Dinosaur Dispatch
The Bighorn Basin in north central Wyoming is home to numerous fossil deposits. Working in its outcrops, paleontologists have discovered a multitude of dinosaur bones and tracksites. Today, research continues in the region in an effort to learn more about dinosaurs and other forms of prehistoric life.
Montgomery College journalism student Michelle Coffey was invited to join a paleontology dig in the Bighorn Basin led by Dr. Matthew Carrano, the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History's Curator of Dinosauria. Coffey shares her dinosaur dig experience with Smithsonian.com in a series of dispatches from the road and on site.
Read updates from Coffey's dinosaur dig adventure below.
Dinosaur Dispatch: Day 14
The paleontology team bids a fond farewell to Wyoming’s Big Basin
By Michelle Coffey
Dinosaur Dispatch: Days 9, 10 and 11
A new site and more digging yields a dinosaur discovery
By Michelle Coffey
Dinosaur Dispatch: Days 6, 7 and 8
The team survives the Death March dig and makes an essential stop in Thermopolis
By Michelle Coffey
Dinosaur Dispatch: Days 3 and 4
The paleontology team is finally in place. After setting up camp, the dig begins. Fossils are found and dinosaur tracks investigated
By Michelle Coffey
Dinosaur Dispatch: Day 1
Michelle Coffey moves from biology class to the Bighorn Basin and prepares for her first dinosaur dig
By Michelle Coffey
