KU paleontologists set to finish excavation of ‘rare’ young T-Rex

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A group of paleontologists from the University of Kansas is headed back to the site of an extremely exciting and ‘rare’ find.

After eight years, a team of researchers are traveling back to the Hell Creek Formation in Montana where the remains of a juvenile Tyrannosaurus Rex were found.

For two weeks, David Burnham, a preparator of vertebrate paleontology at the KU Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum, and his team of students spent two weeks in 2016 at the dig site, attempting to finish the excavation and gather as much research as possible.

Now, Burnham and his team are back to conduct another site search to ensure they have not overlooked anything.

According to the KU Office of Public Affairs, “Additional fossils will provide meaningful insights into the specimen’s prehistoric past and contribute to understanding of the species’ evolutionary history.”

Only 100 T-Rex fossils have been discovered thus far; of those fossils, only a handful have been juvenile T-Rexs.

But, what sets this particular discovery apart is the nature of the young dinosaur’s teeth.

Researchers said the T-Rex had all its teeth intact in the upper jaw, as well as all its other replacement teeth. They also revealed that the teeth of a young T-Rex are ‘less robust’ and reflect potential differences in adult and young dinosaur dietary habits.

Here is the preliminary report published by KU students about the tooth study in 2018.

“The young tyrannosaur probably had not yet reached its teen years and did not have the same powerful bite as an adult,” Burnham said.

“The KU specimen provides ample evidence indicating the hard life young tyrants endured growing up under the shadow of adult T. rex was difficult and may have required help from cohorts while hunting.”

The final skeleton is expected to be around 15 feet long with a 3-foot skull. And later this year, Burnham and his team plan to publish their findings.

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