The excavation of the brachylophosaurus specimen known as Roberta was a great success and congratulations to all who bent their backs to uncover this interesting dinosaur.

The bones of Roberta although pristine to the eye were incredibly fragile. The skull has its left side articulated to its vertebral column. Most of the front limbs are articulated including humerus to scapula and also the very delicate wrist bones. We had a small amount of skin impression on the forelimbs and we may see more elsewhere as preparation continues in future.

In the future we want to study the possible sexual dimorphic characters of this skeleton versus our other Brachylophosaurs. The skull and some other parts of Roberta seem more gracile than other specimens we have collected. Also the bone preservation on Roberta is quite amazing and it seems the composition is closer to 'original' bone than mineralized rock. We would like to study the role of anaerobic bacteria in the burial and preservation process. When this is combined with a more detailed study of local geochemical and groundwater conditions throughout time then we can have a greater understanding of what brings us these remarkable dinosaur specimens from the Judith River Formation.

Copyright 2003 - JRDI photos.