Allosaurus fossil

Some objects in The Children’s Museum’s collection are donated or purchased, but this one was “field collected” by staff that excavated it out of the ground!

 

Nicknamed “Kevin” after the excavator driver who uncovered it in 2020 during the museum’s annual dinosaur dig at the Jurassic Mile® in Wyoming, this nearly complete Allosaurus specimen is exceptional in a number of ways. The leg block was uncovered first, but this would eventually lead to the discovery of much of the rest of the skeleton of this individual over the following dig seasons. The fossilized bones are semiarticulated, meaning they remain connected as they were in life. They display several pathologies—infections and fractures—which are fairly common in theropod dinosaurs due to their fast-paced lives as predators.

 

While it is difficult to determine exactly how this Allosaurus obtained these injuries, they likely occurred while attempting to hunt prey. Perhaps the most exciting recent discovery occurred in the prep lab, where staff found evidence of skin impressions still visible in the sandstone matrix! Visit the R. B. Annis Mission Jurassic Paleo Lab to see paleontologists actively cleaning and uncovering more of Kevin in person.