First Ever Dinosaur Fossil Uncovered in Washington State

Researchers have uncovered the first ever dinosaur fossils from Washington state. Paleontologists uncovered the fossil alone the shores of Sucia Island State Park in the San Juan Islands.

The researchers first discovered the fossil while collecting ammonite fossils, a creature with a spiral shell, from a marine rock unit. The researchers first noticed a small section of exposed bone on the surface of the rocks, and then returned with a team to help excavate the fossil so that it could be studied.

The fossil itself is 16.7 inches long and 8.7 inches wide. Because the fossil is incomplete, the researchers can't identify the exact family or species that it belonged to. However, the fossil's completely femur was likely over three feet long, which is only slightly smaller than that of a T. rex. Dated to the Late Cretaceous period, the fossil is about 80 million years old.

While the skeleton is incomplete, the researchers were able to determine that the femur is from a theropod dinosaur; it has a hollow middle cavity where marrow was present, which was unique to theropods during this time period. It also has a feature on the surface of the bone that is prominent and positioned closely to the hip, which is a combination of traits known only among theropods.

"The fossil record of the West Coast is very spotty when compared to the rich record of the interior of North America," said Brandon Peecook, one of the researchers, in a news release. "This specimen, though fragmentary, gives us insight into what the West Coast was like 80 million years ago, plus it gets Washington into the dinosaur club."

The findings reveal that dinosaurs were present during this time period in Washington. With that said, it's not surprising that so few remains have been found in Washington; during the time period, the state was mostly underwater.

The findings are published in the journal PLOS One.

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