Cincinnati Museum Center dinosaur at center of new research

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 24, 2025
MEDIA CONTACT: Cody Hefner (513) 608-5777, chefner@cincymuseum.org

Cincinnati Museum Center dinosaur at center of new research

30-foot tyrannosaur Daspletosaurus challenges the evolution and family tree of Cretaceous predator

CINCINNATI – Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC) is helping piece together a 75-million-year-old puzzle. Newly published research calls into question the evolution of Daspletosaurus, a Cretaceous tyrannosaur, and the makeup of its family tree. CMC’s Daspletosaurus specimen served as the key specimen in the research.

Daspletosaurus was a 30-foot-long bipedal dinosaur weighing up to three tons. Though smaller than its more famous relative Tyrannosaurus, Daspletosaurus was still a fierce predator, earning its name “frightful lizard” as it chased down prey on its two strong hind legs. It’s also a relatively rare fossil with fewer than 10 on display in museums worldwide. One of those is in CMC’s Dinosaur Hall. Cincinnati’s Daspletosaurus specimen once stalked the plains of prehistoric Montana but nowlooms large in the museum, dwarfing the buildings of downtown Cincinnati out the window behind it.

“Daspletosaurus is an impressive specimen and an absolute showstopper for anyone visiting Cincinnati Museum Center, even before they enter the building,” said Glenn Storrs, PhD, Withrow Farny Curator of Vertebrate Paleontology at Cincinnati Museum Center. “This new research proves these dinosaurs aren’t just cool to see in the gallery, they are vital to ongoing scientific research.”

Dr. Storrs was part of the research team who published the paper in Acta Paleontologica Polonica, an international quarterly journal published since 1956. The peer-reviewed paper used analysis of CMC’s Daspletosaurus skull bones to challenge the dinosaur’s family tree and the existence of three distinct species within the Daspletosaurus genus.

“Detailed analysis of the age and anatomy of our specimen cast doubt on the validity of one of the three known species and provides new insight into their potential relationships,” said Dr. Storrs, summarizing the research.

It was believed that Daspletosaurus contained three recognized species: torosus, horneri and wilsoni. However, the analysis suggests that Daspletosaurus wilsonimay not be distinct from Daspletosaurus torosus, meaning that Daspletosaurus horneri may have evolved directly from Daspletosaurus torosus – the family tree may be more of a straight line than branched.

“Popular interest in Tyrannosaurus rex is at an all-time high and recent discoveries of new tyrannosaur species have sparked a resurgence of interest in the evolutionary history of tyrannosaurine dinosaurs,” said Dr. Storrs. “Daspletosaurusis a close cousin, if not direct ancestor, of T. rex, but is a much rarer fossil. That makes each new Daspletosaurus discovery significant.”

Paleontologists are continuing to study the history and evolution of Daspletosaurus, with each new fossil adding another piece to the puzzle.

“Cranial anatomy and stratigraphy of a new specimen of the tyrannosaurine dinosaur Daspletosaurus from the Judith River Formation of Central Montana, USA” was authored by Ethan Warner-Cowgill, Glenn W. Storrs, Raymond R. Rogers and Anthony E. Maltese. The full research paper is available online at Acta Paleontologica Polonica.