- Hadrosaur Caudal Vertebra (Edmontosaurus?)
- Hell Creek Formation, ~68-66 million years old – Powder River County, Montana, USA
- Dimensions: 11″ x 3″
MUSEUM QUALITY SPECIMEN!
This vertebra came from the caudal (tail) section of a hadrosaur. Likely from an Edmontosaurus annectens, as they were relatively common in the Hell Creek Formation.
An absolutely stunning fossil sporting the classic Hell Creek chocolate brown, along with a bit of cream coloration from surface exposure. Amazing preservation detail, from front to back and top to bottom. The great preservation is due to the fact that most of the fossil was encased in a dense, hard ironstone. This made the lengthy preparation difficult but well worth it to expose the intricate details. This fossil will make an awesome display piece!
It is quite rare for dinosaur vertebrae to preserve the neural spines due to their delicate nature, they usually break off before deposition and burial.
This fossil is in great shape and is complete with a miniscule amount of pre-burial wear, including a beautiful fully intact neural spine, neural arch and twin zygapophyses.
This vertebra is ~99% original with only a very small bit of filling/restoration at the base of the neural spine for stability. The neural spine was in several pieces and has been reconnected and stabilized.
Hadrosaurs, or duck-billed dinosaurs, were plant eaters that had large jaws with what are called “dental batteries.” These dental batteries contained hundreds of teeth in dozens of channeled columns, when one tooth is worn down enough it eventually falls out of the jaw and is replaced by a new unworn tooth. Click the link here for more info about hadrosaurs: Hadrosaurs
Hadrosaur Caudal Vertebra
