Chris Widga
@widga.bsky.social
Director of the Earth and Mineral Sciences Museum & Art Gallery at Penn State. Here for museums, fossils, not-fossils, and geo-nerdom. Sucker for good jazz. Personal account. #museums #paleontology #geology #scicomm #naturalhistory
Reposted by Chris Widga
Oh, you haven’t seen the last of Nanotyrannus.
A new study, overlapping with the big paper a few weeks ago, may add to the evidence Nanotyrannus is back. I’ll catch you up on my latest for National Geographic. 🧪
A new study, overlapping with the big paper a few weeks ago, may add to the evidence Nanotyrannus is back. I’ll catch you up on my latest for National Geographic. 🧪
Nanotyrannus likely was a tiny adult dino and not a teen T. rex
Short king confirmed? Together with a blockbuster October study, a new throat bone analysis delivers a “one-two punch” to the 40-year debate over whether Nanotyrannus lancensis was a distinct species.
www.nationalgeographic.com
December 4, 2025 at 7:55 PM
Oh, you haven’t seen the last of Nanotyrannus.
A new study, overlapping with the big paper a few weeks ago, may add to the evidence Nanotyrannus is back. I’ll catch you up on my latest for National Geographic. 🧪
A new study, overlapping with the big paper a few weeks ago, may add to the evidence Nanotyrannus is back. I’ll catch you up on my latest for National Geographic. 🧪
Reposted by Chris Widga
Very excited to share that our latest paper is out in Science! We show that the type specimen of Nanotyrannus—an isolated skull—is fully grown, showing that it is not a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex but a distinct species (1/12)
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org
December 4, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Very excited to share that our latest paper is out in Science! We show that the type specimen of Nanotyrannus—an isolated skull—is fully grown, showing that it is not a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex but a distinct species (1/12)
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Reposted by Chris Widga
Humans, however, weren’t the only ones to leave traces in Sac Actun. Divers found #fossil footprints in one of the tunnels. Paleontologists on the team have attributed them to animals we associate with caves today: bears.
gizmodo.com/undisturbed-...
gizmodo.com/undisturbed-...
Undisturbed for Millennia, This Submerged Cave Is a Portal to the Ice Age
International research and highly-specialized divers are bringing an underground, underwater world to the surface
gizmodo.com
November 30, 2025 at 12:36 AM
Humans, however, weren’t the only ones to leave traces in Sac Actun. Divers found #fossil footprints in one of the tunnels. Paleontologists on the team have attributed them to animals we associate with caves today: bears.
gizmodo.com/undisturbed-...
gizmodo.com/undisturbed-...
Reposted by Chris Widga
Turkeys are exclusively Neogene. There, I said it. (Pretty sure...)
November 27, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Turkeys are exclusively Neogene. There, I said it. (Pretty sure...)
Reposted by Chris Widga
Oh hey, it's me!
Very excited to finally launch this project in partnership with @wikimediauk.bsky.social, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
If you produce or work with cultural heritage 3D data in UK I'd love to speak with you! Links in thread 👇
Very excited to finally launch this project in partnership with @wikimediauk.bsky.social, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
If you produce or work with cultural heritage 3D data in UK I'd love to speak with you! Links in thread 👇
Wikimedia UK has been awarded a grant of £56,198 from National Lottery Heritage Fund towards our ‘UK Heritage 3D Data at Risk: Developing a Strategy for Long Term Access & Storage’ project. The grant will help ensure future access to the UK’s 3D heritage data.
More info: tinyurl.com/3ma28psr
More info: tinyurl.com/3ma28psr
November 26, 2025 at 11:41 AM
Oh hey, it's me!
Very excited to finally launch this project in partnership with @wikimediauk.bsky.social, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
If you produce or work with cultural heritage 3D data in UK I'd love to speak with you! Links in thread 👇
Very excited to finally launch this project in partnership with @wikimediauk.bsky.social, funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
If you produce or work with cultural heritage 3D data in UK I'd love to speak with you! Links in thread 👇
Very interested to see where this goes!
