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A group of scientists discovered the bones of a dinosaur in the US state of Missouri recently. They claim it’s a new species never found before in the country. The skeleton of the juvenile duck-billed dinosaur, called Parrosaurus Missouriensis, is a staggering 25–30 feet long. The scientists have kept the site of their finding a secret until it can be secured. Paleontologist Guy Darrough, who discovered the skeleton, had it transported to a local museum and then called Chicago’s Field Museum to disclose the big news. He reportedly spoke to Pete Makovicky, the curator of dinosaurs at the Field Museum. “He came down and looked and said, ‘Yeah, you guys got dinosaurs’.”
“I can’t imagine anything that’s more impressive than what we discovered here. A new genus in species. It’s a world-famous discovery,” said Darrough.
Makovicky, a professor in earth and environmental sciences at the University of Minnesota, and his team soon started digging at the site in Missouri and they found an adult Parrosaurus Missouriensis right next to the juvenile discovered by Darrough. “This is in fact a remarkable site in one of the best dinosaur locales east of the Great Plains,” Makovicky told Fox 2.
Makovicky, who has dug up sites all over the world to find dinosaur remains, describes the Missouri site as one of the most unique and believes more dinosaur fossils will be found there.
Finding dinosaur remains is a tricky business. It requires delicacy and patience. As was the case with this finding, which was 80 years in the making. In 1940, the then owners of the property found some bones, which were then sent to Washington’s Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex. The bones were later confirmed to be that of a dinosaur. But not much interest was shown in it then.
In the 1970s, the property was purchased, and digging started again. The effort bore fruit now with the discovery of skeletons of Parrosaurus Missouriensis.