Dinosaur bone discovered at park
A bone bed was discovered at the Prince George's County Dinosaur Park in Laurel
By Rachel Duncan
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LAUREL, Maryland (WBAL) — A bone bed was discovered at the Prince George’s County Dinosaur Park in Laurel.
The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission on Wednesday announced a recent discovery of a bone bed, a term used by paleontologists when bones of one or more species are concentrated within an area.
Officials said the discovery is the first of its kind in Maryland since 1887.
“The discovery of this rare dinosaur fossil and bone bed marks an extraordinary milestone in the field of paleontology and opens a window into our ancient world and to the species that once roamed this land,” said Peter Shapiro, chairman of the Prince George’s County Planning Board.
The discovery dates back to a mistake in 2014. A worker using heavy machinery accidentally chipped a large ironstone rock.
“What they knocked off was a small piece of rock that exposed a large bone,” said paleontologist JP Hodnett.
It took years to realize that large bone is believed to belong to a massive dinosaur.
“It appears that it may be this dinosaur or something fairly closely related to this. This is called Acrocanthosaurus, it’s a large predatory dinosaur,” said paleontologist Tom Hultz.
Dinosaur Park is a public park that is property of M-NCPPC, and the Prince George’s County Department of Parks and Recreation provides a variety of educational experiences where the public can assist park staff during community digs.
Fossils found at Dinosaur Park are 115 million years old (Early Cretaceous period), occurring approximately 50 million years before the Tyrannosaurus rex.
Dinosaur Park is also home to Astrodon johnstoni, the Maryland state dinosaur and the largest species found east of the Mississippi River.
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