Dino Fest 2022
Date
There are no future occurrences of this event.
Location
Tickets
Join us for a festival celebrating dinosaurs, their prehistoric past, and the science that brings their world back to life. Meet world-renowned paleontologists from the Museum's Dinosaur Institute and beyond as they discuss locomotion, or the way that prehistoric animals moved, and how fossils give us clues for ancient animal movement on the land, sea, or air. You don’t want to miss this event that is over 66 million years in the making!
- See rare specimens from our Museum’s collections, including Augustynolophus, the official State Dinosaur of California.
- Participate in hands-on activities.
- Explore our world-renowned Dinosaur Hall and our T. rex growth series.
- Visit L.A. Underwater and discover how ancient Los Angeles was once beneath the waves of the Pacific Ocean.
- Shop for dinosaur inspired merchandise.
- And so much more!
#dinofest #NHMLA
Dino Fest 2022 Exhibitors
On view from 9:30 am–5 pm
Schedule of Events
Ongoing from 9:30 am–5 pm
Welcome Tables - A great location for all Dino Fest info!
Activities:
- Coloring Station
- Dino Masks
- Dino Hall Scavenger Hunt
- Dino Dig Pit
Encounters Stage
*Ticket reservation required to attend
10:30am, 11:30am, 1:30pm, 2:30pm | Dino Encounters
Have a dinosaur encounter with our engaging and fun live performance featuring NHM's life-size dinosaur puppets.
Stage Presentations
10:30 am & 2 pm* | Paleo Chats
Curious about paleontology? Drop in and chat with someone who works in the field and ask them some questions!
*2 pm Paleo Chat will be in Spanish
12:30 pm & 3:30 pm | Plaster Jacketing Fossil Demo
See how the Dino Institute staff bring back fossils from the field.
Digging Deeper Dino Discussions
11:30 am | L.A. Underwater - A Deep Dive
What lies beneath the surface of Los Angeles? A hidden ocean waiting to be explored…by you! Learn about NHM’s new exhibition L.A Underwater for a deep dive into prehistoric L.A. and hear directly from some of the staff that made this exhibit possible.
1 pm | Diving Behavior Among Giant Predatory Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs have been considered ecologically constricted to terrestrial environments for centuries. One recent study demonstrates that at least one group of giant carnivorous dinosaurs, spinosaurs, were capable of diving in freshwater environments to hunt for prey.
3 pm | Chemical Clues Reveal the Evolution of Warm-Bloodedness in Dinosaurs
This talk will present new molecular evidence that allows us to reconstruct the metabolic rate and thermophysiological strategies of extinct animals. It will focus on the evolution of warm-bloodedness in response to major mass extinction events, share the first insights into the metabolic rates of different dinosaurs and pterosaurs, and discuss evidence for cold-bloodedness in stegosaurs, ceratopsians, and duckbill dinosaurs.
Learn more about the discussion speakers:
Alan Zdinak, Senior Preparator, Vertebrate Paleontology
Speaker: “L.A. Underwater - A Deep Dive”
Alan Zdinak received his training in fossil preparation and archival specimen housing at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He also worked at the Yale Peabody Museum and the Smithsonian before joining the NHM. Here in L.A. he helped re-design and renovate the museum’s fossil prep lab. He’s an active member of the greater paleontological community, teaching workshops at professional meetings such as The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology (SVP) and Association for Materials and Methods in Paleontology (AMMP), as well as giving talks on fossil prep topics to the general public.
Dr. Austin Hendy, Curator, Invertebrate Paleontology
Speaker: “L.A. Underwater - A Deep Dive”
After obtaining his doctorate at the University of Cincinnati, Austin was a postdoctoral fellow at Yale University, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institution, and Florida Museum of Natural History. An author on numerous scientific papers, he has conducted research in many parts of the world, but especially tropical South America. There he studies the biodiversity, biogeography and paleoecology of Cenozoic mollusc faunas. He is also interested in bioinformatics and the application of natural museum specimens and data for K-12 education.
Dr. Jorge Velez-Juarbe, Associate Curator, Marine Mammals
Speaker: “L.A. Underwater - A Deep Dive”
Jorge Velez-Juarbe holds a Ph.D. from Howard University, where he studied the morphology, systematics, and paleobiology of fossil sirenians and cetaceans. After receiving his doctorate in 2012, Dr. Velez-Juarbe held Postdoctoral Associate positions at the Florida Museum of Natural History, the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, and at California State University Fullerton before being hired as Assistant Curator of Marine Mammals at our Museum. Dr. Velez-Juarbe's appointment involves curatorial responsibility for both our fossil and extant marine mammal collections.
Dr. Matteo Fabbri, Postdoctoral Fellow, Negaunee Integrative Research Center, Field Museum
Speaker: “Diving Behavior Among Giant Predatory Dinosaurs”
Dr. Matteo Fabbri is an Evolutionary Biologist working on morphological and ecological evolution among reptiles, with a specific focus on the dinosaur to bird transition. His work uses data from the fossil record and developmental biology to untangle the mechanisms underpinning the origin of anatomical innovation through deep time.
Dr. Jasmina Wiemann, Molecular Paleobiologist
Speaker: “Chemical Clues Reveal the Evolution of Warm-Bloodedness in Dinosaurs”
Dr. Jasmina Wiemann is currently an Agouron Institute Fellow at the University of Chicago and the Field Museum. Previously, she studied Chemistry at the Technical University of Dortmund (Excellence Scholarship) and earned a BSc in Geosciences (Honors Scholarship) and a MSc in Organismal and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Bonn. She graduated with a PhD from the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Yale, and recently finished a Trimble & Barr Fellowship at Caltech.
Keep an eye out for…
Microfossil Sorting Activity
Available from 10 am–12 pm and 1:30–3:30 pm.
Live Animal Meet and Greets
Pop-ups throughout the day.
Velociraptor Display
On view in the Temporary Exhibit Gallery, level G, from 9:30 am–5 pm.
Allosaurus Display
On view in the Otis Booth Pavilion, level G, from 9:30 am–5 pm.