Delaware Geological Survey Sign		Delaware Geological Survey Building		Penny Hall, University of Delaware

Dinny, the Dinosaur of the University of Delaware

     After sitting in the basement of Penny Hall for over 60 years, the remains of Dinny the dinosaur
have finally begun to get the attention they deserve.  There are no records on who found them, when,
where, what formation, or what age, the hunt for the identity of the modge-podge of bones. Dinny is
an assemblage of haphazard bones that are being prepared by students at the University as part of
the Fossil Preparation course offered by undergraduate, Jennifer Anné.  This 1 credit course meets
once a week in the downstairs lab of the DGS for an hour and learns how to properly prepare fossils. 
Students learn about different glues and stabilizers, how to use tools such as an airscribe (something
like a mini jack hammer), and above all, the appreciation of getting the fossils from the ground to display.  Although Dinny is the main focus, students also prepare fossils from Sewell, NJ, fix specimens used
by the geology classes, and even offer to fix and stabilize people’s personal collections.  This gives the students a well-rounded experience in different forms of fossilization as well as dealing with different
types of matrix.

DGS Fossil Preparation Lab		Airscribe Tool		Dinny's Fossil Prep

     Since there is no information on Dinny, the students must rely on every aspect of geology and
paleontology to do some hard core detective work.  Clay nodules in the hard sandstone matrix were
saved to be properly prepared to search for pollen.  The pollen will be identified by Dr. Pete McLaughlin
from the DGS, who apart from being a great palynologist, also is responsible for giving the students the
space in the DGS and helped in supplying them with many of the materials needed.  Pictures of the handwriting on some of the casts have been sent to someone at the Smithsonian for handwriting
analysis. An x-ray defraction sample will be taken to search for characteristic minerals that may identify
the formation.

Red mineralization in bones		Antique burlap that wraps Dinny		Edge of large Dinny bone

     As of now, the consensus on Dinny is the he is a Titanosaur, a sauropod like Brachiosaurus. 
This is based on several characteristics including comparison of some of the bones with specimens
shown in The Thunderlizards, a book about sauropods that came out in 2005.  At least 2 of the bones
matched perfectly with those of Titanosaurus, part of a radius and ulna.  Other supporting facts for a
Titanosaur are that the bones are not hollow, show that the creature was a herbivore.  The bones show
a red mineralogy characteristic of the Morrison Formation, which is Late Jurassic in age and thus would
house Titanosaurus.   The final bit of evidence is the overall size of the bones, with one being over 3 feet
long and that is with a part missing from the end.

Hopefully the mystery of Dinny will be solved by the end of the year.  When the preparations are complete, the specimen will go on display at the DGS, Penny Hall, or the Iron Hill Museum.  Jennifer Anné hopes to present this project at the GSA conference in Philadelphia.

Close-up of restoration		Close-up of blood vessel channels
Restoration of a bone section		Piecing together of Dinny
Cross-section of blood vessel channels		Closer view of vesicles
Table layout of associated bone assemblages		Color-corrected and enhanced to show contrast in mineralization
Closer view of bone		Tray of Delaware fossils in process of preparation in Jenn's class
Photos by Ken Casey ©2006

 

Links

Titanosaurus

Palynology Links

The Delaware Geological Survey

The University of Delaware Department of Geology

Morrison Formation

Iron Hill Museum, Newark, Delaware

The Geological Society of America (GSA)

Paleoworld 2005 Field Log

 

Members' Gallery

In future Fossil Forums, here is where DMS Members can add their fossil photos to share with us.

 

Until Next Time

     We hope you have enjoyed Jenn Anné's article on "Dinny the Dino".  Please join us in the future
for more fossils in our new forum!
     Until then, stay safe, and happy collecting.

 

 

Article Contributors

Photo & Graphics Credits and Permissions

I would like to gratefully acknowledge the generous contributions of our fellow fossil
enthusiasts, collectors, authors, curators, educators, professionals, and club members who
made this work possible.  Thanks.

Dr. Pete McLaughlin, DGS and University of Delaware

Delaware Geological Survey (Special Permissions & Collections)

University of Delaware, Department of Geology (Special Permissions & Collections)

Ken Casey, DMS Webmaster (Photos)

© 2006  All contributions to this article are covered under the copyright protection of this article
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	About the Author:  Jennifer Anné is currently an undergraduate student at the University of Delaware studying geology and paleontology.   Along with being the President of the University of Delaware's Geology Club, she is a member of the Delaware Mineralogical Society. Jenn was on the team who discovered the most complete crocodilian specimen from the Inversand Mine, Sewell, New Jersey.