Dinosaurs
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How to Make a Dinosaur Bonebed
It is often assumed that dinosaur paleontologists are interested only in getting the fossils they discover out of the ground as quickly as possible. This is not true. Paleontologists generally take great care to document and catalogue every fossil removed from a dig site, because the position and s...
October 21, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
The Allosaurs Make a Comeback
I have always felt a bit sorry for Allosaurus. It was one of the top predators in what would become North America during the Jurassic, but the fearsome tyrannosaurs of the late Cretaceous are much more popular. In fact, the popularity of Tyrannosaurus and its kin has created the impression that the...
October 20, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
How Dinosaurs Got a Grip on Climbing Hills
About 199 million years ago, on a small patch of land that is now preserved in the present-day African nation of Lesotho, there was an inclined slope next to a riverbed. Within hours, days, or even weeks of each other, several different dinosaurs climbed up and down the slope, leaving their footpri...
October 19, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Dinosaur Sighting: A Stegosaurus in Paris
Our latest Dinosaur Sighting comes to us from our very own Sarah Zielinski, who writes for the Surprising Science blog here at Smithsonian. During a recent visit to Paris, Sarah spotted this Stegosaurus outside the Museum National D'Histoire Naturelle, and while she did not see anyone on it while s...
October 16, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Darwinopterus, a Transitional Pterosaur
The discovery of new kinds of feathered dinosaurs regularly makes the news these days, but it is important to remember that modern vertebrate paleontology encompasses much more than the search for the origin of birds. Indeed, this week scientists described an equally-spectacular fossil that fills i...
October 15, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Early Bird Archaeopteryx Grew More Like A Dinosaur
Modern birds grow amazingly fast. After hatching, many species grow to adult size in a matter of days to weeks. But a new study published in the journal PLoS One suggests that birds did not always exhibit the same rapid rate of growth. By looking at chips of bone taken from the legs of some of the ...
October 14, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Traces of Earth Shakers and Tiny Feet
Even though some of the largest dinosaurs get the most attention, dinosaurs actually came in a variety of sizes. This past week paleontologists announced two discoveries that emphasize just how large, and how small, some dinosaurs were.From Plagne, France came the announcement of the largest dinosa...
October 13, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
What Dinosaurs Would You Like to See in Jurassic Park 4?
When I want to watch a movie but am not sure what I'm in the mood for, I usually pop in one of the Jurassic Park DVDs. I am not going to argue that they are classic cinema, but it is pretty fun to see dinosaurs "brought back to life" through puppetry and CGI, even if the series became increasingly ...
October 09, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
A Prehistoric Crime Scene
In 1996, researchers in Canada's Dinosaur Provincial Park recovered the partial left jawbone of a large tyrannosaur. Numerous remains of tyrannosaurs had been found from the location before, but this one was special. Embedded in the bone was the tooth of a second tyrannosaur.This specimen sat in a ...
October 08, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Looters Destroy Dinosaur Nest Sites
Earlier this week I wrote about a spectacular discovery made in Tamil Nadu, India: dozens of dinosaur eggs preserved in what may have been an ancient nesting ground. Word quickly spread about the discovery, but now it looks like scientists may never get to fully study the site. Since the time the d...
October 07, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Alioramus altai: A New, Multi-Horned Tyrant
It has been a good month for tyrannosaur research. We have been introduced to the comparatively tiny tyrannosauroid Raptorex, have learned that Tyrannosaurus probably suffered from a parasitic infestation similar to one seen in living birds, and now a team of paleontologists led by Stephen Brusatte...
October 06, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
"Treasure Trove" of Dinosaur Eggs Found in India
Last week the BBC reported that a team of geologists from Periyar University stumbled upon dozens of fossilized dinosaur eggs in the state of Tamil Nadu, India.The geologists had been excavating a riverbed when they discovered layer upon layer of dinosaur eggs measuring 5 to 9 inches in diameter. T...
October 05, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
The Dimetrodon in Your Family Tree
Wherever you find dinosaurs, chances are that Dimetrodon is close by. The sail-backed creature is a staple of museum displays, boxes of sugar-saurus cookies, and sets of plastic dinosaurs, and I have to admit that it certainly does look dinosaur-like. Yet appearances can be deceiving. Not only was ...
October 02, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Dino Blog Carnival #12 - Disappearing Mayans, Academic Snubbing, Vacationing Paleontologists and Skeleton for Sale
Apocalypto: Can the extinction of the dinosaurs shed light on the disappearance of the Mayans? Some scientists believe that the 110-mile diameter Chicxulub crater in the Yucatan Peninsula is a remnant of the asteroid that smacked into Earth 65 million years ago and precipitated the downfall of th...
October 01, 2009 |
By Mark Strauss
Tyrannosaurus Suffered From Bird Disease
By now it should not surprise anyone that birds and theropod dinosaurs were closely related. Numerous discoveries have revealed that many "bird" characteristics, like feathers, first evolved in dinosaurs and were passed on to the avian descendants of one group of theropods called coelurosaurs. Tyra...
September 30, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Darwin the Dinosaur
For the past several years the Walking With Dinosaurs live show has been enthralling audiences around the world with its life-size dinosaur puppets, but next week will see the opening of another impressive dino-spectacle that will soon be touring the United States.Called "Darwin the Dinosaur," the ...
September 29, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Dinosaur Sighting: Tyrannosaurus in Denver
Our latest Dinosaur Sighting (and a special Monday edition since Friday brought the exciting news of Anchiornis) comes from the Denver Botanical Gardens, where this year's fall maze is a Tyrannosaurus carved out of a cornfield. This bit of artistic gardening coincides with the park's current "Juras...
September 28, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Feathers Before Archaeopteryx
Ever since the first skeleton of Archaeopteryx was discovered in 1861, the feathered dinosaur has been considered the oldest bird. During the last several decades, however, scientists have found that many "bird" features, such as feathers, first appeared among theropod dinosaurs. What defines a bir...
September 25, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
New Book: The Great Dinosaur Discoveries
There is no shortage of dinosaur encyclopedias available today. Each is organized a little differently and is aimed at a different audience, but there is a lot of overlap among them. The Great Dinosaur Discoveries, written by paleontologist Darren Naish, is a wonderful exception to this trend.Rathe...
September 24, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
Did "Raptor" Killing Claws Evolve For Climbing?
In one of the early scenes of Jurassic Park, the fictional paleontologist Alan Grant terrorizes a child visiting his dig site with a Deinonychus claw. If the dinosaurs were still alive they would have used the enlarged claw on their second toes to rip open the boy and eat his guts, Grant says, a fa...
September 22, 2009 |
By Brian Switek
