Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry |
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Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry Visitor Center
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 Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry
Location in Utah
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| Location | Emery County, Utah |
| Nearest city | Cleveland |
| Governing body | Bureau of Land Management |
| Designated: | 1965 |
The Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry is a special place in Utah. It's famous for having the biggest collection of Jurassic dinosaur fossils ever found. Imagine a huge pile of dinosaur bones all in one spot!
This amazing site is near a town called Cleveland, Utah. The bones are found in ancient rock layers known as the Morrison Formation. Over 15,000 bones have been dug up here already. And guess what? There are still thousands more waiting to be discovered and studied! Because it's so important, it was named a National Natural Landmark in 1965.
All these bones, from many different kinds of dinosaurs, are found mixed together. They are also disarticulated, which means they aren't connected like they would be in a full skeleton. Scientists are still trying to figure out why so many dinosaurs ended up in this one place. One popular idea is that it was a "predator trap".
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What Makes This Place So Special?
The Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry is unique because of the sheer number of bones found. It's like a giant puzzle with thousands of pieces. Many of these bones belong to meat-eating dinosaurs.
A Dinosaur Graveyard Mystery
Scientists have been studying this quarry for many years. They want to understand why so many dinosaurs died here. It's a big mystery!
The "Predator Trap" Idea
One of the main ideas is that the quarry was a "predator trap." Imagine a sticky, muddy area, maybe a watering hole, that looked safe but was actually dangerous.
- A dinosaur might get stuck in the mud.
- Then, meat-eating dinosaurs (predators) would come to hunt the trapped animal.
- But they might get stuck themselves!
- Over time, more and more animals would get trapped.
- This could explain why there are so many bones, especially from predators like Allosaurus.
Other Theories
Not all scientists agree on the "predator trap" idea. Some think it might have been a drought. During a long dry spell, dinosaurs would gather around the last remaining water sources. As the water dried up, they might have gotten stuck in the mud or died from lack of water. Then, their bodies would have been washed together by floods. The debate continues, making it an exciting place for scientists!
Dinosaurs Found at the Quarry
Many different kinds of dinosaurs have been found at Cleveland-Lloyd. This helps us learn about the ancient world they lived in.
Meet the Meat-Eaters
The most common dinosaur found here is Allosaurus. It was a large, fierce predator. Scientists have found bones from many different Allosaurus individuals. This is why the "predator trap" idea is so popular.
Gentle Giants and Armored Dinosaurs
But it wasn't just meat-eaters! Bones of plant-eating dinosaurs have also been found.
- Stegosaurus: This dinosaur is famous for the plates on its back and spikes on its tail.
- Apatosaurus: A huge, long-necked dinosaur, one of the largest animals to ever walk the Earth.
- Camarasaurus: Another large, long-necked dinosaur, but with a shorter, boxier skull than Apatosaurus.
- Tanycolagreus: A smaller, agile meat-eating dinosaur, related to birds.
These discoveries help paleontologists understand the food chain and how different dinosaurs lived together millions of years ago.
Digging Up the Past
Paleontologists are scientists who study fossils. At the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry, they carefully dig up the bones. It's a very slow and detailed process.
- First, they find the bones.
- Then, they carefully remove the rock around them.
- They often cover the bones in plaster jackets to protect them.
- Finally, the bones are taken to labs for cleaning, study, and sometimes put back together to create full skeletons for museums.
Many museums around the world have dinosaur skeletons or casts (copies) made from bones found at this quarry. It's a truly international treasure!
Visiting the Quarry
The Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. It's a great place to visit if you're interested in dinosaurs! There's a visitor center where you can learn more about the discoveries and see some of the bones. It's a chance to step back in time and imagine what life was like when dinosaurs roamed the Earth.
Images for kids
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Skull cast of Allosaurus fragilis, assembled from moulded bones found at Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry. The skull is now at the Palaeontological Museum, Munich (Germany).
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Jurassic National Monument landscape, 2019
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Exhibit buildings and visitor center at Jurassic National Monument. View is towards the west.
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Map showing the thousands of dinosaur bones excavated at the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry at the Jurassic National Monument.
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Allosaurus mounted skeleton
