Dinosaur National Monument recently announced that dinosaur fossils were revealed during a recent parking lot construction project, resulting in the first fossil excavation in the area of Quarry Exhibit Hall since 1924.

According to a press release on the matter, the fossils were found and identified by park staff back in September after asphalt removal exposed dinosaur-bearing sandstone. The construction project was then put on pause so that paleontologists could assess and excavate the site.

The park reports that the fossils were those of the large and long-necked Diplodocus, a species commonly found in the Dinosaur National Monument bonebed.

Many of the historic excavations in the area took place from 1909 to 1922, with the spot established as a national monument in 1915. The location of the recent find had not been excavated since those original excavations took place, formally ending in 1924.

During this more recent excavation effort, an estimated 3,000 pounds of fossil and rock were removed. Crews are now working to clean and study the remains at the Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum, which is located in Vernal, Utah. At this time, the public can view the work in the museum’s fossil preperation lab. It’s also worth noting that some of the fossils from the recent excavation are on display at Dinosaur National Monument’s Quarry Exhibit Hall.

After the conclusion of the recent excavation work, the parking lot was completed.

Dinosaur National Monument is located at the confluence of the Green and Yampa rivers, split between Utah and Colorado. The Quarry Exhibit Hall is considered the most popular area to visit at the park, known for its ‘Wall of Bones’ – a quarry where visitors can see around 1,500 dinosaur fossils still in the rock.

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