Did dinosaurs live in Montana?
Roughly 164 to 65 million years ago, from the late Jurassic to the Cretaceous, present-day Montana was home to many dinosaurs, including the Camptosaurus, Apatosaurus, Allosaurus, and several well-known genus, such as the Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus Rex.
The first dinosaur remains ever found in North America were discovered in Montana in 1854 near Judith Landing near the Missouri River Breaks, and the world’s first Tyrannosaurus Rex was found near Jordan, Montana, in 1902.
Over the past 100+ years, over 75 dinosaur fossils have been discovered in eastern Montana.
Today, scientists continue to uncover dinosaur bones in eastern Montana that provide insight into how present-day Montana looked millions of years ago and how dinosaurs of this region lived.
What kind of dinosaurs lived in Montana?
What prehistoric creatures lived in Montana?
Montana was home to a variety of dinosaur species, from lesser-known ones such as Deinonychus, Mosasaurs, and Plesiosaurs, to more well-known creatures like Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Below is a non-exhaustive list of the dinosaurs that lived in Montana:
Camptosaurus
Apatosaurus
Diplodocus
Allosaurus
Deinonychus
Mosasaurs
Plesiosaurs
Maiasaura
Edmontosaurus
Triceratops
Tyrannosaurus Rex
What was the largest dinosaur in Montana?
Steveoc 86 And Scott Hartman, http://www.skeletaldrawing.com/, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The largest dinosaur that lived in present-day Montana was the Saurapod, an enormous, swaying, stout-legged herbivore from the late Jurassic period. The Saurapod was also the biggest dinosaur of the Mesozoic Era.
Two members of this breed lived in Montana – the Apatosaurus and Diplotocus.
What is the largest dinosaur fossil found in Montana?
In 2016, a team of paleontologists found a roughly 100 – 115 ft (30 – 35 m) long Haplocanthosaurus in the Little Snowy Mountains. While it wasn’t the largest dinosaur that ever roamed present-day Montana, it is indeed the largest dinosaur fossil ever found in Montana.
Why did Montana have so many dinosaurs?
When dinosaurs roamed North America, the land around present-day Montana didn’t have an exceptionally large dinosaur population.
However, the rocks in the Hell Creek formation date back to the exact period of the dinosaurs and paleontologists have put forth concentrated efforts to explore this region of Montana. As a result, numerous dinosaur fossils, including several T-Rex fossils, have been discovered in Montana.
Discover the four reasons Montana has so many Dinosaurs in our other article here.
What dinosaur fossils have been found in Montana?
Today, more than 75 different dinosaur species have been discovered in eastern Montana, more than any other state. These include Maiasaura, Gryposaurus, a new species of Elasmosaur, and 12+ Tyrannosaurus Rex skeletons.
Below is a non-exhaustive list of the dinosaur fossils discovered in Montana:
AMNH 5027
Raul, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: T-Rex
- Discovered: 1908
- Current location: American Museum of Natural History in New York, New York
“Wankel Rex” (MOR 555)
Robosorne, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: T-Rex
- Discovered: 1988
- Current location: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC
“Peck’s Rex” (MOR 980)
WehaveaTrex, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: T-Rex
- Discovered: 1997
- Current location: Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, Montana
“B-rex” (MOR 1125)
Tim Evanson, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: T-Rex
- Discovered: 2000
- Current location: Unconfirmed (though a skull replica is on display at the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, Montana)
Maiasaura egg nest (no name)
Fernando Losada Rodríguez, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: Maiasaura
- Discovered: 1978
- Current location: Unconfirmed
- Interesting fact: This Maiasaura dinosaur nest served as first evidence that dinosaurs nested in colonies and cared for their offspring – one of Jack Horner’s many discoveries that changed Paleontology forever. Discover Montana-born paleontologist Jack Horner’s life story here.
“Leonardo” (JRF 115H)
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: Brachylophosaurus
- Discovered: 2000
- Current location: Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum in Katsuyama, Fukui, Japan
‘Dueling Dinosaurs’
No image
- Species: T-Rex and Triceratops (found entangled together)
- Discovered: 2006
- Current location: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Gryposaurus (no name)
Berkeley T. Compton, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: Gryposaurus
- Discovered: 2022
- Current location: Orange County Paleontological and Archaeological Center (in preparation)
Five other T-Rex fossils named “Thomas”, “Trix”, “Titus”, and “Tufts-Luv” were found in Montana in 2003, 2013, 2014, and 2016 respectively.
Additionally, in 2010, a hunter accidentally discovered a new species of Elasmosaur, a type of marine reptile, near Fort Peck Dam.
Where are most dinosaur fossils found in Montana?
The dinosaur fossils found in Montana have all been discovered in the rocky sediments of eastern Montana. Scientists have extensively studied this region of Montana for over a century, and have discovered countless dinosaur fossils here.
What did Montana look like during the dinosaurs?
The time period that dinosaurs roamed Montana lasted about 165 million years. This gave Montana time to experience multiple different environments.
During two separate periods, Montana was a sea bottom: for the Sundance Sea during the middle-late Jurassic period, and for the Western Interior Seaway, during the middle-late Cretaceous.
The Hell Creek Formation in eastern Montana, where most of Montana’s dinosaur fossils have been found, which dates back to roughly 65 million years ago, contains remnants of a swampy lowland.
The Judith River Formation, another common location for dinosaur discoveries in Montana, dates back to roughly 75 to 79 million years ago and reveals semi-arid floodplains.
The Morrison Formation, which laid along the shores of the Sundance Sea and dates back to roughly 156 to 147 million years ago, also reveals a wet and swampy lowland.
In another article, I go into detail about each of Montana’s environments throughout the dinosaur period.
Discover Montana’s dinosaur history on the Montana Dinosaur Trail
Today, 14 different locations throughout Montana offer insight into the Dinosaur history of Montana. Together, they comprise the Montana Dinosaur Trail, one of the most in-depth and exciting exhibits on dinosaur history in the United States.
Find out what to see at each site in our article, the Montana Dinosaur Trail.
