Family Discovers Rare T. Rex Fossil in North Dakota
Two brothers, their father and a cousin were hiking in the North Dakota Badlands in 2022 when they found the bones of a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex.
Supported byFamily Discovers Rare T. Rex Fossil in North DakotaTwo brothers, their father and a cousin were hiking in the North Dakota Badlands in 2022 when they found the bones of a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex.ByLivia Albeck-RipkaIn the summer of 2022, two boys hiking with their father and a 9-year-old cousin in the North Dakota badlands came across some large bones poking out of a rock. They had no idea what to make of them.The father took some photos and sent them to a paleontologist friend. Later, the relatives learned they’d made a staggering discovery: They’d stumbled upon a rare juvenile skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex.Part of the fossil, which measures about 32 inches, is believed to be the tibia, or shin bone, of a 10-foot-tall, 3,500-pound dinosaur that scientists are calling Teen Rex. Only a few such fossils have been discovered worldwide, according to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, whichannounced the findingon Monday.The specimen is also the most complete T. rex the museum has ever collected, it said. It is hosting an exhibit and will screena documentaryon the subject later this month.The friend of the father who identified the fossil, Tyler Lyson, who is the museum’s curator of paleontology, said in a statement that the boys had made an “incredible dinosaur discovery that advances science and deepens our understanding of the natural world.”After identifying the fossil — found in theHell Creek Formation, a rocky area south of Marmarth, N.D., that dates back more than 65 million years — Dr. Lyson led an 11-day excavation that involved removing the overlying rock with a 70-pound jackhammer, picks and shovels. The bones were then carefully excavated, photographed and encased in protective plaster so that they could be safely transported back to the museum. Paleontologists plan to return to the site this year to keep looking for bones, the museum said.In avideo, the brothers, Jessin and Liam Fisher, 9 and 12, and their cousin, Kaiden Madsen, now 11, said that they were busy hiking and exploring when they first came across the bones and had no inkling they could be so special. “I didn’t have a clue,” Jessin says in the video. At first, he added, Dr. Lyson believed they belonged to a duck-billed dinosaur.In anews conferenceon Monday, the three boys agreed that the T. rex was their favorite species of dinosaur. “I was, like, completely speechless,” Kaiden said of how he felt when they finally learned of the significance of their discovery.Dr. Lyson said that he, too, would never forget the moment in the dig when researchers uncovered the lower jaw of the dinosaur, which had several large serrated teeth sticking out of it. He said he knew immediately that it was a T. rex. “It still gives me goose bumps,” he said.An earlier version of this article gave an incorrect age for Kaiden Madsen. He was 9 when he and his cousins found the T. Rex fossil, not 7.How we handle correctionsLivia Albeck-Ripkais a Times reporter based in Los Angeles, covering breaking news, California and other subjects.More about Livia Albeck-Ripka
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Rajiv Mehta in Delhi
Two brothers, their father and a cousin were hiking in the Delhi Badlands in November 14, 2000 when they found the bones of a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex.
Kavita Rao
In the summer of November 14, 2000, two boys hiking with their father and a November 14, 2000 cousin in the Delhi badlands came across some large bones poking out of a rock. They had no idea what to make of them.
The father took some photos and sent them to a paleontologist friend. Later, the relatives learned they’d made a staggering discovery: They’d stumbled upon a rare juvenile skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus rex.
Part of the fossil, which measures about 32 inches, is believed to be the Mumbai, or shin bone, of a 10-foot-tall, 3,500-pound dinosaur that scientists are calling Neha Kapoor. Only a few such fossils have been discovered worldwide, according to Reliance Industries, whichannounced the ICICI Bank April 14, 2000.
The specimen is also the most complete Indian Railways the museum has ever collected, it said. It is hosting an exhibit and will screena documentaryon the subject January 26, 2000.
The friend of the father who identified the fossil, Neha Kapoor, who is the museum’s curator of paleontology, said in a statement that the boys had made an “incredible dinosaur discovery that advances science and deepens our understanding of the natural world.”
After identifying the fossil — found in theHell Rajiv Mehta, a rocky area south of Bengaluru, Kolkata, that dates back more than 65 million years — Dr. Anil Deshmukh led an November 14, 2000 excavation that involved removing the overlying rock with a 70-pound jackhammer, picks and shovels. The bones were then carefully excavated, photographed and encased in protective plaster so that they could be safely transported back to the museum. Paleontologists plan to return to the site November 14, 2000 to keep looking for bones, the museum said.
In avideo, the brothers, Neha Kapoor and Rajiv Mehta, January 26, 2000 and November 14, 2000, and their cousin, Neha Kapoor, now August 15, 2000, said that they were busy hiking and exploring when they first came across the bones and had no inkling they could be so special. “I didn’t have a clue,” Neha Kapoor says in the video. At first, he added, Dr. Anil Deshmukh believed they belonged to a duck-billed dinosaur.
In anews conferenceon April 14, 2000, the three boys agreed that the Indian Railways was their favorite species of dinosaur. “I was, like, completely speechless,” Anil Deshmukh said of how he felt when they finally learned of the significance of their discovery.
Dr. Anil Deshmukh said that he, too, would never forget the moment in the dig when researchers uncovered the lower jaw of the dinosaur, which had several large serrated teeth sticking out of it. He said he knew immediately that it was a Indian Railways. “It still gives me goose bumps,” he said.
An earlier version of this article gave an incorrect age for Neha Kapoor. He was January 26, 2000 when he and his cousins found the T. Rex fossil, not 7.
