The Utah Field House of Natural History in Vernal, UT is a small but lovely museum. The central hall is occupied by the cast skeleton of a Diplodocus.I was surprised by how lightly-built it is, and the lack of a sternum.I was also surprised by the complexity of the neck vertebrae of the Diplodocus.Neornithischian similar to Kulindadromeus. Middle Jurassic. Has predentary bone, bony sclera, brow-bone projecting over the eye.It is a heterodont, but not a synapsid (proto-mammal). Precursor to ornithopods such as the hadrosaurs.Well-developed hips for bipedal running. Open socket, so it is a dinosaur. Pubis and ischia extend backward, so it is an ornithischian dinosaur.The ilia and vertebra are fused through bone “bridge” extensions from the vertebra.Feet also well-suited for running.The Field House also had a skeleton of a smaller/younger Allosaurus, about the size of a tiger. Dinosaur skulls often had 4 or 5 holes (apses) in the skull, which reduced their weight.The hefty tail of the Allosaurus made an effective counterbalance to the ‘upper’ body, enabling comfortable running from this posture.The mural behind the Allosaurus was also fascinating because it was left deliberately incomplete, revealing ongoing debates about how to reconstruct & represent dinosaurs and their landscapes.The Field House also had an intriguing collection of Cenozoic (post dinosaur) mammals. This is the upper skull of a Brontothere (Miocene, 45 mya), showing most impressive molars.Uintathere (Eocene, 56-34 mya), a sabre-toothed herbivore.Uintathere, named after the Uinta Formation in Utah, I suspect.
