Episode 121
Dinosaur Camouflage
Buddy and Tiny learn about camouflage when they meet a shy dinosaur, Leslie Lesothosaurus, who is very good at hiding. The kids end up persuading Leslie to stop hiding and come out to play with them.
Fun Fact
We know that modern day animals use a variety of colors to make it hard for predators to zero in on them. So why wouldn’t dinosaurs have used this same coloration? Defensive camouflage would have been a form of protection to help hide their body or break up their silhouette.
Family Scavenger Hunt
The Pteranodon family travels to the Big Pond for a Scavenger Hunt. Using clues and rhymes, the kids solve word puzzles and finally glimpse a bug-eating plant they thought was mere make-believe.
Fun Fact
Exposing children to rhymes and riddles helps them to develop their vocabulary and form ideas.
Episode 122
Have You Heard About the Herd?
Buddy, Tiny, and Mom ride the Dinosaur Train to the Cretaceous Picnic Grounds. They meet Ernie Einiosaurus, who shows them what it’s like to live in a herd of horned Ceratopsians.
Fun Fact
Many animals live and move in large groups, largely as a means of dealing with predators. This "strategy" was used by many kinds of dinosaurs including Einiosaurus.
Jess Hespernornis
The Pteranodons venture to the Big Pond to find out if dinosaurs can live in the water. Their quandaries are quenched when they meet Jess Hesperornis, who turns out to be not only a water-dwelling dinosaur, but a bird as well!
Fun Fact
Hesperornis was a flightless, diving bird that lived in North America’s inland sea during the Cretaceous. Hesperornis represent the only dinosaurs that had a truly aquatic lifestyle.
Episode 123
Triassic Turtle
Don mistakes a shell for a rock and meets Adam Adocus, a turtle with a head he can retract into his shell for self-defense. The Pteranodon family travels to the Triassic and meets Pauline Proganochelys, another kind of turtle who shares her own methods of defending herself.
Fun Fact
Many groups of animals we are familiar with today, including turtles, lived alongside the dinosaurs, but were not dinosaurs themselves.
Tank’s Baby Brother
Tank Triceratops has a new baby brother that everyone dotes on, making Tank feel left out. Buddy, Tiny, and Tank play with some older kid Triceratops, and Tank learns the perks of being a big brother.
Fun Fact
Children often act out when a new sibling comes along fearing they are no longer the baby of the family. With a little encouragement they soon realize that with their new position comes new responsibilities and exciting opportunities as the older brother or sister.
Episode 124
Erma Eoraptor
Buddy, Tiny, and Mrs. Pteranodon go on an expedition all the way back to the Triassic Time Period to meet Erma Eoraptor, one the first species of dinosaur that ever lived. They ride to the end of the line to find Erma, and then bring her back for a ride on the Dinosaur Train!
Fun Fact
Many kids and adults may think that all dinosaurs lived at the same time. By talking about the Eoraptor as one of the "first" dinosaurs, we can emphasize that scientists believe there was a distinct beginning of dinosaurs.
Under the Volcano
Buddy, Tiny and Dad take the Dinosaur Train to see Old Smoky, the local volcano. It’s such a spectacular sight that they go back for the rest of the family, only to discover they’ve already gone to see the volcano! The merry mix-up concludes as the whole family meets up just in time to catch Old Smoky erupting.
Fun Fact
Volcanoes have been active since before the Age of Dinosaurs. The interior of the Earth is very hot, so hot in fact that it’s made mostly of melted rock (magma), which sometimes breaks through to the surface (as lava) through mountain-like openings called volcanoes. And yes, volcanoes were erupting right alongside the dinosaurs!
Episode 125
Pteranodon Family World Tour
The entire Pteranodon family embarks on a roaring, exploring, World Tour adventure! They meet the Conductor’s nephew, Gilbert, who acts as their tour guide to meet Martin Amargasaurus, a spine-spangled quadruped with an intimidating sail.
Fun Fact
Amargasaurus was a long-necked, four-legged, plant-eating dinosaur that lived in the Cretaceous of South America. It had two large parallel rows of large bony spines on its neck and back that may have been used for communication, defense or thermoregulation.
Gilbert the Junior Conductor
The Pteranodon family continues on its World Tour on the Dinosaur Train. During their first full day on the train, the kids play with Gilbert, the Conductor’s nephew. Don gets jealous of Gilbert’s friendship with Buddy.
Fun Fact
Group dynamics with kids can be touchy, but there’s always a solution when a new kid comes along to play. By encouraging your child to express his or her feelings, you’re building a trusting relationship that will help in years to come.