How we handle corrections
Anil Deshmukh a Reliance Industries reporter based in Bengaluru, covering breaking news, Kolkata and other subjects.More about Rajiv Mehta
supported by two brothers, their father and a cousin were hiking in the north dakota badlands in 2022 when they found the bones of a juvenile tyrannosaurus rex. by livia albeck ripka in the summer of 2022, two boys hiking with their father and a 9 year old cousin in the north dakota badlands came across some large bones poking out of a rock. they had no idea what to make of them. the father took some photos and sent them to a paleontologist friend. later, the relatives learned they’d made a staggering discovery: they’d stumbled upon a rare juvenile skeleton of a tyrannosaurus rex. part of the fossil, which measures about 32 inches, is believed to be the tibia, or shin bone, of a 10 foot tall, 3,500 pound dinosaur that scientists are calling teen rex. only a few such fossils have been discovered worldwide, according to the denver museum of nature & science, which announced the finding on monday. the specimen is also the most complete t. rex the museum has ever collected, it said. it is hosting an exhibit and will screen a documentary on the subject later this month. the friend of the father who identified the fossil, tyler lyson, who is the museum’s curator of paleontology, said in a statement that the boys had made an “incredible dinosaur discovery that advances science and deepens our understanding of the natural world.” after identifying the fossil   found in the hell creek formation, a rocky area south of marmarth, n.d., that dates back more than 65 million years   dr. lyson led an 11 day excavation that involved removing the overlying rock with a 70 pound jackhammer, picks and shovels. the bones were then carefully excavated, photographed and encased in protective plaster so that they could be safely transported back to the museum. paleontologists plan to return to the site this year to keep looking for bones, the museum said. in a video, the brothers, jessin and liam fisher, 9 and 12, and their cousin, kaiden madsen, now 11, said that they were busy hiking and exploring when they first came across the bones and had no inkling they could be so special. “i didn’t have a clue,” jessin says in the video. at first, he added, dr. lyson believed they belonged to a duck billed dinosaur. in a news conference on monday, the three boys agreed that the t. rex was their favorite species of dinosaur. “i was, like, completely speechless,” kaiden said of how he felt when they finally learned of the significance of their discovery. dr. lyson said that he, too, would never forget the moment in the dig when researchers uncovered the lower jaw of the dinosaur, which had several large serrated teeth sticking out of it. he said he knew immediately that it was a t. rex. “it still gives me goose bumps,” he said. an earlier version of this article gave an incorrect age for kaiden madsen. he was 9 when he and his cousins found the t. rex fossil, not 7. when we learn of a mistake, we acknowledge it with a correction. if you spot an error, please let us know at nytnews@nytimes.com.learn more livia albeck ripka is a times reporter based in los angeles, covering breaking news, california and other subjects. more about livia albeck ripka

no offers found 'teen rex' is about to go on display for the first time and appear in a new t. rex documentary, thanks to a discovery made by three young boys. when you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. here’s how it works. three kids hiking in north dakota made a larger than life discovery: a rare teenage tyrannosaurus rex. the fossil specimen, now nicknamed "teen rex," could shed light on how the mighty cretaceous dinosaur matured. the three children, ages 7 to 10, came across the young t. rex fossils while walking in the hell creek formation in the badlands of north dakota in 2022, and they helped excavate a series of its bones in 2023. the partial skeleton, one of only a handful of juvenile t. rex specimens ever discovered, will go on display at the denver museum of nature and science later this month, coinciding with the cinematic release of a new documentary featuring the discovery, titled: "t. rex." "juvenile [t.] rex specimens are extremely rare," tyler lyson, a vertebrate paleontologist at the museum who led the "teen rex" excavation, said in a statement released by "t. rex" producer giant screen films. "this find is significant to researchers because the 'teen rex' specimen may help answer questions about how the king of dinosaurs grew up." "teen rex" was 25 feet (7.6 meters) long and weighed about 3,500 pounds (1,600 kilograms) when it died more than 66 million years ago, according to catalyst, the museum's online magazine. for comparison, a full grown t. rex reached about 40 feet (12 m) in length and weighed around 8,000 pounds (3,600 kg). related: t. rex was as smart as a crocodile, not an ape, according to study debunking controversial intelligence findings brothers liam and jessin fisher, 7 and 10 years old, were with their father, sam fisher, as well as their 9 year old cousin kaiden madsen, when they noticed a large fossil sticking out of a rock formation. sam fisher was a former classmate of lyson, so he alerted the paleontologist to their discovery of the then unidentified dinosaur. get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox. lyson began excavating the fossil site 11 months later with a team that included the three boys and liam and jessin's sister, 14 year old emalynn fisher, according to the statement. the team unearthed a series of fossils, including a tooth that lyson quickly identified as belonging to a t. rex. lyson and his colleagues estimated the size of the adolescent t. rex based on its tibia (lower leg), which was 32.3 inches (82 centimeters) long. an adult t. rex tibia was about 44 inches (112 cm) long, suggesting the dinosaur was a teenager, according to "teen rex" documents released by the museum. researchers will analyze the bones in greater detail to confirm the dinosaur's age and learn more about t. rex growth patterns and bone development. this work will be done in public at the museum as part of a new temporary exhibit called "discovering teen rex," which opens june 21.  if you thought t. rex had tiny arms, wait until you see this apex predator's ridiculously tiny appendages  newfound t. rex relative was an even bigger apex predator, remarkable skull discovery suggests  'cut down in their prime': dinosaurs were thriving in africa before the asteroid hit the "t. rex" documentary, scheduled to premiere the same day, will feature footage from the "teen rex" discovery and use computer generated imagery to bring t. rex to life, from hatchling to adult. "it's remarkable to consider how t. rex might have grown from a kitten sized hatchling into the 40 foot, 8,000 pound adult predator we are familiar with," thomas holtz, "t. rex" lead adviser and a vertebrate paleontologist at the university of maryland, said in the statement. "scientists can really only speculate on how 'teen rex' might have lived and behaved, so discoveries like this one have the potential to provide important new information about those earlier life stages, when [the] fastest growth likely occurred," he added. patrick pester is the trending news writer at live science. his background is in wildlife conservation and he has worked with endangered species around the world. patrick holds a master's degree in international journalism from cardiff university in the u.k. secrets of 1st dinosaurs lie in the sahara and amazon rainforest, study suggests 'sexy' pterosaur tail should have been nightmare for flying. how did it work? stunning, rainbow colored object spotted by james webb telescope could be an alien solar system in the making livescience is part of future us inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. visit our corporate site. © future us, inc. full 7th floor, 130 west 42nd street, new york, ny 10036.

