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Dinosaurs

Underside of preserved tail section, displaying paler plumage, numerous decay products, and an associated ant.

New Research

This 99-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Tail Trapped in Amber Hints at Feather Evolution

The rare specimen provides new insights into how feathers came to be

Philanthropist David M. Rubenstein (left) in conversation with National Museum of Natural History Kirk Johnson.

The Natural History Museum’s National Fossil Hall Is Getting a Full Facelift

Museum director Kirk Johnson gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the new dinosaur hall, home to the T-Rex

A still from Jurassic Park.

You Could Soon Roam With Dinosaurs at a Realistic (Animatronic) Jurassic Park

Experience the awe of dinosaurs in this planned outdoor exhibition

Theropods, the dinosaurs Gates studied, hail from the Triassic period.

A Surprising New Theory of How Dinosaurs Got So Huge

Those species with adorned skulls increased in body size faster than those without

Say hello to the West Bijou Site – the United States' newest National Natural Landmark

Trending Today

The Newest National Landmark Is Chock-Full of Dinosaur History

The West Bijou Site is home to a snapshot of the dinosaurs’ extinction

Cool Finds

Collection of Fossilized Poo Certified as World’s Largest

George Frandsen’s 1,200-piece coprolite collection earns the Florida man a spot in Guinness World Records

The Field Museum's famed T-Rex Sue may be long dead, but she still requires a lot of TLC.

Preserve and Protect: How Paleontologists Care for Their Long-Dead, High-Maintenance Stars

Fossil collections are where the science of paleontology truly lives. Valuable dino bones must be treated accordingly

The well-known dinosaur skeleton known as "Big Mama" has been hiding a secret.

New Research

Fossilized Dinos Are Bones Turned to Stone—But Sometimes, Part of the Original Dino Survives

Every fossilized skeleton is a unique snowflake. We now know that some contain biological bits of tooth and claw

New Research

133-Million-Year-Old Pebble Discovered to Be First Fossilized Dinosaur Brain

Found on a beach in England, the small fossil contains blood vessel, cortex and part of the membrane that surrounds the brain

Prehistoric Kickboxing Killer Turkeys

Unlike Jurassic Park’s lizard-like creatures, real raptors had feathers and looked a lot more like their closest relatives — birds

Stegosaurus and Ceratosaurus are among one of the most successful groups ever to have evolved.

Celebrate Dino Month With Three New Dinosaur Books

From PhDs to 4th graders, something for everyone

An extremely well-preserved footprint researchers found on the recent expedition in Denali National Park.

Cool Finds

First Dinosaur Fossils Discovered in Alaska’s Denali National Park

Paleontologists found four small fragments of dino fossils, proving the acidic soil 70 million years ago could have preserved bones

Rendering of Vegavis iaai in flight

New Research

Antarctic Fossil Suggests Ancient Birds Honked Not Sang

Recent analysis of two fossils provides the first evidence of ancient noisemakers

The National Zoo's resident cassowary in 2010.

Behind the Scenes at the National Zoo With the World’s Most Dangerous Bird

The zoo’s cassowary “still has that mysterious aura about her—that prehistoric, dinosaur-walking-through-the-rainforest-quality.”

Paleontologist Shinobu Ishigaki posing next to the newly discovered titanosaur fossil footprint.

Trending Today

Researchers Just Discovered One of the Largest Dinosaur Footprints Ever Found

Uncovered in the Gobi desert, the tracks of the titanosaur show that the beast certainly lived up to its name

A spotted hyena in South Africa's Kruger National Park.

North America Used to Have its Very Own Hyena

These giggly beasts didn’t just roam Africa and the Middle East. They were right here in our backyard

Computer image of Triopticus skull overlaid on the field site where it was found.

Paleontologists Probe the Bonehead that Foreshadowed Domed Dinos

This striking skull shape evolved at least twice. But what was its purpose?

In an artist's interpretation, the forested and warm Late Cretaceous is abruptly destroyed by a six-mile wide asteroid.

Life Bounced Back After the Dinosaurs Perished

The devastation was immediate, catastrophic and widespread, but plants and mammals were quick to take over

The tiny pterosaur from the late Cretaceous was no bigger than a cat and sported a five-foot wingspan.

Cool Finds

Two Pterosaur Finds Are Helping to Untangle Their Family Tree

An intact skull and a pint-sized species offer clues to how these creatures evolved

Including it's current dirt and plaster packing, the skull weighs roughly 2,500 pounds.

Cool Finds

Rare Complete T. Rex Skull Found in Montana

The “Tufts-Love skull” will be cleaned and put on display at the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture

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