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Whether it's something we're uncovering in the field or unveiling in our galleries - here's where you'll find out what happening at the Royal Tyrrell Museum.
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What's New
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T. rex "Followed Its Nose" While Hunting
Scientists study dinosaur smelling skills for the first time and sniff out new angle on bird evolution
Scientists at the University of Calgary and the Royal Tyrrell Museum have provided new insight into the sense of smell of carnivorous dinosaurs and primitive birds. The study, by U of C palaeontologist Darla Zelenitsky and Royal Tyrrell Museum Curator of Dinosaur Palaeoecology François Therrien, is the first time that the sense of smell has been evaluated in prehistoric meat-eating dinosaurs.
The researchers looked at the importance of the sense of smell among various meat-eating dinosaurs (theropods), based on the size of their olfactory bulbs, the part of the brain associated with the sense of smell. Although the brains of dinosaurs are not preserved, the impressions left on skull bones, or the space they occupied in the skull, reveals the size and shape of the different parts of the brain.
"T. rex has previously been labelled a scavenger due to its keen sniffer, although its nose may point to alternative lifestyles based on what we see in living animals," says Zelenitsky. "In living birds and mammals, large olfactory bulbs are found in animals that heavily rely on smell to find meat, in animals that are active at night, or in animals that patrol large areas. Although T. rex wouldn't have passed on scavenging a free dead meal, it may have used its sense of smell to strike at night or to navigate through large territories to find its next victim."
The study also reveals some surprising information about the sense of smell in the ancestors of modern birds.
"Our results tell us that the sense of smell in early birds was not inferior to that of meat-eating dinosaurs," says Therrien. "Although it had been previously suggested that smell had become less important than eye sight in the ancestors of birds, we have shown that this wasn't so. The primitive bird Archaeopteryx had a sense of smell comparable to meat-eating dinosaurs, while at the same time it had very good eye sight. The sense of smell must have become less important at some point during the evolution of those birds more advanced than Archaeopteryx."
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Gaffney Turtle Symposium 2009
at the
ROYAL TYRRELL MUSEUM
(Drumheller, Alberta, Canada)
October 17-18, 2009
Join the Royal Tyrrell Museum from October 17 to 18, 2009 as we celebrate the contributions of Gene Gaffney to the study of fossil turtles with the 2009 Gaffney Turtle Symposium. With an anticipated 50 oral and poster presentations, this will be one of the most exciting palaeontological events of the year. Keynote speakers include Richard Moody and Robert Caroll in addition to a special presentation by Gene Gaffney, who will speak on the history of fossil turtles. Technical sessions will be followed by a field trip to Dinosaur Provincial Park. For more information regarding the 2009 Gaffney Turtle Symposium please click here.
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Prehistoric Arts Contest 2009
Visit ACCESS Kids
The Prehistoric Arts Contest is a fun way for children to learn about ancient life on Earth. Check out the categories and prizes for this year's contest!!
Click here for the information package
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Pregnant Fossil Turtle Now On Display at the Royal Tyrrell Museum...
The fossilized remains of a 75-million-year-old pregnant turtle are now on display in the Discoveries Gallery at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. The specimen, recently described in the British journal Biology Letters by University of Calgary scientist Darla Zelenitski, has shed light on the evolution and reproduction of ancient turtles and tortoises.
"Although it is relatively rare to find the eggs and babies of extinct animals, it is even rarer to find them inside the body of the mother," says Darla Zelenitsky who is an expert on fossil nest sites.
The mother carrying the eggs was initially found by Museum staff in 1999; however, the nest of eggs was not discovered until 2005. It was almost by accident that scientists realized that the fossil turtle was pregnant. "The turtle specimen was partly broken when it was first discovered. It is this fortuitous break that revealed that the fossil was a mother," says François Therrien, a co-investigator of the study and curator of dinosaur palaeoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum.
The remains of at least five crushed eggs were visible within the body of the fossil turtle and a CT scan exposed more eggs hidden under its shell. The turtle, estimated to be about 40 cm long, could have produced around 20 eggs. The nest, which was laid by a different female, contained 26 eggs, each approximately 4 cm in diameter.
Both specimens belong to an extinct turtle called Adocus, a large river turtle that lived at the time of dinosaurs and resembles today's slider and cooter turtles.
The eggs of Adocus are extremely thick and hard, whereas those of most modern turtles are either thinner or soft-shelled. The thick eggshell may have evolved to protect the eggs from dehydration in dry environments or to protect them from voracious predators during the time of the dinosaurs.
"Based on these fossils, we have determined that the ancestor of living hidden-necked turtles, which are most of today's turtles and tortoises, laid a large number of eggs that had hard, rigid shells." says Therrien.
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Something Big is Surfacing at the Royal Tyrrell Museum...
The Royal Tyrrell Museum's newest exhibit, Triassic Giant, features the world's largest marine reptile Shonisaurus sikanniensis. The ichthyosaur measures a spectacular 21 metres in length, and was recovered by a field crew led by the late Dr. Elizabeth (Betsy) Nicholls, former Curator of Marine Reptiles at the museum.
