Bradly Shelby
@bradthecurator.bsky.social
I'm an amateur vertebrate paleontologist, science communicator, and hadrosaur enthusiast in the process starting a natural history museum.
Cover by Natee Himmapaan
#paleontology #scicomm #dinosaurs
Cover by Natee Himmapaan
#paleontology #scicomm #dinosaurs
Say hello to our newest addition- Thescelosaurus, the Marvelous Lizard! CT scans reveal enlarged olfactory bulbs and small inner-ear canals- a sensory combination typical of modern burrowers, suggesting #Thescelosaurus may have shared similar underground habits.
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm
May 25, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Say hello to our newest addition- Thescelosaurus, the Marvelous Lizard! CT scans reveal enlarged olfactory bulbs and small inner-ear canals- a sensory combination typical of modern burrowers, suggesting #Thescelosaurus may have shared similar underground habits.
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm
The scleral rings still need to dry, but I'm thrilled with how this Thescelosaurus skull has turned out. A huge thanks to the Cackling Crow for printing the piece out, and to BioBuild Studios for designing such a fantastic piece!
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm #fossil
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm #fossil
May 25, 2025 at 11:44 AM
The scleral rings still need to dry, but I'm thrilled with how this Thescelosaurus skull has turned out. A huge thanks to the Cackling Crow for printing the piece out, and to BioBuild Studios for designing such a fantastic piece!
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm #fossil
#dinosaurs #paleontology #scicomm #fossil
Here I am with our new life-sized Leptoceratops bust! This small, hornless cousin of Triceratops lived in the Hell Creek Formation during the Late Cretaceous. Soon we'll be painting it to bring this fascinating little herbivore to life with realistic colorations as part of our Hell Creek exhibit.
May 16, 2025 at 11:13 PM
Here I am with our new life-sized Leptoceratops bust! This small, hornless cousin of Triceratops lived in the Hell Creek Formation during the Late Cretaceous. Soon we'll be painting it to bring this fascinating little herbivore to life with realistic colorations as part of our Hell Creek exhibit.
Today's interesting wildlife encounter- while leaving our property, I spotted some crows putting a bald eagle on the run over a neighboring field. At one point the eagle swooped fairly close to my car as it tried to lose them, which was probably the closest I've ever been to a truly wild eagle.
May 16, 2025 at 1:37 PM
Today's interesting wildlife encounter- while leaving our property, I spotted some crows putting a bald eagle on the run over a neighboring field. At one point the eagle swooped fairly close to my car as it tried to lose them, which was probably the closest I've ever been to a truly wild eagle.
Say hello to Anzu- the “Chicken from Hell”! This oviraptorosaur lived alongside T. rex and Triceratops in the Late Cretaceous. About 12 feet long and covered in feathers, it looked like a nightmarish ostrich with large claws and a powerful beak. It likely fed on plants as well as small animals.
May 16, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Say hello to Anzu- the “Chicken from Hell”! This oviraptorosaur lived alongside T. rex and Triceratops in the Late Cretaceous. About 12 feet long and covered in feathers, it looked like a nightmarish ostrich with large claws and a powerful beak. It likely fed on plants as well as small animals.
#dinosaurs #dinosaursarecool #dinosaur #paleontology #paleo #sciencecommunication #scicomm #science #naturalhistory #museum #fossils #fossil
April 17, 2025 at 1:14 AM
Either I've missed a fairly important paper or two concerning the size or Anzu or this AI is wildly incorrect.
I'll let you guess which it is.
#dinosaurs #dinosaur #paleontology #paleo #sciencecommunication #scicomm #science #naturalhistory #museum #fossils #fossil
I'll let you guess which it is.
#dinosaurs #dinosaur #paleontology #paleo #sciencecommunication #scicomm #science #naturalhistory #museum #fossils #fossil
April 15, 2025 at 8:18 AM
Either I've missed a fairly important paper or two concerning the size or Anzu or this AI is wildly incorrect.
I'll let you guess which it is.
#dinosaurs #dinosaur #paleontology #paleo #sciencecommunication #scicomm #science #naturalhistory #museum #fossils #fossil
I'll let you guess which it is.
#dinosaurs #dinosaur #paleontology #paleo #sciencecommunication #scicomm #science #naturalhistory #museum #fossils #fossil
My Camarasaurus vertebra arrived and honestly, the pictures did not do it justice. This thing is MASSIVE, it's like carrying a toddler around.
March 5, 2025 at 2:16 PM
My Camarasaurus vertebra arrived and honestly, the pictures did not do it justice. This thing is MASSIVE, it's like carrying a toddler around.
Sic Semper Tyrannis
March 5, 2025 at 7:31 AM
Sic Semper Tyrannis
A German model of Diplodocus from the 1930's- at that time the scientific community in Germany favored the idea of sauropods walking with sprawled legs, leading to a bit of a spat with the Carnegie who were mounting their Diplodocus skeletons in an upright position.
March 4, 2025 at 9:33 AM
A German model of Diplodocus from the 1930's- at that time the scientific community in Germany favored the idea of sauropods walking with sprawled legs, leading to a bit of a spat with the Carnegie who were mounting their Diplodocus skeletons in an upright position.
Here's Galeamopus all painted and ready to join its fellow sauropods during public events. Eventually I'll have to look into getting a Brachiosaurus or Giraffatitan in there, but all in due time.
#scicomm #paleontology #dinosaur #dinosaur #fossil #naturalhistory #sauropod #museum #paleosky
#scicomm #paleontology #dinosaur #dinosaur #fossil #naturalhistory #sauropod #museum #paleosky
March 3, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Here's Galeamopus all painted and ready to join its fellow sauropods during public events. Eventually I'll have to look into getting a Brachiosaurus or Giraffatitan in there, but all in due time.