Episode 126
Confuciusornis Says
The next stop on the Dinosaur Train World Tour takes the Pteranodon family to Confuciusornis Gardens, where they meet a very wise old dinosaur. They try some new foods and even learn to meditate.
Fun Fact
Many, many dinosaurs and other creatures were found in what is now Asia. Confuciusornis was a crow-sized bird from the Cretaceous Time Period. It had a toothless beak and had long tail feathers. This theropod dinosaur lived in what is now China, and is believed to have been an omnivore, eating a mix of small animals, insects and fruit and seeds.
Tiny’s Tiny Doll
During a stop on the Pteranodon family’s World Tour, Tiny accidentally leaves her beloved Tiny Doll behind in Velociraptor Valley. Knowing Tiny can’t sleep without it, Valerie and Velma Velociraptor enlist the help of a wide-winged Pterosaur named Ziggy to fly Tiny’s doll back to the train.
Fun Fact
Good friends can often surprise you in a difficult situation when they come through with what you need the most.
Episode 127
Iggy Iguanodon
The Pteranodon family continues their World Tour and meets Iggy Iguanodon, a large, four-legged chap who shows them his unique way of walking while leading them to some famous white cliffs.
Fun Fact
Iguanodon was a large, plant-eating dinosaur that lived in England during the early part of the Cretaceous. Its hands were multi-functional and could be used for walking, grasping and perhaps even jabbing, and its dual purpose mouth had a beak for cropping and teeth for slicing.
Shiny Can’t Sleep
Shiny gets homesick while the Pteranodon family continues on their World Tour. She tries to fall asleep in their Sleeping Car, but can’t, so Dad takes her for a walk around the Dinosaur Train, where they observe the night activities of nocturnal creatures.
Fun Fact
Children may seem excited to have their first sleepover but often are filled with anxiety when trying to fall asleep away from the comforts of home. With attention and the right nurturing, their fears fall away and soon they are fast asleep.
Episode 128
Kenny Kentrosaurus
As the Pteranodon family’s World Tour continues, they travel to Africa to meet a Stegosaur named Kenny Kentrosaurus. He teaches the kids about his plates, spikes and big, thumping tail, which leads to a fun drumming party.
Fun Fact
Kentrosaurus was a relatively small armored stegosaur dinosaur from the Late Jurassic of Africa. It was a quadrupedal plant-eater, with a small head and a combination of small plates and relatively large spikes running along its back and tail.
Don and the Troodons
The Pteranodon family oversleeps and has to hurry to make another guided walk on their World Tour! Don asks to stay back on the train, where he ends up having a great day with the Conductor and his mom, Mrs. Conductor!
Fun Fact
Establishing bonds with older generations can be beneficial to kids. They can be great role models and positive influences, providing children with cultural and family history. Kids will probably even learn a fun game or two!
Episode 129
New Neighbors
Mr. Pteranodon is annoyed when some hadrosaurs move in next door! The new neighbors are a family of Lambeosaurus, who have crests that hoot – and too loudly, as far as Dad is concerned. After a rocky start, the Pteranodon and Lambeosaurus families agree on terms they can both live with and become fast friends.
Fun Fact
Lambeosaurus was a giant, plant-eating hadrosaur that lived in North America during the Late Cretaceous. It is best known for its hatchet-shaped crest that is believed to have produced bellowing sounds.
Don’s Collection
Don and new neighbor, Lily Lambeosaurus, stay at Pteranodon Terrace while the other kids take a day trip to the Big Pond. Don shows off his knowledge of the area to an admiring Lily as they search for more items for his collection.
Fun Fact
Ecosystems are a dynamic complex of plant, animal and microorganisms that all share the same habititat. One cannot exist without the other.
Episode 130
Long Claws
Buddy, Tiny and Mom make a play date with Petey Peteinosaurus to ride the Dinosaur Train to meet Arlene Archeopteryx, a bird from the family of the oldest birds ever! The kids are excited to learn that Arlene is a bird and a dinosaur.
Fun Fact
Archaeopteryx, the earliest known bird, is a great example of the close relationship between birds and dinosaurs. It is the oldest known bird dating from the Jurassic and has a mix of dinosaur and bird features.
Tank’s Sleep Over
Shiny and Don stay at home, and we get to see that just because they don’t always ride with Buddy and Tiny on the Dinosaur Train doesn’t mean that they are not having fun. An adventure into a local cave leads to a marvelous and brilliant discovery.
Fun Fact
Virtually all the same diamonds and gems that we know of today were also present in during the Mesozoic. The type of minerals that are present during their formation will give each gemstone its particular color.
