We now venture to the early Cretaceous period in the next painting in the “Walking In” series, Walking in the Wessex Formation. One of the richest fossil baring formations in the UK.

130 Million years ago in what will become the Isle of Wight in southern England, it’s cloudy day. The sky smokey from a burning forrest fire in the distance. On the right side of the river the remains of the forrest still smolder while the carnivores are out to scavenge. At the river a Riparovenator, a relative of Baryonx, is out fishing while scaring off a flock of Hypsilophodon. Next to them a pair of Eotyrannus have their eyes set on a burned corpse of a Mantellisaurus already claimed by a Neovenator. Unfortunately a flock of pterosaurs called Istiodactylus are already swarming the corpse, and picking a fight with the Neovenator.

On the right side of the river, untouched by the fire, a large heard of hadrosaurs walks to safer pastures. They are Iguanodon, the first herbivore dinosaur to be named in science, and the second dinosaur to be named in science of all time. They are joined by an armored Polacanthus and more Hypsilophodon. Hitching a ride on the Iquanodon’s backs and scurrying around them are early mammals called Gobiconodon. Within the lush Tempskya forrest, sauropods called Eucamerotus graze. In the river a boy rows his boat with the Iquanadon heard with a Gobiconodon and a Yaverlastes riding as passengers. I made the boy of asian in origin to honor Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, UK’s first Prime Minister of color and Asian decent. Above them all another pterosaurs called Caulkicephalus catch fish. On the banks on the river are other reptiles: on the right the turtle Helochelydra on the right the crocodile Anteophthalmosuchus.

I hope you like it! I am open to feedback and critiques.