Dino of the day: Longisquama

This one is for Tiff because it was her birthday.  We went over there late one night on a secret mission to decorate her car.  But don’t tell anybody it was me and West!

There is this cool thing I’ve been reading about the different types of reptile skulls and it’s very interesting, so I’ll write about it soon.  But tonight I want to tell you about this little tiny creature called longisquama.  He was one of the very first reptiles in the world. He lived during the Triassic period, about 230 million years ago.  He lived in Asia and he was only 6 inches long!

The neat thing about him is the really long scales on his back.  They were in two rows on his back and some paleontologists think he might have used them to glide through the forest.  The scales were long enough to make him be able to glide.  I believe they’re right, but I wonder if he used them the same way dimetrodon used the fan on his back– to manage his temperature.  I don’t know for sure.  Nobody knows for sure.

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The Dinosaur Boy’s special note for our troops

Hello, Bridger’s dad here.  I’m taking the liberty to write this special post this Veterans Day.  Regular readers of Bridger’s blog know that Bridger wants to be a soldier when he grows up (a soldier that also dabbles in paleontology and dinosaur graphics design).

Well the other day as we were cleaning the boys’ room we found a special card Bridger had made for “the soldiers.”  I don’t think it has a Veterans Day connection because we found it a week ago, but I wanted to post it today in honor of the servicemen and women Bridger looks up to so much.  If you are a member of the U.S. military, thank you for your service.  Please forward the link to this post to any member of the military you know.

The card is detailed, so I’ll post close-up scans of the best parts.  You’ll have to excuse Bridger’s spelling here.  The kid’s brilliant, but he can barely spell his own name correctly.

The front of the card

Enlargement of the soldier/tank drawing

The inside of the card. The banner across the center says "You can text me at http://www.thedinosaurboy.com." (all "texts" (blog comments) go thru Dad first.)

U.S.A. helicopter and soldier (not sure what the circle is)

"P.S. I am going to help you when I grow up and I am going to make inventions like shields and stuff."

Bridger's proposed inventions to help the soldiers

"Thank you for fighting for our freedom."

A special thanks for all those that have served and who are currently serving from Bridger, the Dinosaur Boy.

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The Dinosaur Boy reviews Discovery’s Triceratops 4D Model Puzzle

Discovery's Triceratops 4D Model Puzzle

Do you know one of the reasons I love to write my blog?  Because people read it and send me stuff to try out.  This time the Discovery Channel sent me a really cool triceratops puzzle called Triceratops 4D Model Puzzle.  I was glad because triceratops is one of my favorite dinos.  It was one of the first ones I ever learned about.  I also loved this puzzle because it’s 4D!  I think what they mean by 4D is that you see inside the dinosaur.  2D would be flat like on paper.  3D means it’s real-looking.  This puzzle is 4D because it takes place inside the dinosaur.

So you get this box and it has each of the dinosaur’s guts.  It’s not put together for you– you have to do that part.  You can play with the organs before you put them in.  There’s a cool book that comes with it that tells all about the dinosaur parts and says what each organ does.  It didn’t take me long to put everything together, but I needed a little help from Dad on the back legs.  The cool thing is that the skin that goes over the top is transparent so you can see the heart and all the guts that you just put together.  And it’s not just the body– it’s the head too!  I think they should do one of these puzzles for ceratosaurus.  I love this puzzle and I even saved the box because it’s a great box.

Here are some pictures of me putting it together.

I let Weston help me open the box. Can you see we're wearing our triceratops shirts?

Opening the package

Putting the guts in

The finished product!

[Dad’s Note:  This puzzle is detailed yet easy to assemble.  The pieces are well constructed and fit together nicely.  An included booklet is not only a guide to the puzzle, it’s a guide to triceratops and its anatomy.  The booklet details each part and organ, providing an explanation of each.  One minor beef:  The writer’s command of the English language leaves something to be desired.  That said, the booklet is an impressive addition to the kit.  Bridger proudly displays his assembled puzzle in our kitchen.  The box?  Well, Mom might have conveniently lost that.  Too bad, it was a great box;).

Christmas is coming, so get your Triceratops 4D Model Puzzle here!]

 

 

 

 

 

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