Photographer Darren Tanke

Gorgosaurus libratus, RTMP 91.36.500

• This photograph is by Darren Tanke of the first dinosaur skeleton he has mounted, completed in mid 1996. It is now on display in the TMP galleries.
• The specimen was found by Dr. Phil Currie and Darren. Phil found one ankle bone and asked Darren to dig it up. As Darren removed the fossil, he realized the ankle bone was connected to the leg bone, and the leg bone was connected the thigh bone, and the thigh bone was connected to the rest of the nearly complete skeleton.
• The subadult specimen is one of the most complete tyrannosaurid skeletons ever found worldwide. It is complete except for
  1. distal pubic boot and ischia
  2. left forelimb
  3. several pedal phalanges
  4. approx. 2/3 of the gastralia (not used in the mount).
• Specimen catalog number is RTMP 91.36.500 (located at the Royal Tyrrell Museum).
• Excavated from quarry 200, Dinosaur Provincial Park formation, Campanian (upper Cretaceous, approx. 76 Ma) in age.
• The black scale bar on the mount is 10 cm in length.
• The specimen measures 5.2 meters (17 feet) from tip of the nose to the tip of the tail.
• The skeleton is mounted as found, except for the left hind leg. The head pulled back over the spine is the typical "death pose" that most tyrannosaurids have been found in. The pose is caused by post mortem contraction of the posterior neck ligaments. The tail is also often found pulled over the spine.
• The specimen has a fibula that was fractured in life and healed (see rightmost picture above). The animal also had other minor injuries, typical of most tyrannosaurid specimens.
• The fracture in the ilium was not there in life, nor was it inflicted by scavenging after death. It is due to the normal processes of rock movement after fossilization.

Leidyosuchus canadensis

These photographs are of the fossil skull of the crocodile Leidyosuchus canadensis (the species of the live animal in the left photograph is Homo sapiens sapiens, familiar name "Darren Tanke," photographed by Matt Vickaryous). The upper jaw contained 14 teeth and the lower jaw was missing. The specimen was found in Bonebed 47, Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada, Dinosaur Park Formation. Although small by modern standards (note the penny in the right picture), it is typical of the crocs found in Dinosaur Provincial Park.

Struthiomimus, RTMP 90.26.1

This skull, collected close to Drumheller, Alberta, Canada, is currently undergoing preparation. The black object labled "Pentax" in the right picture is a camera lenscap.

Collecting

Airlift
Airlift	Haul
Stream A	Stream B

AIRLIFT:
• The use of helicopters is a last resort. In this case the heavy block (approx. 1800 lbs.) was at the bottom of a steep-walled canyon and this was the most practical and safe way to pack it out.
• The block contained hadrosaur footprints (RTMP 94.158.1) found at Weed Creek near Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Note the lenscap in the photograph of the footprint.
• A word from out sponsor: funding for this helicopter lift was provided by Edmonton, Alberta lawfirm Cruickshank Karvellas and arranged by Mr. Tom Owen, lawyer and amateur paleontologist.

  HAUL:

• This photograph shows the packing out of the Gorgosaurus specimen shown at the top of the page.
• The block on the trailer contains the head, hind legs and body of the Gorgosaurus.
• Other blocks (visible in the industrial garbage sled) contain more of Gorgosaurus and parts of a hadrosaur found nearby.
• Note the heavy equipment: a pickup with a heavy trailer, an industrial garbage sled, and a bulldozer. Combined with the helicopter in the airlift photographs, one can see that packing out specimens can be hard, heavy work.

  STREAM:

• Many people have the impression that dinosaur bones are found only in hot, dry badlands, or similarly desolate places. These photographs are of the streambed of Pinto Creek near Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada. The exposed rocks are part of the Wapiti Formation. The Pipestone Creek Pachyrhinosaurus bonebed was found in terrain identical to this.
• Stream A shows a bone fragment near the backpack, and Stream B shows a femur fragment underneath the cigarette package. These are typical of the scrappy remains found in this locality.

Daspletosaurus, RTMP 94.143.1

These photographs, taken in January, 1997, are of a Daspletosaurus skull collected in 1994 at Dinosaur Provincial Park. The skull is laying on its top, with the teeth of the upper jaws (maxilla) pointing up. The large bone resting between the two halves of the jaw is the right dentary (lower jaw). The white strips in the middle of the brown fossils are labels showing what kind of bone each fossil is. Note the visible serrations along the front edge of each tooth in the top right picture (circled in red in the thumbnail image).

Footprint Cliff

This spectacular dinosaur footprint site is located at Smoky River Coals Ltd., near Grande Cache, Alberta, Canada. The outcrop is not perfectly vertical but is inclined at about 55 to 60 degrees. This is a huge location, with Darren, approximately 6 ft. tall, providing scale. Quadrupedal Tetrapodosaurus tracks are abundant at this site. There are also small and large theropod tracks. The formation dates to the middle Cretaceous (Aptian/Albian).