Scientists aren't able to determine which species of dinosaur the 67-million-year-old vertebra belonged to, but it was likely a small herbivore.
Rick Wicker/Denver Museum of Nature and ScienceA core taken from the museum’s parking lot contained a dinosaur fossil that’s more than 67 million years old.
The Denver Museum of Nature and Science hosts an array of fossils and bones from the time before humans walked the Earth. The latest addition to the institution’s collection was found in an unexpected place: beneath its very own parking lot.
Museum officials just announced that a 67-million-year-old vertebra was discovered during a drilling project on the grounds in January. While scientists studied the core samples that were collected, they happened to find the prehistoric bone — and now it’s on display inside the museum.
The Denver Museum Makes An Unlikely Find In Its Own Parking Lot
In January, construction workers carried out a drilling project at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science to determine the viability of installing a geothermal heating system. A drill bored a two-inch-wide hole deep into the ground beneath the parking lot, and scientists at the museum took the opportunity to analyze the core samples and take a look at the geology of the land that Denver sits upon.
Rick Wicker/Denver Museum of Nature and ScienceThe dinosaur fossil was found incidentally during geothermal testing.
Within a section of the core taken from 763 feet beneath the ground, the scientists spotted a small dinosaur vertebra.
Bob Raynolds, the Earth Sciences Research Associate at the museum, said in a statement: “In my 35 years at the museum, we’ve never had an opportunity quite like this — to study the deep geologic layers beneath our feet with such precision. That this fossil turned up here… is nothing short of magical.”
Although there are plenty of fossils in the Denver area, it was incredibly lucky that one turned up in the two-inch core.
“Finding a dinosaur bone in a core is like hitting a hole in one from the Moon,” James Hagadorn, the museum’s curator of geology, told the Associated Press. “It’s like winning the Willy Wonka factory. It’s incredible, it’s super rare.”
Which Dinosaur Did The Fossil Belong To?
According to a recent study published in Rocky Mountain Geology about the unlikely find, this fossil dates back 67.5 million years to the Late Cretaceous period. The asteroid impact believed to have brought about the dinosaurs’ demise occurred around 66 million years ago.
“This fossil comes from an era just before the mass extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs, and it offers a rare window into the ecosystem that once existed right beneath modern-day Denver,” Hagadorn explained.
Rick Wicker/Denver Museum of Nature and ScienceScientists look over the cores taken from beneath the parking lot.
Found 763 feet below ground, the fossil is both the oldest and deepest dinosaur fossil ever discovered in the city of Denver. It also suggests there may have been a more diverse range of prehistoric species in the region than previously thought.
Because this small vertebra is the only piece of the dinosaur that was found, there’s no way to tell exactly which species it came from. However, scientists believe it likely belonged to a small, plant-eating dinosaur based on the bone’s structure and morphology. The creature probably lived in a heavily vegetated, swampy environment.
The fossil is now on display in the museum’s “Discovering Teen Rex” exhibit.
Despite the excitement the fossil sparked, the museum currently has no plans to continue searching for dinosaur bones beneath its parking lot.
“I would love to dig a 763-foot hole in the parking lot to excavate that dinosaur, the rest of it,” said Hagadorn. “But I don’t think that’s going to fly because we really need parking.”
After reading about the dinosaur fossil found beneath the parking lot of a Denver science museum, learn about the Quetzalcoatlus, the largest flying dinosaur to ever live. Then, discover 31 fascinating dinosaur facts.
