We left off with the Clever Girl receiving Hammered Gray as the primary color for the mouth. Brison & Xavier received the same treatment. First masking off with blue tape & recycled plastic bags. Then the Great Reveal! Night Black Metallic and Gloss Real Orange provided Clever Girl with highlights around the Eyes and on the snout.
Their Teeth are painted Gloss White and Tongues Apple Red Metallic. Again, these details are completed by spraying paint into the can caps and using Artists Brushes to apply it to the Raptors. Pretty Cool Look!
Stay Tuned for More Details & Final Touch-ups on these Raptors!
The Ankylosaurus has been compared to a military tank. Some 65 million years ago this big, plodding creature covered from head to toe in impenetrable armor was furnished with offensive weapons that could cripple even the most ferocious predator. Ankylosaur is a genus for a large group of plated, armadillo-like herbivores. The Ankylosaurus is the largest member of the group and the last to survive. They could reach 33 feet long about the same size as an Allosaurus! Ankylosaurus weighted up to 8 tons! The body was very bulky measuring up to 6.5 feet in width. Although the skull was tiny, less than 2 feet in length. It was heavy and solidly fused with two horns projecting from the back on each side and a series of small interlocking oval shaped plates engulfing the roof. The most remarkable feature of Ankylosaurus was its club shaped tail resembling a mace. The club was nearly the size of its skull! The club tail was a deadly weapon that would have kept Tyrannosaurs and other predators from attacking. Below a typical fossil of Ankylosaurus (courtesy of Talismancoins.com)
On March 11, 2011 miners in Northern Alberta Canada at a huge oil sand quarry discovered the most well-preserved dinosaur ever! Although they didn’t know it at the time. Shawn Funk, a heavy-equipment operator noticed a change in the texture and color of the underlying rock where he was digging. Since Alberta is rick in fossils the construction crews are aware that any dig could potentially uncover fresh fossils. Funk called his supervisor and they alerted the Royal Tyrell Museum. During excavation the large block of rock broke in half. Fortunately, the pieces were carefully gathered and returned to the Museum for separating the fossil from the rock. It took technician Mark Mitchell over 5 1/2 years (over 7,000 hours) to complete the process. The fossil was so well preserved its skin was intact and resembled a statue no bones could be seen! The rock is so dense CT scans can’t even detect the bones.
The tail and rear were destroyed during the mining operation but the head and front part of the body are beautifully preserved. With such well-preserved skin scientists have identified chemicals in the skin that resulted in color estimates for this Dinosaur – Rust Colored Head and Back with a Light-Colored Belly. This genus of Ankylosaur is known as Borealopelta markmitchelli. The first half of the name is Latin for “northern shield” the second for the technician that separated it from the rock. The 110-million-year-old dinosaur lacked the tail club of some of its relatives. It’s back was covered in heavy armored scales and a pair of 20-inch-long spikes projected from its shoulders. It weighted 1.5 tons and was 20 feet long. Below photo courtesy of the Biophysical Journal Collection.
For more details see link below for the article in The Atlantic that includes a link to a video of the excavation. In addition, a link to another Ankylosaur discovery – Zuul crurivastator, named after the monster from Ghostbusters and Latin for “destroyer of shins” is in The Atlantic article.
Apologies these links have a large number of pop-ups on subjects you probably have no interest. If You Google or Bing “Nodosaur” You can find YouTube Videos of these discoveries without the annoying pop-ups.
June 2, 2020 update:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/02/world/nodosaur-fossil-stomach-contents-scn-trnd/index.html
With continued research Scientists have been able to extract the well persevered stomach revealing this Nodosaurs last meal. Chewed up fern leaves, stems and twigs along with 48 micro-fossils of pollen, spores including moss & liverwort were discovered. Twenty-six club mosses and ferns, two flowering plants & thirteen conifers. No Ginkgo’s or other plants common during this period indicates this was one fussy eater. Charcoal in the contents reflects grazing in areas hit by wildfires, which frequently occurred in the Cretaceous Period 100 -145 Million Years Ago. Gizzard Stones much like those swallowed by birds to help with digestion were among the contents. I look forward to a future date to visit the Royal Tyrell Museum and introduce myself to this Nodosaur properly.
Check Out these options for eLearning & eTravel:
The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County www.nhm.org under Research & Collections / Digitized Collections will allow you to browse their Collections. Check out the latest Activities on their site!
The American Natural History Museum www.amnh.org You will find eLearning for Families, Students & Educators. Explore the Museum Virtually. Check Out SciCafe: Video Talks and Meet the Icons: Stories behind the Exhibits! Of Course, I’m checking out Tyrannosaurus Rex. There are Video Series covering Behind the Scenes at the Museum with Space & Dinosaur Explainers.
Chicago’s Field Museum www.fieldmuseum.org You can talk to “Maximo the Titanosaur” online, Yes Really! Visit Sue the largest T-Rex discovered! Check Out “Brain Scoop” with host Emily Graslie and the Learning Resources – many are also in Spanish.
Consider Memberships with these Museum. In addition to Supporting Their Valuable Work there are Benefits to You.
www.Readingtokids.org has a number of eBooks and YouTube videos with Authors Reading their Books. Craft ideas are demonstrated online as well!
www.scholastic.com is another free resource during School Closures. Learning Journeys provided for Grades PreK – 9th.
Make use of all the Resources for eLearning, eBooks, even online Music & Movies at Your Library!
The Great Courses www.thegreatcourses.com has many DVD and Downloadable Courses for “How to Draw”, “Everyday Urban Sketching”, “Sketching People, Places and Landscapes” that can help you as they have me with drawing and using watercolors. Just remember practice, practice & practice to reach your goal. Check Out Your Library to see if they have these courses available for You online.
Viking.tv www.viking.tv has some Wonderful Art, Music & History Lessons plus eTraveling. The Great Courses can also let you open a travel portal from your living room to faraway places! I especially enjoyed “The Great Tours: Greece and Turkey, from Athens to Istanbul. Not only do You receive a Great History Lesson, You learn about what to bring and Off the Trail Spots Your Tour Guide might not show You!
My First Book “Is a Metal Dinosaur the Right Pet for You?” is Available as an eBook on Kindle through Amazon.com!
Included are two photos of Prehistoric Pals converted to black & white line drawings for You to express Your Color Imagination! Search online for print options on Your device. Print Screen, Cropping & Printing are available on many smart phones. Your smart phone may even allow You to email Your Print Screen to Yourself allowing even more options before printing. Kindle has an app for smart phones!
I would love to see Your Color Visions for Dominic & Raphael! Use crayons, pencils, pens, or watercolors! Attach feathers, glitter whatever brings them to life for You. Send a picture of Your Colorized Imaginations to: paul@paulsprehistoricpark.com It could be in a future post!
I will keep You posted with information on my Next eBook “The Shy Triceratops”. I hope to have Paperback versions available later this year.
Stay Safe & Well.
“Encouraging the Appreciation of Art and Education through the Inspiration of Dinosaurs”
Paul & Prehistoric Pals
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Thank you!