A remarkable dinosaur fossil was recently unearthed at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. This herbivore’s remains are not just any find; they’re the oldest and deepest dinosaur fossil ever discovered in the city, lying 763 feet beneath the museum’s parking lot.
The discovery occurred during a geothermal drilling test aimed at transitioning the museum’s energy source. While exploring the bedrock, museum crews stumbled upon what appears to be vertebrae belonging to a 67.5 million-year-old dinosaur, likely similar to the thescelosaurus, a plant-eater that thrived during the Cretaceous period. Back then, Denver was a lush landscape filled with tropical swamps and dense forests.
Curator of Geology, James Hagadorn, expressed the significance of this find. He said, “This fossil provides a rare glimpse into the ecosystem that existed just before the mass extinction wiped out the dinosaurs.”
The fossil also resembled the larger edmontosaurus, another herbivore that once roamed alongside formidable predators like the Tyrannosaurus rex. Bob Raynolds, a research associate at the museum, remarked on how special this discovery is. “In my 35 years here, we’ve never had such a chance to study the deep geological layers beneath Denver in such detail. This fossil’s discovery is nothing short of magical,” he stated.
Past construction projects in the Denver area have led to similar finds. For example, a triceratops skeleton was discovered in Highlands Ranch in 2019, and bone fragments were found when Coors Field was being built in 1994, inspiring the Rockies’ mascot, Dinger.
This fossil is now being showcased in the museum’s “Discovering Teen Rex” exhibit, which features a juvenile T. rex fossil unearthed by young explorers in North Dakota.
With ongoing discoveries and advances in paleontology, the excitement around dinosaur fossils continues to grow. Recent studies indicate that fossil evidence helps scientists understand the changing climates and ecosystems of prehistoric Earth. As researchers delve deeper into history, each new find sheds light on the past and adds to our understanding of how life has evolved.
For more insights on dinosaur discoveries, check the details from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.
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