As our understanding of dinosaurs evolves, so too do our dinosaur museums. All along the Montana Dinosaur Trail, communities are working to keep their museums exciting and engaging, with new exhibits and experiences to enjoy.
Splashing into Summer
Opening on June 21, the Big Sky Seaway exhibit at Carter County Museum explores a 30-million-year record of marine life evolution in the area. Highlights include displays of Vickie the mosasaur, Pinto the plesiosaur, Dory theXiphactinus (predatory fish), casts of several marine animal skulls, and a full cast skeleton of Enchodus (known colloquially as “the saber-toothed herring”).
Flower Power Fossils
A collection of fossils found in the Glendive area between 1963 and 1971 has been generously donated to the Frontier Gateway Museum for public viewing by Board President, Greg Hagenston.
New in Town
Several Trail museums are unveiling new dinosaur displays this summer. On June 22, a new nodosaur (armored plant-eater) will be revealed at the Depot Museum in Rudyard, with several PhD paleontologists on site to answer questions. Visitors to the Garfield County Museum can find a cast replica of a theropod (carnivorous bipedal dinosaur) that was excavated on BLM land. And Harlowton’s Upper Musselshell Museum is working with the Thermopolis Museum in Wyoming to obtain a display of cretaceous skulls for a special exhibit.
Hello, My Name is _______________
Havre’s H. Earl Clack Museum features a new embryonic lambeosaurus (duck-billed dinosaur) display, from a nest site discovered in Hill County. There’s just one problem: this little dino needs a name! The museum is holding a naming contest Memorial Day through Labor Day, with the winner to be announced in the fall.
The Mummy Returns
Leonardo, the Great Plains Dinosaur Museum’s famous mummified Brachylaphosaurus is presently at a museum in Fukui, Japan, but that won’t prevent you from seeing him. A new display allows visitors to view and even interact with the dinosaur mummy.