Table of contents
- Did dinosaurs live in Montana?
- What kind of dinosaurs lived in Montana?
- What is the largest dinosaur that lived in Montana?
- What dinosaur fossils have been found in Montana?
- What is the largest dinosaur fossil found in Montana?
- Where are most dinosaur fossils found in Montana?
- Why did Montana have so many dinosaurs?
- What did Montana look like during the dinosaurs?
Did dinosaurs live in Montana?
Between 164 and 65 million years ago, from the late Jurassic to the Cretaceous period, present-day Montana was home to many dinosaurs. These included the Camptosaurus, Apatosaurus, Allosaurus, and several well-known genera, 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. 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, providing insight into how present-day Montana looked millions of years ago and how these dinosaurs lived.
What kind of dinosaurs lived in Montana?
Montana was home to many dinosaur species, from lesser-known ones such as Deinonychus, Mosasaurs, and Plesiosaurs, to 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 that lived in Montana?
Steveoc 86 And Scott Hartman, http://www.skeletaldrawing.com/, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The largest dinosaurs that lived in present-day Montana were Saurapods. Two members of this classification lived in Montana: the Apatosaurus and Diplotocus. They were enormous, swaying, stout-legged herbivores that lived during the late Jurassic period. Saurapods are the largest land animals ever to exist.
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: Paleontologist Jack Horner and Montana resident Laurie Trexler discovered this Maiasaura dinosaur nest in 1978, and it served as first evidence that dinosaurs nested in colonies and cared for their offspring.
“Leonardo” (JRF 115H)
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: Brachylophosaurus
- Discovered: 2000
- Current location: Great Plains Dinosaur Museum in Malta, Montana
‘Dueling Dinosaurs’
No image
- Species: T-Rex and Triceratops (found entangled together)
- Discovered: 2006
- Current location: North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
Old Sorehead
Berkeley T. Compton, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Species: Gryposaurus
- Discovered: 2022
- Current location: Depot Museum in Rudyard, Montana
Five other T. rex fossils named “Thomas”, “Trix”, “Titus”, and “Tufts-Luv” were found in Montana in 2003, 2013, 2014, and 2016, respectively. In 2010, a hunter accidentally discovered a new species of Elasmosaur, a type of marine reptile, near Fort Peck Dam.
What is the largest dinosaur fossil found in Montana?
In 2016, paleontologists found a 115-ft (35-m) long Haplocanthosaurus in the Little Snowy Mountains. It wasn’t the largest dinosaur that roamed present-day Montana. However, it is the largest dinosaur fossil ever found in the state.
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.
Why did Montana have so many dinosaurs?
During the time of dinosaurs, present-day Montana didn’t have an exceptionally large dinosaur population, relative to other regions of the world.
The rock sediments in Montana’s Hell Creek formation date back to the exact period of the dinosaur era. As a result, the soil there contains many fossilized remains. Paleontologists have concentrated their efforts exploring this region and have discovered many fossils.
Read more: Why did Montana have so many dinosaurs?
What did Montana look like during the dinosaurs?
Dinosaurs roamed present-day Montana for about 165 million years. During this time, the ecosystem of this land evolved.
- Montana was a seafloor for the Sundance Sea during the middle-late Jurassic period.
- Montana was a seafloor for the Western Interior Seaway during the middle-late Cretaceous.
- Eastern Montana’s Hell Creek Formation dates back roughly 65 million years ago and contains remnants of a swampy lowland.
- The Judith River Formation dates back to roughly 75 to 79 million years ago and reveals semi-arid floodplains.
- The Morrison Formation once lay along the Sundance Sea shores and dates back to 156 to 147 million years ago. It contains remnants of a wet and swampy lowland.
Read more: This is what Montana looked like during the dinosaurs
Discover Montana’s dinosaur history on the Montana Dinosaur Trail
Today, 14 locations across Montana offer insight into Montana’s Dinosaur history. Together, they comprise the Montana Dinosaur Trail, one of the most in-depth and exciting exhibits of American dinosaur history.
Read more: Montana Dinosaur Trail – The largest footprints of history
