Wyoming museum defends custody of fossil

[Ken.Carpenter@dmns.org]

THERMOPOLIS - A plan to bring a rare, scientifically valuable dinosaur
fossil to a private collection in Thermopolis has become the focus of
debate among some scientists concerned about researchers' access to the
specimen. 

The Wyoming Dinosaur Center, a privately owned collection and exhibition
hall in Thermopolis, has negotiated a permanent loan of one of only 10
existing archaeopteryx fossils. 

About the size of a magpie, the feathered archaeopteryx lived about 150
million years ago during the Jurassic period. It is a key species in
showing the link between dinosaurs and birds, their evolutionary
descendants. 

 
The archaeopteryx bound for Thermopolis is perhaps the best specimen yet
found, and according to a recent article in the prestigious journal
Science, some researchers are concerned that it is headed for an
obscure, private collection. 

Rest of story:
http://www.billingsgazette.com/index.php?id=1&display=rednews/2006/01/11
/build/wyoming/25-fossil.inc

Kenneth Carpenter, Ph.D.
Curator of Lower Vertebrate Paleontology/
Chief Preparator
Department of Earth Sciences
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
2001 Colorado Blvd.
Denver, CO 80205
 
Phone: 303-370-6392
Fax: 303-331-6492
************************************************************
for PDFs of some of my publications, as well as information of the Cedar
Mountain Project: 
https://scientists.dmns.org/sites/kencarpenter/default.aspx