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Chasmosaurus Irvinensis
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• Wednesday, October 13th, 2010
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Object Name: Chasmosaurus dinosaur (holotype)
Scientific Name: Chasmosaurus irvinensis
Artist/Maker/Manufacturer/Founder:
Collectors: Langston, W.L.; Shearman, H.L.; Champagne, H.J., 1958
Location: 4.2 km SW of Irvine, Alberta
Material/Medium/Support: whole skeleton/skull
Acquisition #: 00281
Catalogue #: CMNFV 41357
Scientific Reference: Holmes, Robert M., 2001, Can. Jour. Earth Sci., Vol. 38, no. 10
Institution Name: Canadian Museum of Nature
Copyright: N/A

Transcript

Sometimes, important treasures can be found right under your nose! That’s what happened with this new species of horned dinosaur, now featured prominently in the Canadian Museum of Nature’s Talisman Energy Fossil Gallery. Named Chasmosaurus irvinensis, this dinosaur roamed Western Canada more than 70 million years ago. The skeleton was unearthed in 1958 in Alberta. It was identified in the field as a type of chasmosaur then sealed up in a plaster jacket and stored in the Museum’s collections. Forty years later, Museum staff opened the jacket and made an unexpected find. They discovered that the dinosaur had large openings, or chasms, in its skull. Further research revealed that it was an entirely new species of Chasmosaurus. Today, Museum visitors can visit the Fossil Gallery and see the nearly complete skeleton as well as a dramatic 3D animation showing the death- to-life transformation of Chasmosaurus irvinensis.

Description

Chasmosaurus irvinensis is a new species of horned dinosaur, whose true identity was unmasked at the Canadian Museum of Nature by a diligent team of researchers. Both the skeleton and a life-like recreation featuring Chasmosaurus irvinensis are featured in the Museum’s Talisman Energy Fossil Gallery.

The skeleton was discovered in 1958 by American palaeontologist Wann Langston near Irvine, Alberta. Langston believed that the dinosaur belonged to a species known as Chasmosaurus belli because it had a small nose horn and brow horns. In the 1990s, Dr. Robert Holmes, a palaeontologist (http://nature.ca/museum/staff/staff2_e.cfm) at the Canadian Museum of Nature, began looking at the specimens collected from Langston’s dig. He realized that the skull of this horned dinosaur did not entirely match that of the belli species. This dinosaur was different in that it had large openings or “chasms” in the frill of its skull. This physical attribute led Holmes and other researchers to further study the skeleton and they determined that this was a new species of Chasmosaurus.

Chasmosaurus irvinensis lived about 72 million years ago. It was a herbivore. Like many plant-eating dinosaurs it travelled in herds, primarily as protection against meat-eating predators. Though Chasmosaurus irvinensis is not one of the larger dinosaurs, its weight is over four tons and it measures an impressive three metres long – with its tail adding another two metres! This unique dinosaur, first discovered here in Canada, is a testament to the diverse wildlife that roamed this part of Earth millions of years ago.

Olivia Pipe


INTERVIEW WITH DR. ROBERT HOLMES

fig. 1 Robert Holmes sitting in the Canadian Museum of Nature’s fossil collection (beside a model of the Chasmosaurus irvinensis’ skull), 2001. (Photo: Martin Lipman, Canadian Museum of Nature)

Olivia C. Pipe,
M.A., Art History, Concordia University.

I contacted Dr. Robert Holmes when I learned that he was the lead researcher in the discovery …

Read more…

Never Joke About a Meteor with a Dinosaur

Olivia Pipe. Never Joke About a Meteor with a Dinosaur. 2009. Digital photograph.

Olivia Pipe,
2009. Digital photograph.

Olivia Pipe, a native of Montreal, completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art History at Concordia …

Read about the inspiration…

This artwork, inspired by the national treasure, was created by a student artist in the Department of Studio Arts (Photography) under the supervision of Marisa Portolese, Assistant Professor in Studio Arts(Photography), Faculty of Fine Arts, Concordia University.