Ever since Jurassic Park III hit the cinema screens in 2001, so the popularity of Spinosaurus has soared. The script writers wanted to introduce a new meat-eating dinosaur, one that would give T. rex the principle dinosaur in the first two movies a run for its money. This resulted in Spinosaurus (Spinosaurus aegyptiacus) being introduced to a whole new generation of dinosaur fans. Described by the famous German palaeontologist/geologist Ernst Stromer von Reichenbach in 1915, from fossil material collected from several expeditions to Egypt, Spinosaurus is regarded as one of the largest of all the known Theropod dinosaurs in the fossil record. Although, more lightly built than the Tyrannosaurs and Allosaurids the largest specimens would have weighed something approaching five metric tonnes and reached lengths in excess of 17 metres.
The Diversity of the Spinosaurids
Spinosaurid fossils have been found in many parts of the world, Spinosaurus itself, is known from North Africa (Egypt and Morocco), then there is Baryonyx from England and Spain, Suchomimimus from Niger and Irritator from South America. Other Spinosaur fossils have been found in Asia, most notably China, Thailand and Japan. These predators are characterised by their long, narrow snouts, armed with many sharp, conical teeth. Indeed, most Spinosaurs had more teeth in their jaws than the large Allosaurs or Tyrannosaurs. These dinosaurs also had a distinctive big claw on the thumb of each hand. It has been suggested that these animals were fish-eaters and the large claw was used to "hook" fish out of the water rather in the same way that extant Grizzly Bears grab Salmon. Recent work by a research team from the University of Lyon (France) has suggested that many species of Spinosaur may have been semi-aquatic, or at least lived near bodies of water. Whether these animals actually lived in water and hunted in the water is unknown.
Schleich Saurus Spinosaurus versus Carnegie Safari Spinosaurus
The two Spinosaurus models, from Carnegie Safari of the USA and the Schleich Spinosaurus (Germany) are very contrasting models on first examination each model could represent a different genus, but they are Spinosaurus.
The Carnegie model shows a much more gracile creature, launched in 2008 the model is dark green with a light pale underside a long tail making up almost half the length of the model and an orange coloured sail on its back. The Schleich Spinosaurus in contrast depicts a much more robust and heavy set animal. This model, introduced in 2009, depicts a more stocky and heavily built animal. The colouration is a dark brown, with flecks of red around he prominent eye crests, the crest is a lighter colour and like the Carnegie model is predominately orange.
The tail is much shorter in the Schleich model and much more deeper set, especially towards the hip region. The forelimbs are much longer in the German model, giving this Theropod the appearance of a facultative Theropod. A facultative Theropod is a meat-eater which normally walks on just its hind legs but would be capable of adopting a quadrupedal stance should it choose to do so. The forelimbs on the Carnegie model are much shorter and there is a definite emphasis on bipedalism.
The thumb claw on the American model is much more pronounced than the Schleich version, the front claws of the German model are of almost equal length, whereas in the American version the thumb claw is over twice as long as the claws to be found on the other two digits. Interestingly, the snout of the American model is much thinner than that of the German figure. It is beautifully painted but the delicate jaws and long thumb claws make this model prone to damage. It is always sensible to check a model's jaws before making a purchase (or to buy from a reputable model supplier and avoid auction site purchases for this particular Spinosaur model). The Carnegie Spinosaurus with its long thumb claws and long narrow jaws is prone to having the jaws snap and claws break off. The open-mouthed pose of the Carnegie Spinosaurus makes this model particularly prone to jaw damage. The Schleich model has much stronger looking jaws and as it is posed with its mouth closed the chances of any damage is minimised. Such a pity as the detail in the Carnegie model around the snout is superb.
Speculating on the Reasons for the Differences
Diffrent sculptors have different ideas on the appearance of dinosaurs. Often the same dinosaur genus can be interpreted very differently by two design teams. In many cases, different fossil collections are used to verify and clarify information and varying sources of information and reference lead to different models being produced. However, there may be another, perhaps more subtle reason why the two models are so very different. The German model team may have been keen to portray Spinosaurus in the pose and stance described by Stromer in 1915. Stromer, perceived Spinosaurus to be a much more stocky dinosaur with a broader snout. A rival to the American Tyrannosaurus Rex for the empire building German nation. Stromer's specimen did not have skull material so the head was based on similarly sized Theropods. Unfortunately, much of the German fossil material was lost as the Alte Akademie Museum (Munich) was destroyed by an American bombing raid in 1944. The American model may have been based on fossils found more recently in Morocco. In this instance, skull and jaw material was present and this material, along with other Spinosaurid fossils from around the world may have influenced the American's interpretation. After all, they could not have anything too big, otherwise that would rival their own Tyrannosaurus Rex
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