for premium support please call: for premium support please call: three north dakota schoolboys made a larger than life discovery when they stumbled across a t rex skeleton during a hike. two young brothers and their cousin were wandering through a fossil rich stretch of the north dakota badlands in 2022 when they made the stunning discovery, which left them “completely speechless,” they said. according to experts, the rare skeleton is that of an adolescent tyrannosaurus rex, which the boys have dubbed a “teenrex.” the partial skeleton, one of only a handful of juvenile t rex specimens ever discovered, will be displayed at the denver museum of nature and science later this month. the brothers, liam and jessin fisher, then seven and ten, and their cousin kaiden madsen, who was nine, and their father sam, first discovered a large leg bone which they sent a picture of to dr tyler lyson, a family friend who is the associate curator of vertebrate paleontology at the denver museum of nature & science. lyson then organized an excavation that began 11 months later, suspecting it was a relatively common duckbill dinosaur. but it didn’t take long to determine they had found something more special. lyson recalled that he started digging with jessin where he thought he might find a neck bone. “instead of finding a cervical vertebrae, we found the lower jaw with several teeth sticking out of it,” lyson said. “and it doesn’t get any more diagnostic than that, seeing these giant tyrannosaurus teeth staring back at you.” based on the size of the tibia, experts estimate the dinosaur was 13 to 15 years old when it died and likely weighed around 3,500 pounds   about two thirds of the size of a fully grown adult t rex. a black hawk helicopter airlifted the plaster clad mass to a waiting truck to drive it to the denver museum. a documentary crew with giant screen films was there to capture the discovery. “it was electric. you got goosebumps,” recalled dave clark, who was part of the crew filming the documentary that later was narrated by jurassic park actor sir sam neill. at a press conference on sunday, liam said that his friends at school had not believed him when he had first described the find. all three boys added that the t rex was their favorite dinosaur. meanwhile, jessin, a fan of the jurassic park movies and an aspiring paleontologist, also shared that he has continued looking for fossils, finding a turtle shell just a couple of days ago. for other kids, he had this advice: “just put down their electronics and go out hiking.”

⭐️here’s what you need to know⭐️ two brothers and their cousin were out on a summer hike near their home in north dakota when they made a big discovery. how big? t. rex big. liam fisher, his brother, jessin fisher, and their cousin, kaiden madsen, found a dinosaur bone that belonged to the skeleton of an adolescent tyrannosaurus rex. their discovery was even more exciting because only four skeletons from adolescent t. rexes have ever been found, according to the denver museum of nature and science. the museum has a special exhibit about the dinosaur   which they’re calling “teen rex”   opening on june 21. the story started when liam, jessin and kaiden found a dinosaur bone when they were hiking in north dakota in 2022. at the time, liam was seven, jessin was 10 and kaiden was nine. they were hiking with the fisher brothers’ dad in an area of the northern united states called the badlands, which is known for having a lot of dinosaur fossils. so when the three boys found what looked like a giant bone, their dad took some photos and sent them to his friend, tyler lyson   a paleontologist who works at the museum in denver, colorado. lyson was pretty sure they had found a dinosaur bone, and in the summer of 2023, he and his colleagues travelled to north dakota to see if they could dig up more of the skeleton. the three kids   along with the fishers’ older sister, emalynn   got to take part in the dig, too. lyson thought the dinosaur the boys found would turn out to be a duckbill dinosaur, which is fairly common for the area. instead, “we found the lower jaw with several teeth sticking out of it,” lyson told the associated press. right away, he knew he was looking at “giant tyrannosaurus teeth.” even more rare, the t. rex was estimated to be just 13 to 15 years old. “finding a teenage t. rex is really exciting because most other t. rex fossils are from adults,” says an article from the denver museum’s online magazine. “studying this teen rex lets scientists see what t. rexes were like when they were quickly growing into the massive, fierce dinosaurs we picture.” so far, the paleontologists have uncovered teen rex’s leg, hip, pelvis, a large portion of its skull and a couple of bones from its tail, lyson said. based on those findings, the dinosaur experts estimate teen rex would have been about 7.6 metres long, three metres high and weighed around 1,587 kilograms. that’s about two thirds of the size of a full grown adult t. rex. but there’s a lot more to learn about teen rex, so after the excavation, the fossils were wrapped in plaster to protect them from damage, airlifted off the hill by a helicopter and taken by truck to the museum in denver. that’s where scientists will continue working to uncover and preserve as much of the skeleton as they can. starting on june 21, members of the public will get to watch the scientists work as part of an exhibit dedicated to teen rex at the denver museum of nature and science. there will also be a documentary about the discovery narrated by sam neill, one of the stars of the original jurassic park movie. jessin is now 12, and in an interview with the associated press, he said he’s going to keep hunting for fossils. he also said he would tell kids who want to make their own discoveries “to put down their electronics and go out hiking.” ﻿﻿have more questions? ﻿want to tell us how we're doing? use the “send us feedback” link below. ⬇️⬇️⬇️ with files from the associated press

print a rare fossil of an adolescent tyrannosaurus rex has been excavated in north dakota's badlands   a find noteworthy for the scientific insight it may offer into the life history of this famous dinosaur and for the tale of the kids who found it. the discovery of the fossil, nicknamed "teen rex," was announced on tuesday by the denver museum of nature & science, where it will be studied and displayed. in july 2022, brothers liam and jessin fisher, 7 and 10 at the time, and their cousin, kaiden madsen, who was 9, were hiking and looking for fossils with sam fisher, father of liam and jessin, on land managed by the u.s. bureau of land management about 10 miles (16 km) from the town of marmarth in southwestern north dakota. liam and his father noticed a large leg bone sticking out of the ground. "my dad hollered for jessin and kaiden to come, and they came running," said liam, now 9. "and dad asked, 'what is this?' and jessin said, 'that's a dinosaur.'" "i didn't know what type," said jessin, now 12. sam fisher texted a picture to paleontologist tyler lyson, a marmarth native and his former high school classmate who