Each summer, we go out to excavate new dinosaur fossils, and we invite volunteers and paleontology students to help us excavate and prepare fossils that we find. We're excited that we are further growing and opening up the program to the Experiment community. This is Bighorn Basin Paleontological Institute's third year running our summer expedition on Experiment.

Every expedition is different, and this will be our longest one yet. We'll be scouring the rugged badlands of the Bighorn Basin for 7 weeks, and in that time we're sure to find and excavate at least one large skeleton. That's in addition to the dozens of smaller fossils we'll recover every day as we revisit known sites and discover new ones.

These expeditions are just the latest in an almost 150 year tradition of paleontological exploration in the region, and you'll be contributing to new and continuing research projects. All specimens are prepared, cataloged and permanently housed at The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, where scientists and students will be able to study and reinterpret them for generations to come.

The Bighorn Basin Paleontological Institute is a new 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to paleontology and earth science research and education, led by Jason Schein. Jason is a Paleontologist and worked as Assistant Curator of Natural History at the New Jersey State Museum for the past decade.

When we aren't in the field or conducting research, we are engaging in outreach and education opportunities within our communities, striving to increase awareness and appreciation for our science, and for all science in general.

Where We'll Be

Millions of years ago, the Bighorn Basin was a vast floodplain near the edge of an inland sea. Where we work is located right in the shadow of the Bighorn and Beartooth mountain ranges. A hundred years ago, the area used to be a large coal mining hub. Today, it’s mainly farmland but also one of the best areas for excavating new fossils.

What To Expect

The Bighorn Basin Paleontological Institute's public summer field expeditions provide people of almost any age, background, and interest level an opportunity to work alongside, and as, real field paleontologists. You will be part of, and contribute to, decades-long research projects to collect and study the ancient organisms and ecosystems that existed here so many millions of years ago. You will be professionally trained on site to find, identify, collect, excavate, document, and prepare real fossils.

Day 1

YBRA Arrival

We will pick you up from the airport in Billings, MT, or you can arrange your own transportation into the Yellowstone-Bighorn Research Association campus.

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Day 2-6

Digging

Each morning we’ll leave as a group to the excavation sites that we’ve worked at in previous years. Each site has ongoing projects and opportunities to prospect for new finds.

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Day 7

Leaving

On the Saturday of your week, we’ll drop you off at the airport.

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Eligibility

To participate in this program, must be over the age of 11. Children 12-17 years old must be accompanied by an adult.

References

Since we've started this program, there have been many finds which have led to academic and scholarly publications. Our fossils are often made available to other scientists for study and collaboration. In addition, I have also been a co-author to many publications in the field of paleontology. Here are a few highlighted publications:

1. “A gigantic, exceptionally complete titanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from southern Patagonia, Argentina”. Kenneth J Lacovara, Matthew C Lamanna, Lucio M Ibiricu, Jason C Poole, Elena R Schroeter, Paul V Ullmann, Kristyn K Voegele, Zachary M Boles, Aja M Carter, Emma K Fowler, Victoria M Egerton, Alison E Moyer, Christopher L Coughenour, Jason P Schein, Jerald D Harris, Rubén D Martínez, Fernando E Novas. Nature Publishing Group, 2014/9/4. Link
2. “First diagnosis of septic arthritis in a dinosaur”. Jennifer Anné, Brandon P. Hedrick, Jason P. Schein. R. Soc. open sci. 2016 3 160222; DOI: 10.1098/rsos.160222. Published 3 August 2016. Link

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