Papo Baby Triceratops Dinosaur Model Reviewed
Papo, the French model and figure manufacturer introduced sometime ago, two models of baby dinosaurs into their replica range. In addition, to these “youngsters” the company has just added a model of a baby Triceratops to their dinosaurs model portfolio and very cute it is to.
Triceratops fossils are the most common dinosaur fossil found in the famous Hell Creek Formation of the western United States of America. This Upper Cretaceous rock formation can be found in Montana, Wyoming and North/South Dakota. Nearly forty percent of all the dinosaur fossils found to date have been ascribed to the Triceratops genus, but baby Triceratops fossils are extremely rare.
Likely to get Eaten by a Predator
Any baby dinosaur that died out on the Late Cretaceous plains would in all likelihood have quickly been eaten by a scavenging Theropod dinosaur. As the bones of juveniles are much smaller than the bones of adults, they are less likely to survive the fossilisation process. However, in recent years a number of fossils of other types of horned dinosaur have been found (Canada and the USA) and this Papo young Triceratops model is based on this fossil material.
Beautifully Painted Baby Triceratops
The model measures a fraction over ten centimetres in length and the head stands nearly six centimetres high, it is a beautifully painted dinosaur model. The design team at Papo have given their baby Triceratops two small brow horns and a tiny nasal horn. Scientists are aware that these horned dinosaurs grew bigger horns as they got older. The head shield has tiny bumps along the edges and it has been painted a sandy colour, the same tone as the underside of the dinosaur replica. The detailing on the skin is very clever. Fossilised skin of an adult Triceratops has been discovered and the model makers at Papo must have used this fossil evidence as the basis for the skin patterning on their baby dinosaur replica. The mouth is open and a small, pink, triangular-shaped tongue can be made out inside in the jaw.
A Companion for the Papo Adult Triceratops
Although it is not possible to give a scale size for this model, it is worth noting that this figure works very well with the model of the adult Triceratops that was added to the Papo model range some years ago.
Count the Toes
There is one anatomical error that we spotted on the model. Triceratops had five digits on its front feet and four toes on its hind feet. Unfortunately, this dinosaur model has only got four digits on each of its front feet. This is a common error when it comes to horned dinosaur figures and replicas.
An Excellent Papo Dinosaur Model
This one small gripe aside, this is an excellent Papo dinosaur model, one that will delight collectors and young dinosaur fans alike. It is highly recommended and hopefully this French-based manufacturer will consider introducing more baby dinosaur models into its figure and replica range in the future.
