65-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Skin Fossil Found in Montana Could Possibly Alter Colors Like Chameleons, Will Be Moved to Museum in October

A fossilized skin of a dinosaur was found on a ranch in the east of Jordan, Montana. According to the reports, it belonged to the dinosaur species Edmontosaurus.

Dinosaur Skin Fossil Found in Montana

The dinosaur skin fossil was reportedly 65-million-year-old. It is being meticulously plastered as it is set to be moved into a museum in October. This specific specimen is crucial for archaeologists because a portion of the Edmontosaurus' skin is fossilized.

Dinosaur bones typically only reveal information about a dinosaur's size and structure. However, paleontologists can better understand the species' external appearance when the skin is still present.

Paleontologist Alan Detrich, who discovered the fossils, calculates that the dinosaur would have been 35 feet long. According to him, this dinosaur might have had the same ability as contemporary reptiles like chameleons to change color. He suggested that changing colors like chameleons is an asset if you're 35 to 40 feet long and have a Tyrannosaurus rex looking for you. He added that they also called the dino Peking duck because children often refer to Edmontosaurs as duckbill dinosaurs.

Additionally, eight teeth that experts believe belonged to Nanotyrannus, a predator with a build remarkably similar to the famed T.rex, were also discovered at the location. Nanotyrannus had a similar build as T.rex, but they were a lot smaller.

Rancher Bobby Kerr, who lives close to the location where the dinosaur fossil was found, has been helping the paleontologists with the excavation. He believed they had rolled over the remains in a horseback to transport it.

He said they were hunting for cows, so they didn't know what was there.

Despite the laborious nature of the dig in the sweltering heat, Detrich said he is motivated by the beauty of the landscape, the people, and the mystique surrounding the creatures that had lived here millions of years ago.

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What Is Edmontosaurus?

Edmontosaurus is a genus of hadrosaurid (duck-billed) dinosaur. It has two species, Edmontosaurus regalis and Edmontosaurus annectens. Remains of E. regalis have been found in Western North American rocks from the late Campanian stage of the Cretaceous Period, which occurred 73 million years ago. Meanwhile, E. annectens fossils were discovered in 66 million-year-old strata and dated to the end of the Cretaceous Maastrichtian stage.

Before the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction, Edmontosaurus coexisted with other dinosaurs, including Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus. It was one of the last non-avian dinosaurs to exist.

Edmontosaurus was one of the biggest dinosaurs of its day. MOR 1609 and MOR 1142 were two enormous specimens, likely measuring more than 15 meters (49 feet) in length. They had extremely thick and durable skin, as seen by the various preserved skin and scale patterns! There is no indication that any dinosaurs in this group had feathers.

It is the first dinosaur to have signs of a soft tissue comb on its head, resembling a rooster! T-rex reportedly hunted them, but Edmontosaurus was much faster and could run up to 28 mph.