About a week ago we went to the North Dakota heritage museum in Bismarck. We saw many amazing things and learned quite a bit about North Dakota. We learned how scientists can use fossilized dinosaur poop to figure out more about the dinos that lived here and the land they lived on, we traveled past the time of the dinos, when early versions of creatures we know roamed what is today the Dakotas and how they relate to animals today, we learned how the land was first used by people 3,000 years ago. So if you’re thinking “I didn’t even now there was a North Dakota, how could there be this much to it if it didn’t exist to me until a few seconds ago?”, but there is a lot to this state that many people don’t know about it, so you might want to keep reading, because you might learn something you didn’t know about before.
What North Dakota lacks in looks, it regains in culture and history. North Dakota has many rich cultures, and those cultures go way back tens of thousands of years ago, but I want to go back even further. Like, 65 million years further.
Enter, the Dinos. These big ferocious creatures ruled the earth. Let’s face it, it was a dog-eat-dog world. But what I found interesting was not the eating, but the releasing. Coprolites are fossils that look like just rocks but are really the digested relics of a Dinosaur’s lunch. Yes, it’s Dino poop. It’s not as gross as you think though, because it looks, feels, smells, and tastes (not that I would know) like a rock. Scientists can figure out a lot about the time of the dinosaurs by coprolites they find. For example, scientists can use what’s in a coprolite to tell them what the Dino ate, and since those foods had to be available at the time, using a dinosaur’s poop, scientists can tell the climate and features of the land where dinosaurs lived.
But although Dinos (and their poop) are cool, there are other creatures living a bit after the rule of these giants that you might find more like the animals we know today. Ground Sloths, Brontotheres, Mesohippus, and the warthog-like Archaeotherium were just some of the beasts that roamed these parts. Ground sloths are very similar to today’s sloth; however, the ground sloth could grow up to 10 feet tall! Brontotheres was almost identical to today’s Rhinoceros, except Brontotheres were larger, and had multiple “horns” side by side, while modern rhinoceros’ horns are arranged one in front of the other. Horses for example, have also had only minor adaptations, and still greatly resemble their ancestor, the Mesohippus, who lived 120,000 years ago. These ancient horses were much smaller, about the size of a cat, and were striped, but were otherwise very similar to a horse today. As you can see the world hasn’t changed much in the past 120,000 years, and neither have the animals.
Moving forward, this time to around 11,000 BC. It was about this time that there is proof of people living in North Dakota. To give a bit of visual reference, the most recent ice age was still happening around this time. The earliest evidence of a house in North Dakota, however, was found much later. This house was found and excavated on the banks of the James River on a property currently owned by the Naze family, giving the house the name Naze house. The ancient family lived here in the fall and winter months for many years. However, the house was lost in a fire between 550 and 410 BC.
As you can see, North Dakota, though seemingly boring, has much more to it than at first appears. We can learn a lot from its vast prairies and the fossils underneath them. There was a whole other world millions of years ago, and it’s just waiting to be discovered.
4 Responses
Nice information! I wonder what the geographic travel circle was for an individual dinosaur. I supposed they only traveled until they found a food source, and then stopped until that food source ran out. Kind of like me and the refrigerator – I eat until the food runs out, then I go out to the store!
Enjoy your travels!
Awesome summary of your adventures in the Dakotas. I have traveled there many times and you taught me new things about these old places! So many places to go, so much to learn……..and fun adventures to have
I’ve never been to North Dakota. Thanks for taking us there virtually!
That is a wonderful museum that I have visited many times over the years with my grandchildren. You have done an excellent job of making the evolution of animal life in North Dakota come to life! Thank you!