Posted on 06/17/2008 9:24:05 AM PDT by george76
A newly discovered batch of well-preserved dinosaur bones, petrified trees and even freshwater clams in southeastern Utah may provide fresh clues about life in the region some 150 million years ago.
The Bureau of Land Management announced the find Monday, calling the quarry near Hanksville "a major dinosaur fossil discovery."
Several weeks of excavation have revealed at least four long-necked sauropods, two carnivorous dinosaurs and possibly a stegosaurus, according to the BLM. Nearby, there are also animal burrows and petrified tree trunks six feet in diameter. It doesn't contain any new species - at least not yet - but offers the chance to learn more about the ecology of that time, said Scott Foss, a BLM paleontologist.
The fossilized dinosaurs are from the same late Jurassic period of those at Dinosaur National Monument and the Cleveland-Lloyd quarry near Price.
It could be a decade or so before the full importance of the Hanksville quarry is known, Foss said.
"It does have the potential to match the other major quarries in Utah,"
(Excerpt) Read more at dailynews.com ...
The first person to post a picture of Helen Thomas should be suspended for a month!
Helen is from Utah? Whadda ya know!
Damn, what the hell is that?
I'm betting on warmer then it is now...
Watch this same area be rich in oil, natural gas or shale oil and this is a ruse like some freaking lizard that is endangered to not go after the energy.
A “major” dinosaur. Petrifying, isn’t it?
Sorry...did it before I saw your post. I just couldn’t help it.
how did dead dinosaurs wind up 30000 ft under salt domes to make oil if they are found a few ft under ground
That is cool. My favorite part of the country. My brother and I backpacked all over the central part of Utah.
That's Rep. Sleestak (D-PA). The other one is a prehistoric monster, probably a prostisaurus disgustus.
LOL.
Hope there’s no oil around there...
Indeed. And why haven't these dinosaur bones in Utah turned into oil?
Team discovers dinosaur fossils near Hanksville
*******************EXCERPT**********************
In three weeks of excavating the preserved river channel near Hanksville, a team from the Burpee Museum of Natural History in Rockford, Ill., found four long-necked sauropods, two carnivorous dinosaurs and a possible herbivorous Stegosaurus.
"We have not had a discovery of this magnitude in many, many years," BLM Utah Paleontologist Dr. Scott Foss said. "They're just scratching the surface. The potential is great."
The Hanksville-Burpee Quarry is at least 145 million years old and contains the fossilized remains of dinosaur skeletons, animal burrows and large petrified tree trunks, Foss said.
The sandstone quarry has kept the fossils "exceptionally well preserved," he said. Some fossils have had to be put back together, but many were preserved as complete pieces.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.