Barosaurus prep

[Fossil-Hound]

These past few months I've been working on the weekends as part of a team of amateur and professional paleontologists to prepare a large Barosaurus at the Museum of Ancient Life in Lehi, UT. From October to January I have worked on two large vertebrae from this adult Barosaurus. I believe we won't know the gender until we begin work on the pelvis but not to many of these species have been uncovered so we'll have to compare some other models. It's been a very rewarding journey so far. Here's a couple of pictures of preparation work with a Paleo Tool Air Scribe (forgot the model but one of the larger ones) in October. I'll try to get some before and after photos as we're making tremendous progress on these vertebrae. Behind me is a large 9-ton jacket containing a group of Utahraptors and an herbivore (sand pit). I'm not allowed to post any photos of that but the sickle claws and raptor teeth are a very impressive sight.

 

FYI I realize this isn't as finite or fragile a work as the prep jobs @Malcolmt or @Ptychodus04 do but hey it's a start.

 

Working on the vertebrae's. A near complete vertebrae is on the bottom right.

 

 

I now wear a mask since the matrix particles are so fine and can get into your lungs and eyes.

 

 

On the wall above me is a skeletal layout of an adult Barosaurus. The red filled in portions indicate the bones we've already recovered. The pelvis, back femurs, feet, and an assortment of vertebrae. The head is yet to be found and might not be in this jacket.

 

 

Up close of the vertebrae.

 

 

Another angle

 

 

Another angle with some near complete tail sets behind me.

 

 

If you look closely you'll see some completed vertebrae in the background.

 

 

Another angle

 

 

Working from behind the glass so viewers can come see. This is a rewarding, volunteer based opportunity where I feel like I can give back to the community. Occasionally I'll poke my head out to educate those passing by. The youngsters really like this exhibit.

 

 

Smiling for the camera. Fossil description is on the bottom left. The nine ton sleeve containing the Utahraptors is directly behind me.

 

 

Another angle

 

 

This might be my favorite. It shows most of the vertebrae lined up. This photo was taken back in October and I'm amazed at how far it's already come along. Really excited to post some closer photos and will compile a time lapse.

 

 

A bit fuzzy but another angle

 

 

Another angle

 

 

Another angle

 

 

Another angle (yes I'm wearing my Penn Dixie fleece FYI @DevonianDigger)

 

[ynot]

Thanks for sharing.

[Raggedy Man]

No breathing mask?!?!?! For shame!

[KimTexan]

That is massive and a pretty cool opportunity.

[Manticocerasman]

thanks for sharing this experience with us

[caldigger]

You're just prepping out a few items for next year's Secret Santa exchange, right? 

[Kane]

Looks like a good use of some spare volunteer time, Jason. Hopefully there are times you're allowed to put on some headphones to listen to some tunes as you methodically scribe off the matrix. Nine tons of dino material will certainly keep you and the team busy for a while!

[rebu]

Must be an amazing and rewarding experience. Thank you for sharing. How many people is working on it?

[Malcolmt]

That is so amazing..... Too bad we don't have any opportunities like that up here ...I would sign up in a second

[SailingAlongToo]

7 hours ago, Raggedy Man said:

No breathing mask?!?!?! For shame!

 

Definitely should consider at least an N-95 dust mask.

[Ptychodus04]

@Fossil-Hound, nice pics. You are sporting a nice Indiana Jones-esque look on the facial hair!

 

That's an ME9100 you're using. It's the bread and butter of general preparation. I must concur with the others here, get yourself a respirator with a P100 cartridge from Home Depot or the like and you'll be covered for all preparation lung hazards. Also, you may want to consider ear plugs or some hearing protection. The scribe alone is loud enough to eventually damage your hearing. I wear shooting ear muffs so I can put in my ear bud headphones and listen to some tunes while I work. My current playlist contains a variety of tunes by Apocalyptica (heavy metal played by a cello quartet, it works better than one would think it does ).

 

I miss prepping at the Perot, I just haven't had the time in a while. It is fun to work on some really massive beasties.

[Ludwigia]

1 hour ago, Malcolmt said:

That is so amazing..... Too bad we don't have any opportunities like that up here ...I would sign up in a second

Could you imagine the ROM offering us such an opportunity? Nevertheless, I hope I still live to see the day.

 

@Fossil-Hound Thanks for showing us this. Looking forward to watching the future progress as the museum allows it.

[DevonianDigger]

Very awesome, Jason! Glad to see you've found somewhere to prep! I'm quite jealous you're getting to work on that. I had a good time working on my Edmontosaurus bones and would love to work on more dino material. Guess it's just trilobites for the time being  (Funny enough, my last project was a flat of material from u-dig, made me think of you!)

[Fossil-Hound]

3 hours ago, DevonianDigger said:

Very awesome, Jason! Glad to see you've found somewhere to prep! I'm quite jealous you're getting to work on that. I had a good time working on my Edmontosaurus bones and would love to work on more dino material. Guess it's just trilobites for the time being  (Funny enough, my last project was a flat of material from u-dig, made me think of you!)

Haha. That is awesome Jay. No expeditions for me until the snow and ice melt away.