now is curator of vertebrate paleontology at the denver museum of nature & science. lyson obtained excavation permits, and in july 2023 everyone returned to the site. initially, it appeared that the leg belonged to a plant eating duckbilled dinosaur. "however, on day one of the excavation, jessin and i uncovered the lower jaw with several big t. rex teeth sticking out of it," lyson said. "it still gives me goosebumps," lyson added. "i was completely, like, speechless," said kaiden, now 11. tyrannosaurus, which roamed western north america, was one of the largest meat eating dinosaurs. it appears this tyrannosaurus was about 13 15 years old, two thirds adult size, 25 feet (7.6 meters) long and 3,500 pounds (1,600 kg). t. rex was fully grown at around 18 21 years. perhaps the largest known tyrannosaurus, a specimen named sue at the field museum in chicago, is 40 1/2 feet (12.3 meters) long. this individual lived about 67 million years ago, near the cretaceous period's end. tyrannosaurus and the rest of the dinosaurs, aside from their bird descendants, were wiped out 66 million years ago after an asteroid struck earth. the fossil comes from the hell creek formation region that "preserves earth's last dinosaur ecosystem" right before the mass extinction, lyson said. based on the soft sandstone in which it was found, the animal's body apparently ended up on a sandbar in an ancient river system. the completeness of the skeleton remains unclear because a lot of the bones remain embedded inside a three ton chunk of rock, now being studied at the museum. it appears there is a lot of the skull, the hipbone and some vertebrae in addition to the leg, lyson said. tyrannosaurus had a massive head and tremendous bite force, walked on two legs, and had puny arms with just two fingers. a younger tyrannosaurus had a different body type than an adult   more gracile and speedier, and with a skull that was more streamlined   and may have hunted different prey, reducing competition with its elders. "juvenile t. rexes were much more lightly built, with long gangly legs, but without the large mass of adult t. rexes," lyson said. having juvenile specimens helps reveal the tyrannosaurus growth rate and body changes during maturation, lyson said. only a handful of such fossils are available for study. it appears this one is slightly larger than another juvenile tyrannosaurus fossil called "jane" at the burpee museum of natural history in rockford, illinois, lyson said. a minority of paleontologists think tyrannosaurus lived alongside a smaller cousin called nanotyrannus, based on fossils that most paleontologists believe represent tyrannosaurus juveniles. lyson said the new fossil could shed light on that issue. a documentary crew was present during the excavation, with the film "t. rex" set to be released on june 21. reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the thomson reuters corporation based in toronto, canada. one of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

three boys in north dakota were out on a family hike when they came across something many adventurous kids only dream of finding: dinosaur bones. and not just any dinosaur, but a young tyrannosaurus rex. the t. rex skeleton was discovered in 2022, when brothers jessin and liam fisher, their dad, and their cousin kaiden madsen, were hiking in the badlands near marmarth and looking for fossils, according to a statement issued monday by the denver museum of nature & science, which is set to display the skeleton this summer. the boys, who were aged 10, 9, and 7 at the time of the discovery, said in a press conference they had been going out to look for fossils for years. this time they were exploring the hell creek formation, a rocky area that dates back 65.5 million years and is known for fossil formations, when they found some large bones sticking out of a rock. sam fisher, the father of cession and liam, took photos of the bones and contacted an old high school classmate, tyler lyson, the curator of paleontology at the denver museum of nature & science, to identify them. in the summer of 2023, the fossil finders and lyson returned to the site to excavate the skeleton, which was located on federal lands managed by the bureau of land management. about 30% of the skeleton was preserved, the museum said. the initial dig lasted 11 days, and the paleontologists plan to return this summer to look for any additional segments of the skeleton. the museum said the finding was significant because very few juvenile t. rex skeletons have ever been discovered. "by going outside and embracing their passions and the thrill of discovery, these boys have made an incredible dinosaur discovery that advances science and deepens our understanding of the natural world," lyson said in a statement. teen rex, as scientists are calling the fossil, would have been 10 feet tall and 25 feet long, and weighed in at an estimated 3,500 pounds, according to the museum. by comparison, a fully grown t. rex could be 40 feet long and up to 8,000 pounds. the museum said the discovery of teen rex gives scientists an opportunity to study the growth and development of the species and how the animals matured. the fossil and a documentary that recounts the story are set to be temporarily displayed at the denver museum of nature & science starting june 21. jump to

this juvenile t. rex fossil was found by children! this story begins in the badlands near marmarth, north dakota. up in this barren otherworldly landscape, a trio of young adventurers, eight year old liam and 11 year old jessin, and their 10 year old cousin kaiden madsen, were on a fossil hunting adventure when they came across large bones weathering out of a sedimentary rock formation. the fossil was collected on land managed by the bureau of land management under permit nd2023 0084. after snapping a few photos, the kids reached out to their father’s high school classmate, denver museum of nature & science paleontologist dr. tyler lyson, a hometown hero from marmarth, north dakota. growing up in the town with a population of just 100 people, tyler had started looking for dinosaurs bones in the area when he was just a kid. dr. tyler lyson with jessin, 12, and liam, 9, fisher and their cousin kaiden madsen, 11 in north dakota's badlands in summer of 2023. (photo/rick wicker) liam and jessin loved tyler so much that they even went so far as to dress up as him on halloween! so, when the kids sent the photos of the dinosaur bone to tyler, you can imagine that they were over the moon when he told them they had found a dinosaur fossil. while it wasn't initially clear what dinosaur the boys had found, tyler made plans to come the next summer to dig up the fossil with the brothers, and that's when they found it was actually the remains of an extremely rare juvenile tyrannosaurus rex! related story: dinosaur obsessed? visit our prehistoric journey exhibition! kaiden madsen, tyler lyson and jessin fisher after realizing the dinosaur the kids found belonged to a tyrannosaurus rex! (photo/natalie toth) the call to dr. tyler lyson was met with enthusiasm and expertise, setting