• What? Where? How? Why?
• Dinosaurs of a Different Color
• Baby Dinosaurs
• Teeth Tell the Tale
• Living in an Ecosystem
• A Dinosaur Ecosystem
• The Web of Life
• Taking Care of Barosaurus
• How to Find Out More

What? Where? How? Why?

Who wants to know about dinosaurs? Everyone does--especially kids! And Dinosaur National Monument is a great place to learn about dinosaurs:

Q: What kinds of dinosaurs have you found at Dinosaur National Monument?
A: We've found Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Camarasaurus, Barosaurus, Allosaurus, Ceretosaurus, Stegeosaurus, Camptosaurus and Dryosaurus.

Q: Why don't you have Tryannosaurus Rex?
A: T-rex lived during a different time, during the Cretaceous Period, millions of years after our dinosurs. Our dinosaurs are almost twice as old!

Q: How many dinosaur bones have you found?
A: At 34 tons, Apatosaurus is the heaviest. Diplodocus is the longest at 85 ft.

Q: How many dinosaur bones have you found?
A: You can see over 1,600 individual bones in the Dinosaur Quarry, but we've found hundreds more, as well as several complete skeletons which are on exhibit in museums around the country.

Q: Where did you find the bones?
A: In a place where a river buried the dinosaurs with sand and mud after they died. This burial is what helped preserve the bones as fossils.

Q: Why did the dinosaurs become extinct?
A: We are still not sure. Some scientists think the dinosaurs may have died out because of a large asteroid that hit the earth causing a dusty cloud that blocked out the sun for months. Without enough sunlight a lot of plants and animals-including all the dinosaurs--died.

Q: Are there any dinosaurs living today
A: No, but birds may be related to them. Look closely at a bird foot or footprint and compare it to one from a dinosaur like Allosaurus.

Dinosaurs of a Different Color: No one knows what color dinosaurs were; fossils do not tell us about color of a dinosaur's skin. We do know that animals living today have colors and patterns that help them hide, attract mates, or warn other animals to stay away. Some have spots, stripes and even bright colors. It is likely that dinosaurs had some bright colors and patterns too. Allosaurus was a large meat-eating dinosaur that once lived here.

Baby Dinosaurs: Fossils from baby dinosaurs are not found very often. Their bones were small and easily broken up. A few have been discovered here at Dinosaur National Monument, however, including a young Stegosaurus the size of a large dog. We have also found bones of a baby Diplodocus which can still be seen on the Quarry wall. Not long ago the tiny skeleton of a Camptosaurus was carefully uncovered. Its small size indicates that this little dinosaur was still inside the egg when it was fossilized. This Camptosaurus embryo, which as an adult could have grown up to 50 feet long, was small enough to fit in the palm of your hand!

Teeth Tell the Tale: The best way to know what a dinosaur ate is from looking at its teeth. Meat-eaters had sharp teeth for cutting and tearing flesh. Plant-eaters needed teeth that could nip off tough leaves and branches.

Living in an Ecosystem: Dinosaurs were just one member of something called an ecosystem that existed 150 million years ago. An ecosystem is an area made up of plants and animals, as well as non-living parts such as sun, soil, and water. Think about the ecosystem you live in. What does it include?

You might have thought of trees, rivers, insects, flowers, rocks, birds or many other things. These are what make up the ecosystem you depend on to live.

A Dinosaur Ecosystem: Dinosaurs were part of an ecosystem that is now extinct-that means it no longer exists. Ecosystems can changr over time, and the one the dinosaurs lived in is gone. Fortunately, pieces of that ecosystem, called fossils, are buried in the rocks along with dinoisaur bones. Paleontologists at Dinosaur National Monument look for these fossils to learn more about the world the dinosaurs lived in. So far, they have found the remains of frogs, turtles, salamanders, mammals, fish, trees, ferns, snails, and clams- as well as dinosaurs. From these clues, we think the ecosystem of this area was flat, dry and warm, with a wide river winding across the land. One of the reasons we try and learn more about the dinosaurs and how they lived is because the better we understand ecosystems of the past, the better we understand our own ecosystem.

The Web of Life: Animals and plants in an ecosystem help support each other by providing what each needs to live. This is called the web of life. It means all things are connected-just like the strands of a spiders web. Light from the sun and minerals from the soil enable plants to make food. Plants are food for plant-eating animals, and plant-eaters are food for meat-eaters. Some animals eat both plants and meat.

Taking Care of Barosaurus: Did you know that even dinosaurs need protection? That's right, mighty Barosaurus needs your help! One way that you and your family are helping to protect the dinosaurs is through national parks like Dinosaur National Monument. Part of our job is to take care of the bones and other fossils which are found here so we can learn everything we can from them. That's why visitors are not allowed to collect a fossil if they find one. Fossils are also protected by law so kids like you can see them-right here-right where the dinosaurs lived!

How to Find Out More: The Dinosaur Nature Asscosiation sells books, posters and videos avbout dinosaurs at the visitors center in DInosaur National Monument. For a free catalog listing informational products on dinosaurs and other resources of the monument, write to the Dinosaur Nature Association at 1291 E. Highway 40, Vernal, Ut 84078, or phone toll-free, 1-800-845-DINO.