T. Rex Found in Montana—Dig Goes Interactive

John Roach
for National Geographic News

May 14, 2004

Dinosaur hunters often regale the world with news of their exotic discoveries after the fact—bones of ancient giants pulled from a hillside in Madagascar, chipped from the ice in Antarctica, dug from the pampas of Patagonia.

Now the world is invited along as a team of paleontologists excavate a Tyrannosaurus rex from the siltstone at a ranch in eastern Montana. All they need to do is log on to Unearthing T. rex.

"Our favorite part of our job is what happens in the field—being there as the scientific secrets are revealed," said Peter Larson. A veteran T. rex hunter, Larson is president of the Black Hills Institute of Geological Research in Hill City, South Dakota.

"We always enjoy sharing this process with other fossil enthusiasts, and we thought the Web site would be the best and coolest way for people all over the world to experience what we're experiencing," he said.

The dig site is at a private ranch. Its owners and location are being kept private until near the end of the excavation, which began Monday. Larson said he expects the dinosaur to be fully excavated within three weeks.

The dinosaur, nicknamed Wyrex, was first discovered in May 2002 by the ranch owner and an amateur fossil collector, who encountered a mysterious bone. They contacted Larson, whose institute specializes in dinosaur excavations, to identify it. Larson said it was a toe of T. rex.

"Not far from the original toe bone, parts of the pelvis, both legs, and tail were awaiting discovery. From just this much information, we realized Wyrex was worth not only excavation but also our Web site," Larson said.

The Web site is being updated daily from the field. As the excavation unfolds, the team will use videos, photographs, slide shows, an interactive bone map, and other features to illustrate what they are seeing.

In addition, visitors to the site can send comments to the paleontologists, participate in a discussion forum, and seek the opinion of dinosaur experts virtually interacting with the dig team.

Thomas Holtz, a geologist and T. rex expert at the University of Maryland in College Park, said he is excited at the opportunity for the general public to experience the science of this excavation via the Internet.

"They are not the first team to do it for a paleo dig, but it's not standard practice yet, and it does help the public learn more about how the field of paleontology works," said Holtz, who is not a member of the dig team. "And the specimen itself looks to be very good."

Intact Fossil

Excavation of the fossil to date gives Larson and his colleagues confidence that the dinosaur may be mostly intact. The exposed parts are what paleontologists describe as "articulated," meaning they are in the same relative positions as they were in life.

"This is always a good sign, as it assists in the study of the particular specimen and in the study of Tyrannosaurus rex in general," Larson said. "Also, the fossils' preservation seems very good, which means minute details may indeed be preserved."

In particular, Larson and his colleagues are hoping that the fossil may include bits of dinosaur skin or perhaps yield an answer to question of whether T. rex had feathers.

Given the wealth of T. rex fossils already found—more than 30 to date—Holtz said that "what new specimens are primarily providing with T. rex is aspects of populations: How much variation was there in the population at the same time?"

Comparing this fossil with other T. rex specimens will help researchers answer questions about differences between males and females, growth rates, how their bodies evolved, and social interactions within the species and other dinosaurs.

Other questions the excavation may answer include: What injuries or diseases did this particular specimen have? What was its last meal? Did it die of disease or struggles with other dinosaurs? Was its carcass fed on and if so, by what?

"We can't rule out there will be something no one has thought of yet," Holtz said. "That's always the most exciting thing."

Feared Carnivore

T. rex was among the largest meat-eating dinosaurs that ever roamed the Earth. It lived during the late Cretaceous period, about 68 to 65 million years ago, walking on two legs and ripping its prey apart with sharp teeth and a powerful jaw.

The dinosaurs grew up to 40 feet (12 meters) long and 20 feet (6 meters) tall and weighed 7 tons or more. They lived in temperate forests, where they dined on plant-eating dinosaurs. Fossils have been found in western North America.

Some scientists have suggested that T. rex was closely related to birds and may have had feathers covering its body.

Preliminary investigations of the fossil suggest it is a lightly built young adult male, Larson said. "As we dig, the science of this specimen will unfold," he said.

Other T. rex finds by Larson's institute include the specimen called Sue, which is 80 percent complete and on display at Chicago's Field Museum of Natural History. The institute also excavated the T. rex Stan, which is about 70 percent complete and on display at the Black Hills Institute.

Those who miss out on, or want more after, the Wyrex interactive dig can log on to the Web site of the Museum of the Rockies at the University of Montana in Bozeman. The museum will be broadcasting their dinosaur-hunting activities this summer.

"I think we will be doing a lot of Webcasting in the future," said John Horner, the museum's curator and a T. rex expert. "Our new dinosaur hall is being set up to show our excavation in real time during the summers."