This is an exciting project, led by @nebulousflynn.bsky.social, to safeguard access to the UK’s digital 3D heritage at risk through over-reliance on commercial and free-to-use platforms for storage and dissemination. I'm happy to be serving on the advisory board and looking forward to discussions.
Wikimedia UK has been awarded a grant of £56,198 from National Lottery Heritage Fund towards our ‘UK Heritage 3D Data at Risk: Developing a Strategy for Long Term Access & Storage’ project. The grant will help ensure future access to the UK’s 3D heritage data.
More info: tinyurl.com/3ma28psr
More info: tinyurl.com/3ma28psr
November 27, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Very interested to see where this goes!
Reposted by Chris Widga
Our website www.ecolplus.fr has a brand-new look ✨
Discover:
- the #digitization of French natural history #collections
- the equipment available
- our partner institutions
- a dedicated page for the latest news
👉 And it’s now available in English too!
Discover:
- the #digitization of French natural history #collections
- the equipment available
- our partner institutions
- a dedicated page for the latest news
👉 And it’s now available in English too!
e-COL+ Numérisation 3D des collections naturalistes.
Projet e-COL+ Numérisation 3D des collections naturalistes a bénéficié d'une aide de l’État PIA3-ANR-21-ESRE-0053
www.ecolplus.fr
September 3, 2025 at 8:51 AM
Our website www.ecolplus.fr has a brand-new look ✨
Discover:
- the #digitization of French natural history #collections
- the equipment available
- our partner institutions
- a dedicated page for the latest news
👉 And it’s now available in English too!
Discover:
- the #digitization of French natural history #collections
- the equipment available
- our partner institutions
- a dedicated page for the latest news
👉 And it’s now available in English too!
Reposted by Chris Widga
Please enjoy this project we've been working on with the lovely team at Google Arts and Culture:
artsandculture.google.com/project/nati...
Its so exciting to make so much of our collection accessible this anniversary year for the railways from models and artwork to tools and vehicles!
artsandculture.google.com/project/nati...
Its so exciting to make so much of our collection accessible this anniversary year for the railways from models and artwork to tools and vehicles!
National Railway Museum - Google Arts & Culture
Journey through the untold story of the railways
artsandculture.google.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:58 AM
Please enjoy this project we've been working on with the lovely team at Google Arts and Culture:
artsandculture.google.com/project/nati...
Its so exciting to make so much of our collection accessible this anniversary year for the railways from models and artwork to tools and vehicles!
artsandculture.google.com/project/nati...
Its so exciting to make so much of our collection accessible this anniversary year for the railways from models and artwork to tools and vehicles!
Two things about this....
North Dakota mammoths need paleontologists, seriously, please. (They must be everywhere up there, but still only a few for the state)
And...I knew I liked Beulah for a reason.
North Dakota mammoths need paleontologists, seriously, please. (They must be everywhere up there, but still only a few for the state)
And...I knew I liked Beulah for a reason.
You had me at "a whole lot of mammoths" 🦣
Some updates on what we have been working on lately here at NDGS Paleo.
T. rex and a whole lot of mammoths!
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
T. rex and a whole lot of mammoths!
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
November 26, 2025 at 3:30 AM
Two things about this....
North Dakota mammoths need paleontologists, seriously, please. (They must be everywhere up there, but still only a few for the state)
And...I knew I liked Beulah for a reason.
North Dakota mammoths need paleontologists, seriously, please. (They must be everywhere up there, but still only a few for the state)
And...I knew I liked Beulah for a reason.
Reposted by Chris Widga
Mammoth spotted in South Poland!
Actually, a to-scale model by Studio Kamyk for the Jegiellonian University Nature Education Centre, Krakow. 😍
Actually, a to-scale model by Studio Kamyk for the Jegiellonian University Nature Education Centre, Krakow. 😍
November 25, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Nice piece on the Hillsborough mastodon from New Brunswick, Canada.
