*Dowdy, K.N. and S.A. Hageman, Department of Geology-Geography, Park University. DINOSAURS FROM STERNBERG’S 1917 FIELDWORK IN THE RED DEER RIVER, ALBERTA, CANADA. Charles H. Sternberg collected dinosaurs during 1912-1917 from the Red Deer River, Alberta, Canada. In March of 1919, Sternberg shipped a collection of Cretaceous specimens to Park University. Sternberg’s original letter and packing list aided in recently curating the Sternberg dinosaurs. Red Deer River dinosaurs comprise 103 out of the 157 specimens shipped. These 103 divide into three distinct groups: 72% hadrosaur, 20% theropod, and 8% ceratopsid. The 74 hadrosaurid bones belong to a common species (Corythosaurus casuarius, Lambeosaurus sp., or Prosaurolophus sp.). The hadrosaur material is split into 35 vertebrae, 31 phalanges, six unguals, a dental battery, and an occipital bone. The theropod specimens are composed of 21 bones (four claws, 16 phalanges, and one vertebra). Claw identification suggests the theropod material represents the species Gorgosaurus libratus and Dromaeosaurus sp. Sternberg appears to refer to Dromaeosaurus bones as “carniverous dinosaurs” since Dromaeosaurus was not described until 1922. The ceratopsid material consists of one anchylosed-cervical vertebrae, two caudal vertebrae, two phalanges, one claw, and two nasal horn-cores. The horn-cores represent Centrosaurs apertus and Styracosaurus albertensis. Most, or all, of these dinosaur bones are from the 1917 field season when Charles Sternberg and son Levi acted as independent collectors. Unfortunately, there is a lack of evidence about their 1917 collections due to no known field notes. The San Diego Museum of Natural History, the United States National Museum, and the American Museum of Natural History are known destinations of the 1917 material. This Park University collection will aid in understanding of all the collections from this historic dinosaur expedition.
Powerpoint: DINOSAURS FROM STERNBERG’S 1917 FIELDWORK IN THE RED DEER RIVER, ALBERTA, CANADA.