Woodland
Park, Colorado
719-686-1820
NEWS
ARCHIVE
2005
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Most Complete Pteranodon Specimen
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Feb. 9, 2005 The Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center in Woodland Park, Colo. is home to many remarkable paleontological discoveries. Among them is the most complete specimen of Pteranodon ever found. It was discovered by Mike Triebold, co-owner and founder of the RMDRC, in Lane County, Kansas in 1991 and recently cited in Prehistoric Times magazine in an article titled “Pteranodon Today” written by David Peters. Pteranodon, one of the largest pterosaurs or flying reptiles, is one of the most famous and popular of Cretaceous period creatures. While there are over 1100 known specimens of Pteranodon most are only isolated elements and not complete specimens. There have been only about six half-skeletons of Pteranodon ever found with partial skulls. The specimen found by Triebold was virtually entirely preserved – a very rare occurrence for any paleontological find. Triebold’s Pteranodon specimen has an 11-foot wingspan and is considered to be female because the small crest barely breaks the dorsal profile. It is currently thought that it was the male Pteranodon that had the very long, prominent crest and a wingspan of up to almost 24 feet. The original specimen was acquired by the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Casts of this Pteranodon specimen along with a life restoration can be viewed at the RMDRC in Woodland Park, Colo. (www.rmdrc.com) along with a cast of a male Pteranodon with a 24-foot wingspan and impressive crest. Since 1992, Triebold Paleontology, Inc. has been providing copies of this skeleton to museums around the world (www.trieboldpaleontology.com).
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© 2005 Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center