Fun fact: a replica of this mastodon is on display at the Museum of the Middle Appalachians in Saltville, Virginia.
www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
Fun fact: a replica of this mastodon is on display at the Museum of the Middle Appalachians in Saltville, Virginia.
www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
Unearthing 75,000-year-old mastodon bones
A mammoth-like creature that once roamed Hillsborough in the southeastern area of the province now lives packed away in a New Brunswick Museum research centre.
www.cbc.ca
November 25, 2025 at 3:26 PM
Nice piece on the Hillsborough mastodon from New Brunswick, Canada.
Fun fact: a replica of this mastodon is on display at the Museum of the Middle Appalachians in Saltville, Virginia.
www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
Fun fact: a replica of this mastodon is on display at the Museum of the Middle Appalachians in Saltville, Virginia.
www.cbc.ca/player/play/...
Reposted by Chris Widga
For my (fellow) American friends: an old #JohnsFreezer blog post (from the glory days) with fun facts about turkey anatomy. Happy Thanksgiving-to-come!
whatsinjohnsfreezer.com/2012/11/22/a...
(image has "graphic media" label because it shows a turkey dissection; nothing worse than that)
whatsinjohnsfreezer.com/2012/11/22/a...
(image has "graphic media" label because it shows a turkey dissection; nothing worse than that)
Have an Anatomically Awesome Thanksgiving!
Hey, Americans and others happening to be gobbling down Meleagris gallopavo today– don’t forget to practice your anatomy! Such a great opportunity. Dig in to that carcass and horrify/am…
whatsinjohnsfreezer.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:33 PM
For my (fellow) American friends: an old #JohnsFreezer blog post (from the glory days) with fun facts about turkey anatomy. Happy Thanksgiving-to-come!
whatsinjohnsfreezer.com/2012/11/22/a...
(image has "graphic media" label because it shows a turkey dissection; nothing worse than that)
whatsinjohnsfreezer.com/2012/11/22/a...
(image has "graphic media" label because it shows a turkey dissection; nothing worse than that)
Reposted by Chris Widga
Was on the BBC talking about cool extinct megacritters and science in Florida! Check it out!
Scientist Spotted 🦣 BBC talked to our paleontologist Advait Jukar about fossils preserved in Florida's freshwater springs and how they help researchers understand our past and present biodiversity.
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
www.bbc.com/reel/video/p...
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
www.bbc.com/reel/video/p...
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
The state's blue sinkholes are the silent reminders of the time when giants roamed the Earth.
www.bbc.com
November 23, 2025 at 3:40 AM
Was on the BBC talking about cool extinct megacritters and science in Florida! Check it out!
Reposted by Chris Widga
Forgotten women of paleontology: Estella Bergere Leopold ⚒️🧪
paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2025/11/21/f...
paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2025/11/21/f...
Forgotten women of paleontology: Estella Bergere Leopold.
Paleoecological records suggest that the transition to agriculture marked a pivotal turning point in the environmental history of our planet. Tropical forests have been reduced by agricultural expa…
paleonerdish.wordpress.com
November 23, 2025 at 5:09 AM
Forgotten women of paleontology: Estella Bergere Leopold ⚒️🧪
paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2025/11/21/f...
paleonerdish.wordpress.com/2025/11/21/f...
Reposted by Chris Widga
Jack M. Craig, Whitney L. Fisher, Allan S. Thomas, S. Blair Hedges & Sudhir Kumar (2025)
Completing a molecular timetree of Afrotheria
Frontiers in Bioinformatics 5: 1710926
doi: doi.org/10.3389/fbin...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/bio...
Completing a molecular timetree of Afrotheria
Frontiers in Bioinformatics 5: 1710926
doi: doi.org/10.3389/fbin...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/bio...
Frontiers | Completing a molecular timetree of Afrotheria
Afrotheria, the superorder that includes aardvarks, elephants, elephant shrews, hyraxes, manatees, and tenrecs, is home to some of the most charismatic and w...
doi.org
November 23, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Jack M. Craig, Whitney L. Fisher, Allan S. Thomas, S. Blair Hedges & Sudhir Kumar (2025)
Completing a molecular timetree of Afrotheria
Frontiers in Bioinformatics 5: 1710926
doi: doi.org/10.3389/fbin...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/bio...
