Tuesday, June 3, 2008

“Roundup” of dinosaur specimens at Fort Worth Museum of Science and History offers a new look at Texas’ prehistoric treasures

By Pegasus News wire

The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History will salute Texas's own dinosaurs with a roundup of prehistoric proportions this summer as the Museum presents Dinosaur Roundup, an exhibit that will introduce guests to Texas paleontology through an extensive collection of dinosaur specimens and hands-on activities.

Dinosaur Roundup will premiere Saturday, June 7 in the lower level of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, the temporary home of the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History's exhibits during construction on its new facility. The exhibit runs through September 27, 2008 and is open Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Admission to the museum is free from 3 pm to 7 pm on Free Family Fridays on June 27, July 25, August 29 and September 26.

Image provided by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History

A museum guest checks out the cast of a T rex skull.

The exhibit will feature a broad sampling of specimens and their stories from the Museum of Science and History's extensive paleontology collection, including dinosaur bones and fossils found right here in Texas - some of them unearthed within an hour's drive of Fort Worth. Among them, the bones of Paluxysaurus jonesi, a new species that is expected to be named the state dinosaur of Texas.

Remains of the Paluxysaurus jonesi were discovered near Glen Rose and excavated by the Museum in partnership with Southern Methodist University. The bones were originally thought to be from the skeletons of the Pleurocoelus, a sauropod discovered in both Maryland and Virginia. Both Paluxysaurus and Pleurocoelus may be related to the well-known i.

The exhibit will also include the 111-million-year-old skeleton of a Tenontosaurus dossi discovered in 1988 at the James Doss Ranch in Parker County, the cast of a hadrosaur skull found in Flower Mound in 1994, and the cast of a Pawpawsaurus skull found in the Fossil Creek community in 1993. Guests will also get an up-close look at dinosaur specimens from outside Texas, including the cast of a Tyrannosaurus rex skull.

Along with the specimens will be a range of engaging activities for dinosaur lovers of all ages. Guests can make rubbings of fossils, learn how to identify dinosaur bones and work on puzzles that challenge them to construct a dinosaur. Families can even photograph your kids sitting inside the footprint of a dinosaur.

"Since so many dinosaur bones have been discovered in this region, it is not surprising the level of interest in paleontology here," says Dr. Aaron Pan, the Museum's Curator of Science. "This exhibit will offer a great primer on dinosaurs for the very young - and a welcome experience for the many Museum guests who've been awaiting the return of our dinosaur collection."

The specimens in Dinosaur Roundup are part of an extensive collection of paleontological specimens that will ultimately become part of a permanent exhibit when the Museum opens its new facility in the fall of 2009.

Source: The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History

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