Dinosaur Provincial Park

World Heritage Research

Discover scientific research and academic studies that deepen our understanding of Dinosaur Provincial Park from its history and significance to its conservation, management, and contemporary challenges.

• Calibrating geologic strata, dinosaurs, and other fossils at Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada) using a new CA-ID-TIMS U–Pb geochronology

  A new U–Pb geochronology study reveals that the 100-meter-thick stratigraphic section at Dinosaur Provincial Park spans approximately 2.43 million years, with rock accumulation rates of around 3.65 cm per thousand years. This high-resolution chronostratigraphy updates long-standing K–Ar and 40 Ar/39 Ar dating, providing precise temporal constraints on bentonites, formational contacts, and biozones. The study also identifies a regional increase in accommodation at ~76.3 million years ago, aligning with patterns observed across Alberta and Montana. Dinosaur assemblage zones show durations of ~700–600 thousand years, shorter than those in the overlying Horseshoe Canyon Formation, suggesting potential ecological shifts linked to the withdrawal of the Western Interior Seaway.

  Eberth, D. A., Evans, D. C., Ramezani, J., Kamo, S. L., Brown, C. M., Currie, P. J., & Braman, D. R. (2023). Calibrating geologic strata, dinosaurs, and other fossils at Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada) using a new CA-ID-TIMS U–Pb geochronology. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences, 60(12), 1627–1646. https://doi.org/10.1139/cjes-2023-0037

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• A rare, articulated sturgeon (Chondrostei: Acipenseriformes) from the Upper Cretaceous of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada

  A rare, articulated sturgeon fossil from the Upper Cretaceous of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada, has been identified as a new genus and species, †Anchiacipenser acanthaspis. This discovery is significant because articulated sturgeon skeletons are uncommon in North American Upper Cretaceous deposits. The specimen, preserved with a skull and anterior half to two-thirds of the body, exhibits unique diagnostic features such as strongly ornamented dermal cranial bones, large dorsal scutes with median spines, and extensive smaller scales on the flanks. Phylogenetic analysis confirms its placement within the Acipenseridae family, though its exact relationships remain unclear. This finding contributes to our understanding of sturgeon evolution during the Late Cretaceous period.

  Sato, H., Murray, A. M., Vernygora, O., & Currie, P. J. (2018). A rare, articulated sturgeon (Chondrostei: Acipenseriformes) from the Upper Cretaceous of Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 38(4), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/02724634.2018.1488137

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• Bite marks on the frill of a juvenile Centrosaurus from the Late Cretaceous Dinosaur Provincial Park Formation, Alberta, Canada

  A rare fossil discovery reveals bite marks on the frill of a juvenile Centrosaurus, a ceratopsian dinosaur, from the Late Cretaceous Dinosaur Provincial Park Formation in Alberta. This is the first documented evidence of carnivore interaction with a juvenile ceratopsid, offering insights into predator-prey dynamics or scavenging behavior during the Late Cretaceous period. The study suggests that small-bodied theropods, such as dromaeosaurs or juvenile tyrannosaurs, are likely tracemakers, though definitive identification remains challenging due to limited fossil evidence of such interactions.

  Hone, D. W. E., Tanke, D. H., & Brown, C. M. (2018). Bite marks on the frill of a juvenile Centrosaurus from the Late Cretaceous Dinosaur Provincial Park Formation, Alberta, Canada. PeerJ, 6, e5748. Portico. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.5748

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• Pre- and postmortem tyrannosaurid bite marks on the remains of Daspletosaurus (Tyrannosaurinae: Theropoda) from Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada

  A remarkable discovery from Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, reveals evidence of tyrannosaurid cannibalism through pre- and postmortem bite marks on a Daspletosaurus specimen. The cranium and mandible exhibit numerous premortem injuries with signs of healing, suggesting intraspecific combat. Postmortem damage to the mandible indicates late-stage carcass consumption, likely by another large tyrannosaurid, possibly a congener, providing an additional record of tyrannosaurid cannibalism. The study combines detailed morphological analysis and taphonomic context to distinguish between pre- and postmortem bites, offering insights into the behavior and ecology of these apex predators during the Late Cretaceous.

  Hone, D., & Tanke, D. (2015). Pre- and postmortem tyrannosaurid bite marks on the remains of Daspletosaurus (Tyrannosaurinae: Theropoda) from Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada. PeerJ, 3, e885. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.885

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• A basal bird from the Campanian (Late Cretaceous) of Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada)

  A fragmentary bone from Dinosaur Provincial Park, initially thought to belong to a pterosaur, has been reidentified as the distal end of a tibiotarsus from a basal bird, likely an enantiornithine. This discovery marks the first documentation of such a bird in the Dinosaur Park Formation and provides evidence that enantiornithines coexisted with more derived ornithurines in the high-latitude environments of Late Cretaceous western Canada. The reinterpretation was based on distinctive morphological characters, offering new insights into the avian diversity of this UNESCO World Heritage Site during the Campanian stage.

  BUFFETAUT, E. (2010). A basal bird from the Campanian (Late Cretaceous) of Dinosaur Provincial Park (Alberta, Canada). Geological Magazine, 147(3), 469–472. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0016756810000129

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