Tate Geological Museum to host ‘Mesozoic Monsters’

CASPER, Wyo. — This coming weekend, children ages 7–14 will be able to learn about some of the animals that used to roam the Earth at the Tate Geological Museum’s “Mesozoic Monsters” presentation.

The free event is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Oct. 5.

The Saturday Club session will be taught by guest presenter Shaedon Kennedy, who will introduce students to the most chilling and thrilling prehistoric creatures and compare them to classic movie monsters.

“I thought this topic would make for an interesting Saturday Club because Halloween is on the horizon, and many topics in paleontology can be compared to classic movie monsters, as most of the time, the frightening creatures in fiction are based on real-life animals,” he said.

In addition, Kennedy will explain fight-or-flight responses and how, based on the morphology of certain animals, living or extinct, someone can tell which response they might have chosen and why.

Participants will also learn how some prehistoric animals developed the necessary adaptations to fight or flee, how fossil mummies are formed and how scientists put together composite skeletons in museums. Finally, students will test their compositing skills by assembling their own dinosaur skeleton puzzle.

Kennedy, a dual University of Wyoming and Casper College student, is working on his bachelor’s degree in biology. According to Dalene Hodnett, director of museums, he has worked at the Tate Geological Museum for three years and is interested in using the museum setting to teach students and adults about the unique worlds of bygone eras and how we learn about them in the present.

For more information, people can call the museum at 307-268-2447.