Tyler Lyson
Encyclopedia
Tyler Lyson is the discoverer of the dinosaur
fossil
Dakota
, a fossilized mummified hadrosaur.
Lyson received his bachelor's degree
in biology
from Swarthmore College
in 2006, and received a scholarship to study for his PhD
in paleontology
at Yale University
, where he remains as of 2011.
In 1999, Tyler discovered the Dakota
dinosaur specimen while exploring the Hell Creek Formation in North Dakota
, on his uncle's farm. The find is unique since the fossilized remains include skin and other soft tissues in a non-collapsed state, while a very few other finds have occurred where petrified soft tissue has been preserved, but in a collapsed or crushed state.
Tyler Lyson’s general research interests are focused around his field work in the Late Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation of southwestern North Dakota. He is currently working on two sites from this area: a large population of baenid turtles from a single locality and an exceptionally well-preserved hadrosaur dinosaur. Tyler is interested in the intraspecies variation found in baenid turtles and how this influences the interrelationships of the clade. Ultimately he plans to integrate this research with a more broad scale phylogenetic analysis of the transition of all turtle groups across the K/T boundary to determine the pattern of survival and extinction around this boundary. Tyler is also interested in soft tissue preservation found in dinosaurs. He plans to work on the recently collected hadrosaur dinosaur that has most of its integument preserved to determine how the soft tissue was preserved.
His work has been featured in the Washington Post, New York Times, and Good Morning America. Lyson is also the co-founder of the Marmarth Research Foundation, located in his hometown and which provides volunteers with hands-on field and lab work on fossils.
Dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
Dakota
Dakota (fossil)
Dakota is the nickname given to a fossil Edmontosaurus from the Hell Creek Formation in North Dakota. It is about 67 million years old, placing it in the Maastrichtian, the last stage of the Cretaceous period...
, a fossilized mummified hadrosaur.
Lyson received his bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
from Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
in 2006, and received a scholarship to study for his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in paleontology
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, where he remains as of 2011.
In 1999, Tyler discovered the Dakota
Dakota (fossil)
Dakota is the nickname given to a fossil Edmontosaurus from the Hell Creek Formation in North Dakota. It is about 67 million years old, placing it in the Maastrichtian, the last stage of the Cretaceous period...
dinosaur specimen while exploring the Hell Creek Formation in North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
, on his uncle's farm. The find is unique since the fossilized remains include skin and other soft tissues in a non-collapsed state, while a very few other finds have occurred where petrified soft tissue has been preserved, but in a collapsed or crushed state.
Tyler Lyson’s general research interests are focused around his field work in the Late Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation of southwestern North Dakota. He is currently working on two sites from this area: a large population of baenid turtles from a single locality and an exceptionally well-preserved hadrosaur dinosaur. Tyler is interested in the intraspecies variation found in baenid turtles and how this influences the interrelationships of the clade. Ultimately he plans to integrate this research with a more broad scale phylogenetic analysis of the transition of all turtle groups across the K/T boundary to determine the pattern of survival and extinction around this boundary. Tyler is also interested in soft tissue preservation found in dinosaurs. He plans to work on the recently collected hadrosaur dinosaur that has most of its integument preserved to determine how the soft tissue was preserved.
His work has been featured in the Washington Post, New York Times, and Good Morning America. Lyson is also the co-founder of the Marmarth Research Foundation, located in his hometown and which provides volunteers with hands-on field and lab work on fossils.