#scicomm #paleontology #dinosaur #dinosaur #fossil #naturalhistory #sauropod #museum #paleosky
#scicomm #paleontology #dinosaur #dinosaur #fossil #naturalhistory #sauropod #museum #paleosky
L.S. Coggeshall preparing a fossil specimen collected by Earl Douglass's team from the Carnegie in 1922. Originally described by Charles Gilmore in 1925 as Camptosaurus medius, the specimen's classification has been revised twice: first to Camptosaurus aphanoecetes, and then to Uteodon aphanoecetes.
February 23, 2025 at 11:47 PM
L.S. Coggeshall preparing a fossil specimen collected by Earl Douglass's team from the Carnegie in 1922. Originally described by Charles Gilmore in 1925 as Camptosaurus medius, the specimen's classification has been revised twice: first to Camptosaurus aphanoecetes, and then to Uteodon aphanoecetes.
The massive length of some sauropod necks seemed to pose a major challenge for pumping blood to the brain, but recent research proposes that stiff, springy cervical ribs along the neck may have functioned as accessory pumps, helping to maintain blood flow without requiring an impossibly large heart.
February 21, 2025 at 4:14 AM
The massive length of some sauropod necks seemed to pose a major challenge for pumping blood to the brain, but recent research proposes that stiff, springy cervical ribs along the neck may have functioned as accessory pumps, helping to maintain blood flow without requiring an impossibly large heart.
Unlike T. rex, which used powerful lateral head thrashing to tear flesh, Allosaurus seemingly employed a "grip and pull" technique similar to modern falcons. This would have involved driving its head into the prey, gripping with its jaws, and then rapidly retracting its neck and head to strip flesh.
February 13, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Unlike T. rex, which used powerful lateral head thrashing to tear flesh, Allosaurus seemingly employed a "grip and pull" technique similar to modern falcons. This would have involved driving its head into the prey, gripping with its jaws, and then rapidly retracting its neck and head to strip flesh.
Happy bicentennial to the influential #Iguanodon! On this day in 1825 English geologist Gideon Mantell named Iguanodon, making it the second #dinosaur genus to be formally described. The name, meaning "iguana tooth," was inspired by the resemblance of its fossilized teeth to those of modern iguanas.
February 10, 2025 at 12:55 PM
Happy bicentennial to the influential #Iguanodon! On this day in 1825 English geologist Gideon Mantell named Iguanodon, making it the second #dinosaur genus to be formally described. The name, meaning "iguana tooth," was inspired by the resemblance of its fossilized teeth to those of modern iguanas.
#paleontology #scicomm #dinosaur #dinosaurs #paleosky #naturalhistory #museum #tyrannosaurus #trex #fossil #fossil
February 10, 2025 at 3:45 AM
While we love sauropods (long necked dinosaurs) here at the museum, they do pose a challenge- their bones are huge and take up lots of storage. One of our newest pieces is this Camarasaurus vertebrae, measuring in at a whopping 23 inches long and 17 inches across! That's a lot of space for one bone.
February 9, 2025 at 3:55 PM
While we love sauropods (long necked dinosaurs) here at the museum, they do pose a challenge- their bones are huge and take up lots of storage. One of our newest pieces is this Camarasaurus vertebrae, measuring in at a whopping 23 inches long and 17 inches across! That's a lot of space for one bone.
Coming from South Africa, this fossil contains the protomammal Thrinaxodon positioned beneath the salamander-like amphibian Broomistega. All available evidence indicates that both animals were inside a burrow when it was filled with mud, burying and preserving them together as you see in this scan.
February 6, 2025 at 9:38 AM
Coming from South Africa, this fossil contains the protomammal Thrinaxodon positioned beneath the salamander-like amphibian Broomistega. All available evidence indicates that both animals were inside a burrow when it was filled with mud, burying and preserving them together as you see in this scan.
Although my strategy for building the museum's collection is to focus initially on dinosaurs before expanding out into other eras and groups, I occasionally encounter a replica that tempts me to bend the rules just a bit. This time, it's a replica of the fossil known as the Triassic Cuddle.
February 6, 2025 at 9:35 AM
Although my strategy for building the museum's collection is to focus initially on dinosaurs before expanding out into other eras and groups, I occasionally encounter a replica that tempts me to bend the rules just a bit. This time, it's a replica of the fossil known as the Triassic Cuddle.
I respect this on every level.
January 26, 2025 at 4:14 PM
I respect this on every level.
For more information, read the paper, "Ankylosaurid dinosaur tail clubs evolved through stepwise acquisition of key features," by Victoria M. Arbour and Philip J. Currie.
#paleontology #dinosaur #scicomm #fossil #ankylosaur #naturalhistory
#paleontology #dinosaur #scicomm #fossil #ankylosaur #naturalhistory
January 26, 2025 at 4:10 PM
For more information, read the paper, "Ankylosaurid dinosaur tail clubs evolved through stepwise acquisition of key features," by Victoria M. Arbour and Philip J. Currie.
#paleontology #dinosaur #scicomm #fossil #ankylosaur #naturalhistory
#paleontology #dinosaur #scicomm #fossil #ankylosaur #naturalhistory
Dr. Victoria Arbour’s research into the subject revealed that the “handle” evolved long before the massive bone clubs. These stiff tails, often coated with bony plates and spikes, had already served as formidable weapons- the infamous club was a later enhancement of an already existing feature.
January 26, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Dr. Victoria Arbour’s research into the subject revealed that the “handle” evolved long before the massive bone clubs. These stiff tails, often coated with bony plates and spikes, had already served as formidable weapons- the infamous club was a later enhancement of an already existing feature.