inaccuracies, but these are offset by the otherwise beautiful and lifelike sculpts and intricate paintjob. Unless you already have the Battat Ouranosaurus, which is still a fine model, then this figure is a must in any collection wishing to highlight ornithopod diversity.

The Haolonggood Ouranosaurus retails for $28.99 on Amazon and other online retailers but you can currently find it on Aliexpress for $17. On Aliexpress you also have the option to skip packaging and save a few bucks. That’s what I did, and I can assure you that the figure still comes well protected, sitting inside a snug foam case. Between going that route and using a few coupons I was able to get this figure for less than $13. For that price it’s a steal but I still would have been satisfied with the figure had I paid the $28.99.