The skeleton was discovered in the early nineties, embedded along the bank of the Sikanni Chief River in northeastern British Columbia. Initially, its astonishing size and isolated location deterred scientists from collecting it. Eventually, recognizing the specimen's scientific value and the potential for damage due to erosion, Nicholls and her colleague, Dr. Makoto Manabe of the National Science Museum in Tokyo, embraced the challenge. Jackhammers, compressors, and rock saws were needed to excavate the creature. It took three field seasons (1999-2001) to excavate this 220 million year old "Triassic Giant" from its remote resting place.
In December 2004 Nicholls and Manabe published a scientific paper naming and formally describing the ichthyosaur. They concluded it was 30% larger than its nearest relative, and was indeed the world's largest-known marine reptile. Lacking teeth, they determined it was the earliest-known example of a giant filter-feeding vertebrate.
The temporary exhibit will be in place until 2010 and includes a tribute to Nicholls, a chronology of the project as well as a summation of research results. The installation is complemented by stunning photographs of the remote location, courtesy of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise. The gallery is over 1700 square feet and visitors will be able to walk the length of the specimen, getting a sense of its true size by referencing a silhouette embedded in the flooring. The specimen remains are set atop the imposing silhouette, still within their plaster field jackets.
The project was recognized by Rolex, which awarded Dr. Nicholls a Rolex Award for Enterprise in 2000 (www.rolexawards.com). The prize provided the financial support necessary to complete preparation of the specimen and garnered global recognition for the project. Nicholls passed away in 2004 after losing her battle with cancer. This incredible creature is her legacy.
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Tracks & Traces |
Find out what's happening behind the scenes, what's new in the galleries, and what special events and programs are coming up at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. It's all in the museum's bi-annual publication Tracks & Traces, along with a full page of kids' activities.
Tracks & Traces is a full-colour publication and subscriptions are free! Click here to subscribe and receive future issues of Tracks & Traces.
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Download This Issue (PDF) |
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Prize Winning Parade Float
The Royal Tyrrell Museum won First Place for Most Creative, as well as, First Place for Best Business or Non Profit in this year's Calgary Stampede Parade.
After becoming Canada's first major museum to receive the official "Go Green" designation from the Business Owners and Managers Association, the Royal Tyrrell Museum opted to build a float that was completely constructed from recycled materials. Pulled by six cyclists, the float featured a stunning sculpture of an Ichthyosaur created by Ottawa artist Alanna Baird. Inspired by the Museum's latest exhibit, "Triassic Giant," the ichthyosaur was made from reclaimed copper and will be recycled as a permanent fixture outside the Museum.
300,000 cheering people lined the streets of downtown Calgary as the pedaling Museum employees synchronized the swimming of their fish helmets, engaging the crowd along both sides of the route.
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Innovations |
Research Scientist Donald Henderson (right) and Field Technician Darren Tanke (left) of the Royal Tyrrell Museum got a little help from Alberta's harsh winter climate this past January when they removed the skull of a Corythosaurus (crested duck-billed dinosaur) from Dinosaur Provincial Park.
Originally excavated near the shore of the Red Deer River in the summer of 2007, the field crew faced the challenge of hauling the 148 lbs. field jacket (a combination of plaster and burlap used to protect the specimen) up a 60-degree slope of rugged badlands. As there are no vehicles allowed in the park, Henderson and Tanke decided to wait until winter so they could pull the specimen across the frozen river with a sled.
"This type of specimen removal has never been tried before and was so successful, I am thinking of doing it again next time a specimen is close to the river and awkward to get out" commented Tanke.
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Eotriceratops - New Discovery |
Royal Tyrrell scientists help discover a new horned dinosaur in Alberta
Drumheller. Scientists at the Royal Tyrrell Museum and the Canadian Museum of Nature recently discovered a new genus of horned dinosaur (ceratopsian) that lived in southern Alberta 68 million years ago.
Found in the Horseshoe Canyon Formation in Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park in central Alberta, the newly-named Eotriceratops xerinsularis (EE-OH-TRY-SAIR-AH-TOPS ZEER-IN-SOO-LAIR-ISS), is the earliest known member of, and possible ancestor to, the well-known Triceratops group. With its large orbital horns and a solid frill, this is also the largest and distinct type of horned dinosaur known in Alberta. It is also the first identifiable dinosaur from this specific area.
"Until we found Eotriceratops, there was a significant gap in our knowledge about the dinosaurs that lived in Alberta and North America from 69 to 67 million years ago," said Don Brinkman, Head Curator at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. "The discovery of Eotriceratops is an important step in helping us understand the history of latest Cretaceous dinosaur evolution on this continent."
Eotriceratops xerinsularis is currently on display in the Royal Tyrrell Museum's new gallery Ceratopsians: the Horned Herbivores. The name Eotriceratops implies that it is an early member of the Triceratops group-the species name, xerinsularis, refers to Dry Island Buffalo Jump Provincial Park, where it was collected. |
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