Completing a molecular timetree of Afrotheria
Frontiers in Bioinformatics 5: 1710926
doi: doi.org/10.3389/fbin...
www.frontiersin.org/journals/bio...
Reposted by Chris Widga
Scientist Spotted 🦣 BBC talked to our paleontologist Advait Jukar about fossils preserved in Florida's freshwater springs and how they help researchers understand our past and present biodiversity.
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
www.bbc.com/reel/video/p...
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
www.bbc.com/reel/video/p...
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
The state's blue sinkholes are the silent reminders of the time when giants roamed the Earth.
www.bbc.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Scientist Spotted 🦣 BBC talked to our paleontologist Advait Jukar about fossils preserved in Florida's freshwater springs and how they help researchers understand our past and present biodiversity.
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
www.bbc.com/reel/video/p...
Diving into Florida’s prehistoric cave of Ice Age secrets
www.bbc.com/reel/video/p...
My first image of this femur with an Eric for scale!
For #FossilFriday: one of the very first fossils of the American mastodon ever discovered. This specimen was found at Big Bone Lick, KY, US, in 1739 by a French military expedition, then sent back to Paris for study. On display at the Galerie de Paléontologie et d’Anatomie comparée in Paris. 🧪
November 21, 2025 at 11:42 PM
My first image of this femur with an Eric for scale!
Reposted by Chris Widga
Happy #FossilFriday! In October, UNSM doubled our holdings of an unusual extinct species, Dasypus bellus, which literally translates to “beautiful armadillo.”✨ It was about twice the size of the modern nine-banded armadillo. These specimens are from 12-25 thousand years ago.🦴
#fossils #paleontology
#fossils #paleontology
November 21, 2025 at 10:28 PM
Happy #FossilFriday! In October, UNSM doubled our holdings of an unusual extinct species, Dasypus bellus, which literally translates to “beautiful armadillo.”✨ It was about twice the size of the modern nine-banded armadillo. These specimens are from 12-25 thousand years ago.🦴
#fossils #paleontology
#fossils #paleontology
Reposted by Chris Widga
Alas, this article on our reptile decomposition research does not come in a scratch-and-sniff format. However, if you'd like to see what my students, colleagues, and I have been up to with our decomposing lizards and crocodylians, here's your chance. 🧪
CSI: Cretaceous. A reptile body farm is shedding light on how dinosaurs died.
Here’s how scientists are solving the “dinosaur death pose” mystery and others.
www.nationalgeographic.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Alas, this article on our reptile decomposition research does not come in a scratch-and-sniff format. However, if you'd like to see what my students, colleagues, and I have been up to with our decomposing lizards and crocodylians, here's your chance. 🧪
Reposted by Chris Widga
Not just ancient humans from Denisova cave but also secret Yaks. Secret Ancient Yaks! That’s you told.
Our manuscript on bovine deep-time paleogenomics at Denisova Cave and in the broader mid-latitude Asia is online! doi.org/10.1093/gbe/... 🦬🦴🧬
Main findings in the 🧵 below ⬇️
@cpgsthlm.bsky.social @genomebiolevol.bsky.social #aDNA
Main findings in the 🧵 below ⬇️
@cpgsthlm.bsky.social @genomebiolevol.bsky.social #aDNA
Paleogenomics Reveals a Loss of Bovine Lineages in Mid-latitude Asia Over the Last 200,000 Years
Abstract. Bovines have a complex yet poorly understood evolutionary history that is characterized by admixture and diversity loss during the Late Pleistoce
doi.org
November 20, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Not just ancient humans from Denisova cave but also secret Yaks. Secret Ancient Yaks! That’s you told.
It's a nice change to open up the news to see Dick Mol and mammoths. I have much respect for what they are doing. The model may not work everywhere, but it seems to be working at Maasvlakte. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/a...
A Day at the Beach Hunting Mammoths
www.nytimes.com
November 17, 2025 at 5:18 PM
It's a nice change to open up the news to see Dick Mol and mammoths. I have much respect for what they are doing. The model may not work everywhere, but it seems to be working at Maasvlakte. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/a...
I am the market for this mug.
November 14, 2025 at 1:30 AM
I am the market for this mug.