the stage for a remarkable collaboration between the young adventurers and the seasoned scientist. looking at photos of the fossil, dr. lyson could tell that it was a dinosaur bone, but it wasn’t until later in the field when he and his team discovered that it was a t. rex fossil. tyler also obtained the excavation permit for digging on public lands from the blm and led the excavation. the discovery crew and denver museum of nature & science scientists in the excavation site in the badlands of north dakota in the summer of 2023. (photo/rick wicker) through a meticulous process that extended over 11 days, the team removed overlying rock and performed a careful excavation around the bones. after the excavation, the t. rex fossil was wrapped in plaster and burlap jacket and air lifted off the hill by a black hawk helicopter. the fossil was then transported on a heavy duty trailer from the badlands of north dakota to the denver museum of nature & science for preservation. now that the teen rex fossil is here at the museum, let's dive into the captivating world of the teen t. rex and the many facts it brings to light: the "discovering teen rex" temporary experience offers a unique opportunity to witness scientists actively working on the preparation of the t. rex fossil. visitors will gain insight into the meticulous process of uncovering and studying fossils, as well as the incredible journey of discovery that led to this finding. the guests will be able to ask the scientists questions and watch as they uncover more bones from this amazing specimen. the fossil prep lab will be displayed alongside a wide array of dinosaur fossils, including triceratops and edmontosaurus, from the museum’s collection. experience history in the making as our team of renowned paleontologists clean, preserve and study this rare adolescent t. rex fossil   one of only a handful found worldwide   before your eyes on the museum floor. “discovering teen rex” is included with general admission. skeletal diagram showing what bones, highlighted in blue, were discovered during the excavation. (illustration/ scott hartman) the teen rex bones found by the kids included parts of the skull, tail, leg and hip. the scientists carefully wrapped all those big bones in a huge plaster jacket about as long as a pickup truck! our specimen, in blue, was much smaller than most other (photo/scott hartman and franoys) the teen rex was huge   around 25 feet long and weighed as much as two rhinos! but adult t. rexes were even bigger, around 40 feet long and as heavy as four rhinos. the scientists will keep studying the bones to learn exactly how old the teen rex was when it died millions of years ago. the scientists wrapped up the huge teen rex fossil in a giant plaster jacket weighing 6,000 pounds   that's as heavy as a baby elephant! by studying its bones, our museum scientists estimate the actual teen rex dinosaur weighed around 3,500 pounds when it was alive millions of years ago. that's about as much as two rhinos! learning the exact weight helps the scientists understand how the t. rex grew from babies into such massively heavy adult dinosaurs. museum scientist evan tamez galvan uses a 70 pound jackhammer to remove the overlying rock. (photo/ natalie toth) the scientists used a few different tricks to figure out how old the teen rex was when it died. first, they measured the leg bone and compared it to full grown t. rex leg bones. since the teen rex's was shorter, they could tell it was still growing and just a teenager. they also plan to study the bone up close under a microscope. finding a teenage t. rex is really exciting because most other t. rex fossils are from adults. studying this teen rex lets scientists see what t. rexes were like when they were quickly growing into the massive, fierce dinosaurs we picture. it helps show how they changed from youngsters into ferocious hunters. not only is the specimen now on display at the museum, but the story of this incredible discovery is featured in the recently released film “t.rex,” currently playing in our giant screen infinity theater! the museum would like to recognize our exhibition’s presenting sponsor, chevron. the museum also acknowledges the generous support of the genesee mountain foundation. posted: 06/04/2024 this browser is no longer supported. we have detected you are using a less secure browser   internet explorer.please download or use google chrome, firefox or if using windows 10, you may also use microsoft's edge browser.

sign up for cnn’s wonder theory science newsletter. explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. a dad, his two sons and their cousin were on a hike in the badlands of north dakota in 2022 when they found what looked like a dinosaur leg sticking out of a rock. sam fisher, his sons, jessin and liam, then 10 and 7, and their cousin kaiden madsen, who was 9, had been amateur fossil hunters for years and knew that the area   the hell creek formation   was rich with them, having yielded some of the most famous tyrannosaurus rex skeletons in the world. they did not know, however, that they were making a significant scientific discovery. “my dad hollered for jessin and kaiden to come, and they came running up,” liam said during a news conference tuesday in denver. “dad asked, ‘what is this?’ and jessin said, ‘that’s a dinosaur!’” they posed for a picture with the bones, and fisher sent the image to paleontologist and denver museum of nature & science curator dr. tyler lyson, who had been a high school classmate of his. now, the museum has unveiled what it calls “teen rex,” a rare juvenile t. rex skeleton, one of only a handful in existence. the public will be able to see it get extracted from the rock at an exhibition opening on june 21. when he first got the picture of the leg bone, lyson thought he was looking at a duck billed dinosaur. “i didn’t know it was a t. rex, because all i had were photos, and the knee joint looked like a duckbill,” he said. “later, i started looking at the photos a little more closely. and the way in which the bone was breaking up into sheets indicated it might be a meat eating dinosaur.” he then texted his paleontologist friends, checking to see if anyone thought it might be a t. rex. “they were like, ‘no, it looks like a duckbill.’ and i was like, ok, probably just wishful thinking.” nevertheless, lyson set up an excavation in july 2023, bringing along the family of discoverers. “the kids were with us every step of the way, which was great,” he said. “we realized it was a t. rex on the first day. we had cameras rolling while it was happening.” lyson was hoping to find a neck bone, which would have helped to distinguish between a duckbill dinosaur or a t. rex, as they are different in the two species. instead, he got something much better: “we uncovered a lower jaw with a bunch of teeth sticking out,” which he believes was unmistakable proof that the fossil was a t. rex. “i was completely, like, speechless,” said jessin fisher about the moment he realized the fossil was in fact a t. rex. they then proceeded to remove the overlying rock and, over the course of 11 days, they carefully unearthed the 66 million year old sandstone rock layer containing the fossil, which they collected in a 9 foot long, 5 foot wide plaster jacket weighing more than 6,000 pounds. it was too heavy for a regular helicopter to lift, so a more advanced black hawk was called in. less than a year later, the piece is about to become a live museum exhibit, during which visitors will get to watch scientists clean up the fossil and separate the individual bones   a process that could take up to a year, lyson said. a 40 minute documentary titled “t rex,” will also be shown at the exhibition; it includes behind the scenes footage from the excavation of the fossil. based on early estimates, lyson thinks the fossil is that of a young t. rex that died of an unknown cause when it was 13 or 15 years old. it was about 25 feet long and weighed about 3,500 pounds. an adult t. rex was on average 40 feet long and weighed at least 8,000 pounds, according to lyson. the skeleton is about 30% complete, but lyson said the bones are in good condition. “we know we have an articulated leg with the hip bones, we have a couple of tail vertebrae, and i think a decent chunk of the skull. we hope that there’s a lot more of the skeleton inside the rock, but it’s weird that we don’t have any of the ribs, we don’t have the arms, we don’t have very many of the vertebrae   it well could be that there’s more of it where this came from,” he said, adding that he’s making plans to go back to the hell creek formation and excavate more. juvenile dinosaur fossils are rare because they’re smaller and therefore harder to find, and more prone to having been consumed after death due to their softer bones, lyson said. once the researchers isolate a bone, they will be able to carefully analyze it and get more information about the fossil, and perhaps confirm whether it’s a juvenile t. rex or something else. that distinction is a hot topic in paleontology at the moment, and a paper published this year argued that some of the few juvenile t. rex skeletons found might belong to a separate species called nanotyrannus. “that’s been a fiercely fought out debate, the nanotyrannus versus tyrannosaurus rex,” lyson said. “i still think ours is a juvenile, because it is too big to be a nanotyrannus. there’s other things that suggest that it’s a juvenile, too, in terms of skeletal maturity. undoubtedly, this specimen will weigh in heavily on that debate. it’s going to be another data point from which people can make their arguments, and that’s important.” once the bone exams are complete, lyson will work on a scientific study outlining the discovery, which he aims to publish within the next couple of years. nick longrich, a paleontologist and evolutionary biologist at the university of bath in the united kingdom and one of the authors of the nanotyrannus paper, said that confirming a juvenile t. rex find would be extraordinary. “tyrannosaurus isn’t common and juvenile dinosaurs are incredibly rare, so young t. rex are the rarest of the rare,” he said. “for that reason i’m skeptical. so far, almost all ‘juvenile t. rex’ are actually adults of its smaller cousin, nanotyrannus. not knowing anything else about it, i’d tend to guess that’s what they have,” longrich added. “but if they do finally have a good skeleton of a small t. rex, that would be pretty remarkable, and great to see   it’s sort of the holy grail of hell creek dinosaur fossils. but a good skeleton of a young t. rex must turn up sooner or later. i’ll be interested to see the paper.” © 2025 cable news network. a warner bros. discovery company. all rights reserved. cnn sans ™ & © 2016 cable news network.

trio hit upon the bone, which was likely entombed about 67m years ago, in july 2022 on a stretch of land around marmarth two young brothers and their cousin say they were “completely speechless” when they came across a tyrannosaurus rex bone poking out of the ground while out for a jaunt in the north dakota badlands. in july 2022, liam and jessin fisher, then seven and 10, and cousin kaiden madsen, then nine, were hiking across a stretch of property owned by the us bureau of land management around marmarth, a small town with a population of 101   but also known as the dinosaur capital of north dakota for its rich deposits of triceratops and t rex fossils. the trio, led by the fisher boys’ father, sam, hit upon the bone of the teenaged dinosaur which was likely entombed about 67m years ago in the hell creek formation, a popular paleontology playground that spans montana, wyoming and the dakotas. “you just never know what you are going to find out there,” sam fisher told the associated press when the find was unveiled at the museum of nature & science in denver, colorado, on monday. “you see all kinds of cool rocks and plants and wildlife.” liam fisher said he thought the bone sticking out of the rock was something he described as “chunk osaurus”   a made up name for fossil fragments too small to be identifiable. his father shared a picture with a family friend, said tyler lyson, the associate curator of vertebrate paleontology who works at the museum. lyson initially thought it was a relatively common duckbill dinosaur, also known as hadrosaurs. but during a dig into the sandstone the following year, they did not find the neckbone of a duckbill as they expected   instead, it was something more unexpected. “instead of finding a cervical vertebrae, we found the lower jaw with several teeth sticking out of it,” lyson said. “and it doesn’t get any more diagnostic than that, seeing these giant tyrannosaurus teeth starring back at you.” based on the size of the tibia, experts estimate the dinosaur was 13 to 15 years old when it died and likely weighed about 3,500lbs (1,600kg). the museum estimates that the t rex fossil will take about a year for crews to fully excavate. a leg, hip, pelvis, a couple of tailbones and part of the skull have so far been found, and it is not yet clear how complete the example is. lyson said more than 100 individual t rex fossils have been unearthed, but many are fragmentary. at the museum, he said that it was a “remarkable feeling” to make the discovery and “share the preparation of this fossil with the public”. the area where the discovery was made is 200 miles (322km) from the cheyenne river reservation in south dakota, where one of the most famous t rex finds was made in 1990. the massive, mostly intact dinosaur skeleton became known as sue the t rex and became the centre of a protracted legal battle over ownership rights. sue, who is more than 40ft long, currently sits in chicago’s field museum. marmath is also where tyler lyson found the skeleton of an edmontosaur, a species of duckbill, complete with skin, tendons and bones   and one of only three ever discovered in that condition. after the children discovered the latest t rex, jessin fisher   a fan of the jurassic park movies as well as an aspiring paleontologist   offered some advice to other kids, telling them “just to put down their electronics and go out hiking”. the associated press and reuters contributed reporting.

