Skip to main content
Scientific American
  • Sign In
  • |Newsletters
  • COVID
  • Health
  • Mind & Brain
  • Environment
  • Technology
  • Space & Physics
  • Video
  • Podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Subscribe
  • Current Issue
  • Sign In
  • Newsletters
      • Share
      • Latest

      10 Places You May Catch Paleontologists Digging Up Fossils

      And even if you don't, you'll gaze on fossilized dinosaurs, rhinos and other reptiles in their natural context—instead of in a museum set piece

      • Share on Facebook
      • Share on Twitter
      • Share on Reddit
      • Share on LinkedIn
      • Share via Email
      • Print
      10 Places You May Catch Paleontologists Digging Up Fossils
      Slideshow (10) images
      View
      Credits: Bureau of Land Management

      10 Places You May Catch Paleontologists Digging Up Fossils

        • Share
      • 10. Dinosaur Center Wyoming Dinosaur Center: Thermopolis, Wyoming
        http://www.wyodino.org/; (800) 455-3466 Since excavation began in the early 1990s, about 60 dinosaur fossil sites have been identified... Wyoming Dinosaur Center
      • 9. Petrified Forest Petrified Forest National Park: near Holbrook, Ariz.
        http://www.nps.gov/pefo/; (928) 524-6228 This stretch of petrified forest, which runs along Interstate 40 in Arizona, was first discovered in the 1850s during a military expedition... National Park Service
      • 8. Mygatt-Moore Mygatt-Moore Quarry: near Fruita, Colo.
        www.dinosaurjourney.org; (970) 858-7282 This quarry was first discovered in 1981, when the Mygatt and Moore families were taking a hike and, resting on a break, realized they were sitting on a dinosaur bone... Museum of Western Colorado
      • 7. Mammoth Site The Mammoth Site: Hot Springs, S.D.
        http://www.mammothsite.com/; (605) 745-6017 Since 1974 nearly 60 mammoths--most of them Columbian mammoths--have been identified in this site, along with 47 other species of animals... The Mammoth Site
      • Advertisement
      • 6. Florissant Fossil Beds Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument: Florissant, Colo.:
        www.nps.gov/flfo; (719) 748-3253 Nearly 35 million years ago, this region 35 miles (55 kilometers) west of Colorado Springs, was buried in 15 to 20 feet (4.5 to six meters) of volcanic mud, petrifying the redwood trees growing there... National Park Service
      • 5. Dinosaur State Park Dinosaur State Park: Rocky Hill, Conn.
        http://www.dinosaurstatepark.org/; (860) 529-8423 This lattice work of dinosaur tracks was discovered in the mid 1960s by serendipity... Dinosaur State Park
      • 4. Dinosaur National Monument Dinosaur National Monument: near Jensen, Utah
        http://www.nps.gov/dino/; (435) 781-7700 Photo: Attached at SciAmPhotosDinosaurNational
        Photo Credit: National Park Service The most dramatic presentation of fossils at Dinosaur National Monument was closed to public view in mid 2006, after shifting earth damaged the visitor center...
      • 3. Dinosaur Quarry Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry: near Price, Utah
        http://www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/fo/price/recreation/quarry.html; (435) 636-3600 Portions of 79 dinosaurs have been identified at this ancient bone bed, located 150 miles (240 kilometers) southeast of Salt Lake City... Bureau of Land Management
      • Advertisement
      • 2. Berlin-Ichthyosaur Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park: near Austin, Nev.
        http://parks.nv.gov/bi.htm; (775) 964-2440 This remote site, 160 miles (255 kilometers) southeast of Reno, is believed to have been part of a coastline during the late Triassic period... Nevada Division of State Parks
      • 1. Ashfall Fossil Beds Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park: near Royal, Neb.
        http://ashfall.unl.edu/; (402) 893-2000 Roughly 260 skeletons, representing 17 species, have been identified at this northeastern Nebraska site, first discovered in the early 1970s... University of Nebraska State Museum
      • Previous
      • Next
      of
      • View all
      • Link copied!
      • 10. Dinosaur Center
      • 9. Petrified Forest
      • 8. Mygatt-Moore
      • 7. Mammoth Site
      • 6. Florissant Fossil Beds
      • 5. Dinosaur State Park
      • 4. Dinosaur National Monument
      • 3. Dinosaur Quarry
      • 2. Berlin-Ichthyosaur
      • 1. Ashfall Fossil Beds
      Advertisement
      Advertisement

      Newsletter

      Get smart. Sign up for our email newsletter.

      Sign Up

      Support Science Journalism

      Discover world-changing science. Explore our digital archive back to 1845, including articles by more than 150 Nobel Prize winners.

      Subscribe Now!Support Science Journalism

      Follow us

      • instagram
      • soundcloud
      • youtube
      • twitter
      • facebook
      • rss

      Scientific american arabic

      العربية
      • Return & Refund Policy
      • About
      • Press Room
      • FAQs
      • Contact Us
      • Site Map
      • Advertise
      • SA Custom Media
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Your US State Privacy Rights
      • Your Privacy Choices/Manage Cookies
      • International Editions
      Scientific American is part of Springer Nature, which owns or has commercial relations with thousands of scientific publications (many of them can be found at www.springernature.com/us). Scientific American maintains a strict policy of editorial independence in reporting developments in science to our readers.

      © 2023 Scientific American, a Division of Springer Nature America, Inc.

      All Rights Reserved.

      Scroll To Top

      Support science journalism.

      Scientific American paper issue and on tablet

      Thanks for reading Scientific American. Knowledge awaits.

      Already a subscriber? Sign in.

      Thanks for reading Scientific American. Create your free account or Sign in to continue.

      Create Account

      See Subscription Options

      Continue reading with a Scientific American subscription.

      You may cancel at any time.

      Sign in.