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Date of Issue : 10 October 2013
Royal Mail launched its Dinosaur Special Stamps issue to mark over 200 years of dinosaur fossil discoveries in what was the UK.
Dinosaurs have often been associated with North America and the exploration of the Wild West that began in the 1870s, but the earliest discoveries of dinosaurs and their contemporary marine and flying reptiles happened in England during the early 1800s.
The dinosaurs in this 10-stamp set have strong connections with Dorset and pioneering fossil hunter Mary Anning, the Isle of Wight, Oxford shire, Surrey and Sussex. The set features illustrations of Polacanthus; Ichthyosaurus; Iguanodon; Ornithocheirus; Baryonyx; Dimorphodon; Hypsilophodon; Cetiosaurus; Megalosaurus and Plesiosaurus.
The featured reptiles are:
- Polacanthus: the heavily armoured Polacanthus was protected from predators by a host of spikes and studs.
- Ichthyosaurus: adapted to life in the sea, the Ichthyosaurus breathed air and gave birth to live young in the water.
- Iguanodon: the herbivorous Iguanodon was able to walk on all fours, but would run using only its hind legs.
- Ornithocheirus: this relative lightweight flew mainly by soaring and gliding, catching fish by skimming the sea.
- Baryonyx: with a name meaning “heavy claw”, the thumb claw alone of the Baryonyx was more than 40cm long.
- Dimorphodon: with its one meter wingspan and two types of teeth, the Dimorphodon preyed upon fish.
- Hypsilophodon: the long shins of the Hypsilophodon suggest that a speedy escape was its main means of defence.
- Cetiosaurus: the Cetiosaurus was a herbivore thought to weigh as much as 20,000kg, the same as 20 cars.
- Megalosaurus: the fearsome Megalosaurus grew up to nine meters in length, and preyed upon other Dinosaurs.
- Plesiosaurus: with its vast paddles, the Plesiosaurus hunted fish and other marine prey at an estimated 8kph.