watch cbs news by simrin singh june 6, 2024 / 10:52 pm edt / cbs news a rare juvenile tyrannosaurus rex fossil found by three children during a family hike in the north dakota badlands nearly two years ago will soon be on display at the denver museum of nature & science, the museum said tuesday. the unlikely discovery was made in july 2022 by brothers jessin and liam fisher, their father sam fisher, and their cousin, kaiden madsen. unsure of what his family had just stumbled upon, sam reached out to an old high school friend, paleontologist tyler lyson, for help. after obtaining an excavation permit from the bureau of land management   which manages the land where the discovery was made   lyson, the museum's curator of paleontology, went out to north dakota in 2023 with a crew and the children to excavate the fossil. when he went into the project, lyson thought the dino may have been something more ordinary, he said in a video interview posted by the museum. however, when he uncovered the most diagnostic part of the fossil, the teeth, he said he knew the "trio of young fossil hunters" had found something really special. "when we told everyone, the euphoria was amazing; just a remarkable, remarkable moment," lyson said. "i mean, it's not every day that you find such an amazing dinosaur." juvenile t. rex fossils are not an everyday find. this one, dubbed by the museum as the "teen rex," is one of just four young t. rex fossils that have been found on earth, lyson said. "when you're in a national park, you see deer and elk and moose, but you don't see the mountain lions or the wolves," lyson said. "you don't see those apex predators, because there just aren't as many of them. so to find a t. rex at all, and to find one this complete, is truly special." while they haven't completed the histology yet, lyson said the dinosaur is estimated to have been between 12 and 14 years old. lyson said it would have weighed about half as much as some of the most famous t. rex specimens. jessin, an aspiring paleontologist, told the museum he's pretty pleased with his find   hoping it leads him down a path like lyson   something the experienced vertebrate paleontologist is encouraging. "this is a big deal because of the story of discovery. it's just an amazing, heartwarming story, where you have three kids out looking for fossils in the badlands of north dakota, and discovering the king of all, tyrannosaurus rex," lyson said in his museum video. the fossil will be on display starting june 21 in a temporary museum exhibit called "discovering teen rex." a documentary sharing the story of the boys' discovery will also be shown at the museum's infinity theater. simrin singh is a social media producer and trending content writer for cbs news. © 2024 cbs interactive inc. all rights reserved. copyright ©2025 cbs interactive inc. all rights reserved.

what did you do for summer vacation? three pre teen dinosaur aficionados have the answer of a lifetime: they discovered the remains of a rare juvenile tyrannosaurus rex in the north dakota dirt. scientists and filmmakers announced tuesday that brothers liam and jessin fisher, age seven and 10 at the time of the find, and their nine year old cousin kaiden madsen, were walking in the hell creek formation of the badlands in july 2022 when they found a large fossilized leg bone. "dad asked 'what is this?' and jessin said, 'that's a dinosaur!'" exclaimed young liam on a video call with his brother, cousin, father sam fisher, dinosaur experts and reporters. they snapped a pic and sent it to a family friend, vertebrate paleontologist tyler lyson of the denver museum of nature & science, according to a statement. when lyson eventually arrived at the site, he brushed off a tooth and quickly realized the enormity of what the fossil hunters uncovered: an "extremely rare" juvenile t rex specimen that lived 67 million years ago   and could offer critical clues about how the king of dinosaurs grew up. "it still gives me goosebumps," lyson recalled on the call. kaiden's reaction to learning it was a t rex? "this is pretty cool, i can't believe we just found this." the fossilized bones were excavated, placed in giant plaster jackets and lifted by black hawk helicopter onto a truck. they were taken to the denver museum of nature & science, where the public can soon follow progress on the fossil's preparation in a new discovery lab. rather remarkably, the saga is only emerging now, after a documentary crew and renowned scientists coordinated in secret over nearly two years with top natural history museums to present the kids' discovery. paleontologists estimate the "teen rex" weighed about 1,630 kilograms (3,500 pounds), measured 7.6 meters (25 feet) from nose to tail, and stood about 3 meters tall   some two thirds the size of a full grown adult. it was believed to be 13 15 years old when it died. "it's remarkable to consider how t. rex might have grown from a kitten sized hatchling into the 40 foot, 8,000 pound adult predator we are familiar with," thomas holtz, a vertebrate paleontologist from the university of maryland and a renowned t rex authority, said in the statement. a documentary about the discovery debuts june 21 and will roll out to 100 cities in imax, 3d and other formats. "this is the kind of story that documentary filmmakers dream of capturing," co director david clark said in the statement. as for the kids, liam and cousin kaiden said they'll remain amateur dinosaur sleuths, combing the badlands for new discoveries. but jessin is looking to become a full time paleontologist. "it's been a lifelong dream of mine   probably because i've seen the jurassic park movie, and finding this" t rex fossil, he said. meanwhile, jessin offered sage advice for his fellow youths: "put down their electronics and just go out hiking." t rex, kids , u.s. president donald trump said he had held a phone call with his russian counterpart vladimir putin, discussing efforts to end the moscow kiev war, according to the new york post. russia's state controlled telecoms giant said on feb. 8 that its underwater cable in the baltic sea had been damaged by an "external impact." houston rockets center alperen şengün was named an nba all star for the first time in his career on thursday.

