NEW THINKING ABOUT MIDDLE JURASSIC DINOSAURS

DINOSAUR RESEARCH -- Brent Breithaupt, left, UW Geological Museum director, and Thomas Adams of Shelby, Iowa a geology/geophysics and zoology/physiology senior, review findings from their research at the Yellow Brick Road Dinosaur Tracksite in the Bighorn Basin. The Wyoming State Geological Survey publication, Wyoming Geonotes, recently showcased articles by Adams and Breithaupt. It marked the first time that articles about undergraduate student research were published in the journal. (UW Photo)

March 18, 2004 -- University of Wyoming undergraduates have discovered new evidence for the existence and behavioral activities of dinosaurs in a time and place never previously suspected in North America.

Research findings at the Yellow Brick Road Dinosaur Tracksite in the Bighorn Basin show that 167 million years ago (Middle Jurassic period) dinosaurs roamed an area of Wyoming that was believed to be underwater. An article about the tracksite research co-written by Thomas Adams of Shelby, Iowa (a geology/geophysics and zoology/physiology senior) and Brent Breithaupt (UW Geological Museum director) appears in Wyoming Geo-Notes No. 78, published by the Wyoming State Geological Survey (WSGS). A previous article about the research methodology and site documentation was published by Adams and Breithaupt in Geo-Notes No. 76.

"The WSGS was especially pleased about the favorable response to the first article (Geo-Notes No. 76)," State Geologist Lance Cook notes, "and we look forward to publishing short articles on student research projects at the University of Wyoming in the future."

Breithaupt says the tracksite study has furnished opportunities for undergraduate students to contribute significantly to scientific knowledge that increases the understanding of an important time period in dinosaur evolution.

"This research provides a snapshot of a unique period millions of years ago," Breithaupt says. "Most of the tracks were made within a short period of time by family packs of carnivorous dinosaurs traveling together. Footprints like those found in the Bighorn Basin allow us to put together stories about dinosaur communities and make new interpretations about Wyoming at that time."

Prior to the discovery of the tracks at the Yellow Brick Road Tracksite and the nearby Red Gulch Dinosaur Tracksite, it was believed that much of what is now Wyoming rested under a large, shallow inland sea, called the Sundance Sea, that covered much of North America approximately 165 million years ago.

Thousands of tracks at the site were apparently made by made by two-legged, three-toed meat-eating dinosaurs that traveled along the mucky shores of the sea.

Since few dinosaur remains from the Middle Jurassic have been found anywhere, the Yellow Brick Road Dinosaur Tracksite research is especially noteworthy, Breithaupt says. "We go from knowing almost nothing about dinosaurs during this time period in Wyoming to this site and others that provide an exciting and expansive resource to understanding the Middle Jurassic. In addition, the trackways are evidence of these animals' activities when they were alive, as opposed to the fossilized bones and teeth."

The opportunity for undergraduate student involvement in the tracksite study is a major benefit of this research. Since 2001, UW students and volunteers have studied thousands of footprints at the site.

Adams, the primary researcher at Yellow Brick Road, took detailed measurements of hundreds of tracks. He documented the site using state-of-the art methodologies, including aerial photographs taken from a blimp and satellite imagery.

"Thomas' research responsibilities were comparable to graduate level work and were very well done," Breithaupt says. "This project will encourage more UW undergraduate students to do research work on Wyoming dinosaurs through the UW Geological Museum."

Adams, who is applying graduate schools throughout the country to study vertebrate paleontology, says his involvement in the museum's research is rewarding.

"The research opportunities provided me with a unique opportunity to study paleontological sites and use techniques which I hope to use as a graduate student.," Adams says. "My classes at the university became much more applicable once I started using the concepts and techniques in the course of this multi-year research project.

"In addition, my association with the museum has allowed me not only to learn about how science is done, but to actually engage in a scientific project of my own design, and to interact with research paleontologists around the world."