Think about your self for a second in a swamp. Not simply any explicit swamp. There’s mangrove timber with many vines hanging off their branches, tall reeds and cattails, and an odd assortment of prehistoric fauna. There’s a herd of ginormous Paraceratherium feeding on the timber, Phiomia fleeing from ravenous Titanoboa, Baryonyx fishing, and Beelzebufo hopping round. As you attempt to admire the unusual mixture of fauna and flora, you all of a sudden get ambushed by a terrifying leaping crocodyliform launching at you from the waters, that snatches you up in its formidable jaws! Say hiya to Kaprosuchus.
That’s been my expertise many a time within the online game Ark: Survival Developed, and regardless of that, it’s one among my favourite early recreation mounts within the recreation. Ark apart, it’s additionally one among my favourite prehistoric pseudosuchians general, because of its cranium’s distinctive morphology that set it aside from its relations, and the explanation behind its namesake, the “boar croc”. Consequently it was on my wishlist from Mattel for fairly a while, if not not less than since 2020 once they launched fellow pseudosuchians the Postosuchus (which I reviewed a while in the past) and Sarcosuchus. Fortunately they lastly launched one final yr of their 2024 Strike Assault line, alongside quite a few different pseudosuchians together with Poposaurus, Gryposuchus, and Rauisuchus.
Kaprosuchus saharicus is simply identified from a close to full cranium and jaws, that includes distinctive horn like buildings on the again of the cranium, and the distinctive massive tusk-like tooth. It was from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) of the Echkar Formation in Niger. As no publish cranial materials has been discovered, there’s been a little bit of inference on the general look, the place it’s regularly depicted with lengthy limbs. Within the 2009 paper initially describing it by Paul Sereno and Hans Larsson, it was postulated that it may need been primarily or completely terrestrial because of traits within the cranium, such because the place and form of the eyes, and its jaws and tooth. Later papers have recovered it as being primarily semi-aquatic in freshwater (Eric Wellberg et al, 2019, and Jorge Cubo et al, 2020). It’s closest relative is Mahajangasuchus insignis, which does have publish cranial materials to go by, together with osteoderms (Gregory Buckley and Christopher Brochu, 1999, Alan Turner and Gregory Buckley, 2008), and has adaptions for being primarily aquatic. Each are assigned to the household Mahajangasuchidae. Mahajangasuchidae was initially grouped inside the clade Neosuchia within the 2009 paper describing Kaprosuchus, however was later discovered to be among the many clade Notosuchia in a 2014 paper (Diego Pol et al).
So far as the standard accuracy stuff right here goes, it’s recognizable as Kaprosuchus on the naked minimal with the top, although it will get a couple of options incorrect. The variety of tooth seem to have been simplified. The distinctive pairs of lengthy tusk-like tooth are current, however most of the smaller tooth are omitted, presumably to make the motion function work higher. The tooth are additionally manufactured from a softer plastic, then the extra inflexible materials of the osteoderms on the limbs, to most likely be extra child pleasant. The horns on the again of the cranium have additionally been omitted, probably additionally for security causes with the design of the motion function. I can solely think about many poked or pinched fingers have been they left in tact. There’s some semblance of the bulbous snout tip seen in fossil materials, and the massive tooth seem to lock collectively as they do on the cranium and jaws. I feel the jaws are little too slender them from above, however not like egregiously. The cranium on the determine is about an inch and a half/3.81 cm lengthy, and the determine appears to be about 7 inches/17.78 cm lengthy. The fossil cranium was measured to be about 50.7 cm lengthy, giving the determine a scale of about 1:13 scale, give or take, though the top may be just a little outsized for the physique proportionally, however with out publish cranial materials, who is aware of. That stated, the Mattel Jurassic World mainline is within the 3 and three/4 scale (or 1/18) so this may increasingly nonetheless be too huge to scale correctly regardless.
With out the remainder of the physique having materials, the sculpt is speculative like a lot of the lengthy limb reconstructions prior. There are 4 digits, every with claws, on every limb. The forelimbs ought to have 5 digits, with the fourth and fifth digits claw-less, which appears to be the norm throughout Pseudosuchia (and an excellent little bit of Archosauria as effectively), together with the extant members of the group. The toes are digitigrade, like on a few of its notosuchian relations, the tail might be too brief, as typical for Mattel’s Jurassic World figures, and the physique coated in lots of osteoderms and scutes like on extant crocodilians, if not different pseudosuchians (like its relative Mahajangasuchus insignis). So far as the articulation goes, it’s fairly minimal, with solely the limbs capable of rotate, and the tail. The motion function type of helps to make up for it just a little bit, because it has a satisfying snapping jaw, finished so by urgent the forelimbs up (or alternatively urgent down on the again of the determine).
The coloration is easy, however an efficient mixture of blues, and a cream coloration. The cream is on the underside jaw, and continues on the edges in a speckled method. There’s a darker navy blue coloration on the highest of the top operating down the tail. A lighter sky blue covers the forelimbs, and stomach. The darkish navy blue of the again, cream of the decrease jaw, and light-weight sky blue of the forelimbs and stomach all intermingle on the edges, wanting just a little bit like camouflage of types. There’s additionally some countershading occurring with the darker coloration on high, and the lighter colours on the underside. The tail and claws are left unpainted, however every of the tooth are painted, in addition to mouth’s tissue in a brilliant pink. The eyes are orange with slit pupils.
It’s not probably the most spectacular determine Mattel has launched, but it surely makes up in angle, and I’m lastly glad to have a determine of the “boar croc” from them in my assortment. The motion function is easy enjoyable, and I discover the palette of colours pleasing to have a look at. As this determine launched in final yr’s preliminary wave of Strike Assault figures, the after market might be your greatest guess at this level. A fast take a look at ebay exhibits the most cost effective are going round $40 usd roughly. There’s additionally a mini Kaprosuchus determine that Mattel launched final yr, which can be of curiosity. Its been re-released this yr alongside a mini of Bistahieversor which I reviewed beforehand (alongside the remainder of the brand new 2023 mini sculpts).
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