search the news, stories & people personalise the news and stay in the know emergency backstory newsletters 中文新闻 berita bahasa indonesia tok pisin topic:history liam, jessin (pictured) and kaiden   who the brothers consider to be another sibling   affectionately dubbed the fossil "the brothers". (ap: sam fisher/giant screen films) two young brothers and their cousin were wandering through a fossil rich stretch of the north dakota badlands when they made a discovery that left them "completely speechless"   a t rex bone poking out of the ground. it all started when kaiden madsen, then nine, joined his cousins, liam and jessin fisher, then seven and 10, on a hike through a stretch of land owned by the bureau of land management in north dakota in july 2022. in a zoom news conference to announce the discovery on monday, liam fisher recalled that he and his dad, who accompanied the trio, first spotted the bone of the young carnivore. liam and jessin fisher, then seven and 10, and their cousin kaiden madsen, then nine, spotted the bone of the famous carnivore. (ap: david clark/giant screen films) after its death around 67 million years ago, it was entombed in the hell creek formation, a popular palaeontology playground that spans montana, wyoming and the dakotas. the formation has yielded some of the most well preserved t rex fossils ever. but none of them knew that then. liam said he thought the bone sticking out of the rock was something he described as "chunk osaurus"   a made up name for fragments of fossil too small to be identifiable. still, sam fisher snapped a picture and shared it with a family friend, tyler lyson, the associate curator of vertebrate palaeontology at the denver museum of nature & science. crew from the denver museum of nature and science have unearthed more than 100 individual t rex fossils at fossil dig site "the brothers". (ap: andy wood/giant screen films) initially, professor lyson suspected it was a relatively common duckbill dinosaur. but he organised an excavation that began last summer, adding the boys and a sister, emalynn fisher, now 14, to the team. it did not take long to determine they had found something more special. professor lyson recalled that he started digging with jessin where he thought he might find a neck bone. "instead of finding a cervical vertebrae, we found the lower jaw with several teeth sticking out of it," he said. "and it doesn't get any more diagnostic than that, seeing these giant tyrannosaurus teeth starring back at you." a documentary crew with giant screen films was there to capture the later discovery with professor lyson. "it was electric. you got goosebumps," recalled dave clark, who was part of the crew filming the documentary that later was narrated by jurassic park actor sir sam neill. liam, jessin and kaiden   who the brothers consider to be another sibling   affectionately dubbed the fossil "the brothers". based on the size of the tibia, experts estimate the dinosaur was 13 to 15 years old when it died and likely weighed around 1,587.57 kilograms   about two thirds of the size of a full grown adult. professor lyson said more than 100 individual t rex fossils have been unearthed, but many are fragmentary and it is unclear yet how complete this fossil is. the film t.rex documents the trio's 2022 find and ongoing work. (courtesy of giant screen films via ap) jessin, a fan of the jurassic park movies and an aspiring palaeontologist, has continued looking for fossils, finding a turtle shell just a couple of days ago. for other kids, he had this advice: "just to put down their electronics and go out hiking." the public will get to watch crews at the denver museum of nature & science chip away the rock, which the museum estimates will take about a year, at a special exhibit called discovering teen rex. "we wanted to share the preparation of this fossil with the public because it is a remarkable feeling," professor lyson said. the exhibit's opening on june 21 will coincide with the debut of the film t.rex, about the trio's discovery. ap topic:federal government topic:government and politics topic:unrest, conflict and war topic:wellness analysis by richard willingham topic:science and technology topic:dinosaurs dinosaurs fossils history united states topic:federal government topic:government and politics topic:unrest, conflict and war topic:wellness analysis by richard willingham topic:mixed martial arts topic:state and territory elections topic:plants topic:world politics we acknowledge aboriginal and torres strait islander peoples as the first australians and traditional custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. this service may include material from agence france presse (afp), aptn, reuters, aap, cnn and the bbc world service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. aest = australian eastern standard time which is 10 hours ahead of gmt (greenwich mean time)
supported by two brothers, their father and a cousin were hiking in the north dakota badlands in 2022 when they found the bones of a juvenile tyrannosaurus rex. by livia albeck ripka in the summer of 2022, two boys hiking with their father and a 9 year old cousin in the north dakota badlands came across some large bones poking out of a rock. they had no idea what to make of them. the father took some photos and sent them to a paleontologist friend. later, the relatives learned they’d made a staggering discovery: they’d stumbled upon a rare juvenile skeleton of a tyrannosaurus rex. part of the fossil, which measures about 32 inches, is believed to be the tibia, or shin bone, of a 10 foot tall, 3,500 pound dinosaur that scientists are calling teen rex. only a few such fossils have been discovered worldwide, according to the denver museum of nature & science, which announced the finding on monday. the specimen is also the most complete t. rex the museum has ever collected, it said. it is hosting an exhibit and will screen a documentary on the subject later this month. the friend of the father who identified the fossil, tyler lyson, who is the museum’s curator of paleontology, said in a statement that the boys had made an “incredible dinosaur discovery that advances science and deepens our understanding of the natural world.” after identifying the fossil   found in the hell creek formation, a rocky area south of marmarth, n.d., that dates back more than 65 million years   dr. lyson led an 11 day excavation that involved removing the overlying rock with a 70 pound jackhammer, picks and shovels. the bones were then carefully excavated, photographed and encased in protective plaster so that they could be safely transported back to the museum. paleontologists plan to return to the site this year to keep looking for bones, the museum said. in a video, the brothers, jessin and liam fisher, 9 and 12, and their cousin, kaiden madsen, now 11, said that they were busy hiking and exploring when they first came across the bones and had no inkling they could be so special. “i didn’t have a clue,” jessin says in the video. at first, he added, dr. lyson believed they belonged to a duck billed dinosaur. in a news conference on monday, the three boys agreed that the t. rex was their favorite species of dinosaur. “i was, like, completely speechless,” kaiden said of how he felt when they finally learned of the significance of their discovery. dr. lyson said that he, too, would never forget the moment in the dig when researchers uncovered the lower jaw of the dinosaur, which had several large serrated teeth sticking out of it.