Britain's oldest dinosaur to be released

November 3, 2009
Britain?s oldest dinosaur to be released

Thecodontosaurus. Photo by Ben Jones

(PhysOrg.com) -- After 210 million years of being entombed in rock, the Bristol Dinosaur is about to be released, thanks to a Heritage Lottery Fund grant awarded to the University of Bristol.

The Bristol Dinosaur - Thecodontosaurus antiquus - is the oldest-known dinosaur in Britain and one of the oldest in the world. When Thecodontosaurus was first discovered in 1834 it was only the fourth dinosaur ever to be discovered, anywhere.

Since discovery of the University’s specimen at Tytherington Quarry in the 1970s, the fossilised remains of the Bristol Dinosaur have largely remained entombed within the rock. The Heritage Lottery Fund grant will at last allow the dinosaur to be excavated and then displayed for all to see.

Nerys Watts, Head of Heritage Lottery Fund South West, said: “The remains of the Bristol Dinosaur are of international scientific and heritage importance, offering a chance for us to further understand what our world was like 200 million years ago. Alongside the scientific research, this project will enable local people to learn about one of the city’s most important, but least well known, residents.”

Over the years about 500 bones have been removed and those found so far show the presence of males, females and juveniles. However, much work remains to be done. About four tons of bone-bearing rock awaits further research and inspection in the laboratory.

Professor Mike Benton from the University of Bristol, one of the world’s leading experts on dinosaurs, said: “This award from HLF will mean that the preparation laboratory can be expanded and a specialist technician employed to oversee the removal of bones from the rock.

“It will also mean more volunteers can be recruited and trained in the extraction process and there will be opportunities for young people from local schools to learn skills in and conservation.”

A new Education Officer will visit local schools and work together with Bristol City Museum & Art Gallery, Explore At Bristol and the City of Bristol College to introduce local history to a wide audience in and around Bristol.

Britain?s oldest dinosaur to be released

Excavating the bones

During the three years of the project, a complete skeletal reconstruction of the dinosaur will be attempted for the first time. The team is also committed to finding further resources to build a permanent exhibit in the Bristol City Museum & Art Gallery, with the dinosaur - or possibly a herd of dinosaurs - as a centrepiece, together with full details of how it was found and studied.

The Heritage Lottery Fund and the University of Bristol will launch commencement of the Bristol Dinosaur Project today [3 November] at Bristol City Museum & Art Gallery. Visiting children from local schools will be able to talk to the scientists about dinosaurs - and the Bristol dinosaur in particular.

Thecodontosaurus antiquus is one of the most primitive in the world, lying at the very base of the dinosaur family tree. During the Triassic the kangaroo-sized, plant-eating species lived in herds on lushly vegetated islands around Bristol. The outlines of these islands can still be seen today in the shape of the land - Bristol’s famous Downs was one such island.

The first remains of the Bristol Dinosaur were discovered in 1834 at Durdham Down, Bristol, but were destroyed when the museum was hit in a WWII bombing raid. Further remains were found at Tytherington Quarry in the 1970s and it is these that are at the heart of the current research project.

Provided by University of Bristol (news : web)


Rank 5 /5 (1 vote)
Related Stories
Relevant PhysicsForums posts
  • Protease cleavage
    created6 hours ago
  • Pertubance in a model
    created13 hours ago
  • Cancer drugs and Alzheimer's, Oh my!
    created21 hours ago
  • Squishing cells
    created22 hours ago
  • Any books/articles for evolutionary stable strategy models in humans?
    createdFeb 09, 2012
  • Science behind the bore feeling?
    createdFeb 09, 2012
  • More from Physics Forums - Biology

More news stories

Employers feel no love for unscrupulous practice of 'service sweethearting'

A new study led by two Florida State University marketing professors finds that some frontline service employees who are rewarded for hikes in customer loyalty and satisfaction also may engage in "service ...

Other Sciences / Economics & Business

created 7 hours ago | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 4

A frank discussion of the power law and linking correlation to causation

(PhysOrg.com) -- Michael Stumpf a mathematics professor at Imperial College in London, and Mason Porter a lecturer at Oxford have teamed together to write and publish a perspective piece in Science regarding the in ...

Other Sciences / Mathematics

created 13 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (2) | comments 2 | with audio podcast report

The question of life in the ancient world

There’s a general feeling that we don’t get the Greeks – ancient or modern. Many, including heads of state like Angela Merkel, visibly shake their head in exasperation, rightly or wrongly, at ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created 12 hours ago | popularity 1.3 / 5 (3) | comments 4

Sonic Cradle lands spot in TED exhibition

A Simon Fraser University graduate student project that melds music, meditation and modern technology has landed a rare spot as an exhibit at TEDActive 2012 in Palm Springs, California this month.

Other Sciences / Other

created 9 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Chilean miners' rescue capsule on show in London

The capsule used to rescue Chilean miners trapped underground for two months goes on display Saturday at the Science Museum in London -- the first time it has been seen in Europe.

Other Sciences / Other

created 11 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


Google users warned of threat to smartphone wallets

Users of Google smartphone wallets were being warned on Friday that there is a way to crack pass codes intended to thwart thieves from going on illicit shopping sprees.

Anonymous knocks CIA website offline (Update)

The website of the Central Intelligence Agency was inaccessible on Friday after the hacker group Anonymous claimed to have knocked it offline.

Complex wiring of the nervous system may rely on a just a handful of genes and proteins

Researchers at the Salk Institute have discovered a startling feature of early brain development that helps to explain how complex neuron wiring patterns are programmed using just a handful of critical genes. ...

New error-correcting codes guarantee the fastest possible rate of data transmission

Error-correcting codes are one of the triumphs of the digital age. They’re a way of encoding information so that it can be transmitted across a communication channel — such as an optical fiber o ...

The power of estrogen -- male snakes attract other males

A new study has shown that boosting the estrogen levels of male garter snakes causes them to secrete the same pheromones that females use to attract suitors, and turned the males into just about the sexiest ...

Putting the squeeze on planets outside our solar system

(PhysOrg.com) -- Using high-powered lasers, scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and collaborators discovered that molten magnesium silicate undergoes a phase change in the liquid state, abruptly ...