A wildfire high in the mountains of Wyoming has revealed a vast, centuries-old Shoshone campsite, with artifacts numbering in the hundreds of thousands.
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Two Ostrich Ancestors, No Bigger Than Chickens, Discovered in Wyoming Fossils
Although no bigger than chickens, a pair of 50-million-year-old fossil birds turn out to be some of the earliest known ancestors of today’s giant, flightless birds, like the ostrich and the emu.
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Tyrannosaur Tracks Discovered in Wyoming Reveal Dinosaur’s Speed
Dinosaur tracks discovered in Wyoming are the first known multiple footprints that can be attributed to Tyrannosaurus rex, researchers say.
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T. Rex Fossil Found in Wyoming Reveals Cannibalism Among Tyrannosaurs
A fossil bone from a Tyrannosaurus rex, recently discovered in Wyoming sandstone, bears the telltale signs of having been gnawed and stripped clean of its meat — by another tyrannosaur….
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Fossil of Earliest Known ‘Jesus Lizard,’ A Reptile That Walked on Water, Discovered in Wyoming
It had three-pointed teeth, prominent cheekbones, and a long ridge protruding over its eyes that likely bestowed what experts have described as “an angry look.” But probably the most distinguishing…
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Dinosaur Blood Cells, Soft Tissue Discovered in 75-Million-Year-Old Fossils
Scientists say they’ve isolated what appear to be red blood cells and other microscopic bits of soft tissue from several 75-million-year old dinosaur fossils, using a technique that could revolutionize the…
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Brontosaurus ‘Resurrected’ as a Type of Dinosaur by New Fossil Study
For more than a hundred years, Brontosaurus — the long-necked and long-neglected icon of the Ancient West — has been dismissed as a mere duplicate in the record books of…
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Western Digs’ Top 5 Paleontology Stories of 2014
A red-headed mammoth, a cave piled high with ancient animal remains, and an unusual South Dakota dinosaur are all among the discoveries that shaped Western Digs’ most popular paleontology stories of…
Read MoreAllosaurus Died From Stegosaur Spike to the Crotch, Wyoming Fossil Shows
Analysis of an Allosaurus fossil from southern Wyoming shows that the giant meat-eater died from a painful wound that appears to be unique in the fossil record: a deep stab…
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Wyoming Cave Yields a Trove of Ice Age Fossils — and Ancient Animal DNA
A team of enterprising and adventurous scientists in Wyoming has just finished the first in a series of excavations at one of the largest deposits of Ice Age fossils in…
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Tiny, Toothy Mammal Discovered in Wyoming Fossil Named for Lady Gaga
The fossil of a small, deer-like mammal with unusual teeth has earned the name of “little monster.” The little animal browsed on leaves and grasses in what’s now southwestern Wyoming about…
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Young Dinosaur Found in Ancient Mud Pit Is New Species of ‘Small Giant,’ Fossils Suggest
A young sauropod that met its death mired in an ancient mudflat may have been small for its kind — that is, the size of a modern humpback whale —…
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13 Ancient Villages Discovered in Wyoming Mountains May Redraw Map of Tribal Migrations
High in the alpine forests of northwestern Wyoming, archaeologists have discovered more than a dozen villages dating back over 2,000 years, a find that could alter our understanding of the…
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Prehistoric Global Warming Caused Dwarfism in American Mammals, Fossils Show
As temperatures climb, animals shrink. It may sound unlikely — and the mechanism behind it is not very well understood — but it’s a pattern that’s been observed many times…
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Ancient ‘Clawed Bat’ Reveals Clues to Flying Mammal’s Evolution
The rare and delicate but perfectly preserved bones of a primordial bat found in Wyoming are offering up new clues to the evolution of the flying mammals, and to at…
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Dozens of Animals Discovered in Huge Wyoming Fossil Deposit
More than two dozen types of ancient animals — including at least two predatory dinosaurs, eight mammals, and a host of amphibians, sharks and other fish — have been unearthed…
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