We’ve all had to deal with backseat drivers and normally we just roll our eyes and continue on our way, but in this case I would do whatever they said! So why was there the head of a carnivorous dinosaur, Allosaurus, in the backseat of my car as I drove to the museum, especially since there were no dinosaurs in Ohio? (Actually there probably were dinosaurs in what is now Ohio, but the rocks that held their bones have long since eroded away.)

If you’ve been reading this blog you know that we’re opening a new exhibit titled “Going, Going, GONE? Endangered and Extinct Species” which will open at the Ohio History Center on July 2nd. The exhibit centers around the story of the extinction of the passenger pigeon, but we also discuss natural extinctions that have occurred in the geologic past. This Allosaurus is our example of a species that went extinct about 65.9 million years ago, the end of the Cretaceous Period. You will also see actual specimens of animals, from butterflies to mammals, that are threatened or endangered in Ohio or nationwide. The exhibit ends on a positive note however; it’s not too late to protect modern species threatened with extinction. We’ll provide lots of choices of things you can do right away to make the world a better place and to protect endangered species. Thanks to COSI for loaning us this dinosaur reconstruction, and a cast of its skull too.

Be sure and come see the Allosaurus and the rest of our new exhibit, which will run from July 2, 2014 to January 4, 2015. Stay tuned to this blog and we’ll feature other interesting specimens that you can see in the exhibit.

P.S. Driving this head from COSI to the Ohio History Center was probably the only time I’ve ever kinda wanted to get pulled over!