Bucky (Tyrannosaurus rex)
Encyclopedia
Bucky is a fossil of a juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex located in the Dinosphere exhibit in The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
in Indianapolis
, Indiana
, United States
. It is the first juvenile Tyrannosaurus ever placed on permanent exhibit in a museum and was the first to be identified with a furcula
.
. A furcula, or fused clavicles, is a boomerang shaped "wishbone" that would measure 29 centimetres (11.4 in) wide and 14 centimetres (5.5 in) high. Bucky's furcula is the first one found for the genus Tyrannosaurus. The furcula is thought to be a link between dinosaurs and birds and is the center of debate surrounding the origin of birds. Bucky also has a nearly complete set of gastralia
, or belly ribs, and an ulna, or lower arm bone. As of now, 101 bones, or about 34% of Bucky's skeleton, has been discovered and verified. Bucky is the sixth most complete Tyrannosaurus rex out of more than 40 that have been discovered. Bucky's tail is the third most complete tail of any Tyrannosaurus rex known and has a nearly complete vertebral column to the end of the pelvis. Bucky's skull is a reconstruction which utilized modified casts of other Tyrannosaurus rex specimens.
near the town of Faith, South Dakota
. The skeleton, transported by water, ended up in a low shallow valley along with bones from an Edmontosaurus
and Triceratops
. It was discovered by rancher and cowboy Bucky Derflinger. The excavation site was 150 by 30 ft (45.7 by 9.1 m), about 4500 square feet (418.1 m²). Bucky was well-preserved and easily prepared by the Black Hills Institute in South Dakota
. Excavation and preparation of Bucky was relatively easy because the surrounding rock matrix was soft.
on his father's land. Derflinger is the youngest person to discover a Tyrannosaurus. He has been collecting dinosaur fossils since he was nine years old.
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is the world's largest children's museum. It is located in the United Northwest Area neighborhood on Meridian Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The museum is accredited by the American Association of Museums. It is with five floors of exhibit halls...
in Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the first juvenile Tyrannosaurus ever placed on permanent exhibit in a museum and was the first to be identified with a furcula
Furcula
The ' is a forked bone found in birds, formed by the fusion of the two clavicles. In birds, its function is the strengthening of the thoracic skeleton to withstand the rigors of flight....
.
Description
Bucky has a bird-like skeletal structure, as it is one of the only dinosaur fossils found with a furculaFurcula
The ' is a forked bone found in birds, formed by the fusion of the two clavicles. In birds, its function is the strengthening of the thoracic skeleton to withstand the rigors of flight....
. A furcula, or fused clavicles, is a boomerang shaped "wishbone" that would measure 29 centimetres (11.4 in) wide and 14 centimetres (5.5 in) high. Bucky's furcula is the first one found for the genus Tyrannosaurus. The furcula is thought to be a link between dinosaurs and birds and is the center of debate surrounding the origin of birds. Bucky also has a nearly complete set of gastralia
Gastralium
Gastralia are dermal bones found in the ventral body wall of crocodilian and Sphenodon species. They are found between the sternum and pelvis, and do not articulate with the vertebrae...
, or belly ribs, and an ulna, or lower arm bone. As of now, 101 bones, or about 34% of Bucky's skeleton, has been discovered and verified. Bucky is the sixth most complete Tyrannosaurus rex out of more than 40 that have been discovered. Bucky's tail is the third most complete tail of any Tyrannosaurus rex known and has a nearly complete vertebral column to the end of the pelvis. Bucky's skull is a reconstruction which utilized modified casts of other Tyrannosaurus rex specimens.
Display
Bucky is displayed in the Children's Museum of Indianapolis. Found in Dinosphere, Bucky is displayed along with Stan, an adult Tyrannosaurus, in a hunting scene. Both dinosaurs are attacking Kelsey the Triceratops. Bucky attacks Kelsey from behind, while Stan acts as a diversion in front of the triceratops. The end of the fight is left ambiguous. Bucky is displayed with a full set of gastralia, which is unusual. But because Bucky was discovered with a full set, it is displayed along with it.Discovery
The dinosaur remains were found in 1998 in the Hell Creek FormationHell Creek Formation
The Hell Creek Formation is an intensely-studied division of Upper Cretaceous to lower Paleocene rocks in North America, named for exposures studied along Hell Creek, near Jordan, Montana...
near the town of Faith, South Dakota
Faith, South Dakota
Faith is a city in Meade County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 421 at the 2010 census. Sue, the most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton known, was discovered about 15 miles north and east of Faith in December 1990.-Geography:...
. The skeleton, transported by water, ended up in a low shallow valley along with bones from an Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus
Edmontosaurus is a genus of crestless hadrosaurid dinosaur. It contains two species: Edmontosaurus regalis and Edmontosaurus annectens. Fossils of E. regalis have been found in rocks of western North America that date from the late Campanian stage of the Cretaceous Period 73 million years ago,...
and Triceratops
Triceratops
Triceratops is a genus of herbivorous ceratopsid dinosaur which lived during the late Maastrichtian stage of the Late Cretaceous Period, around 68 to 65 million years ago in what is now North America. It was one of the last dinosaur genera to appear before the great Cretaceous–Paleogene...
. It was discovered by rancher and cowboy Bucky Derflinger. The excavation site was 150 by 30 ft (45.7 by 9.1 m), about 4500 square feet (418.1 m²). Bucky was well-preserved and easily prepared by the Black Hills Institute in South Dakota
South Dakota
South Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux American Indian tribes. Once a part of Dakota Territory, South Dakota became a state on November 2, 1889. The state has an area of and an estimated population of just over...
. Excavation and preparation of Bucky was relatively easy because the surrounding rock matrix was soft.
Bucky Derflinger
Bucky Derflinger found Bucky's skeleton in 1998 when he was 20 years old. He was a rancher and a rodeo cowboy. While breaking in a young horse on his father's ranch, Derflinger discovered a pes phalange, or toe bone, from Bucky's skeleton. He has also discovered another Tyrannosaurus and a slew of remains of duck-billed dinosaursHadrosaurid
Hadrosaurids or duck-billed dinosaurs are members of the family Hadrosauridae, and include ornithopods such as Edmontosaurus and Parasaurolophus. They were common herbivores in the Upper Cretaceous Period of what are now Asia, Europe and North America. They are descendants of the Upper...
on his father's land. Derflinger is the youngest person to discover a Tyrannosaurus. He has been collecting dinosaur fossils since he was nine years old.