Cleveland Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry

Today we took a day trip to the Cleveland Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry near Elmo and Cleveland, Utah.  The quarry has a great visitor's center and the active dig is enclosed in two buildings.  One building is closed but the other building is open to the public.  This evening I am posting drawings I have done of some of the dinosaurs that have been found in the Cleveland Lloyd Quarry.  I will also draw more of the dinosaurs from the quarry for another post.  I will first post these older drawings.  I will also post some photos of the site and of the nice visitor's center. .  . and some other photos of the fossilized skeletons from other museums.  Today we also went to the Utah State University Prehistoric Museum as well.  It was much larger than the visitor's center at the quarry.  

Something funny that happened today is that we THOUGHT that we had visited this quarry 20 years ago.   There was only an open air roof over it and a catwalk over the center of the dig.  But now, after seeing the real site, we realize that we had got lost and that 20 years ago we were actually at a different quarry. 

The most common animal found at the quarry was Allosaurus.  Allosaurus was between 30 and 40 feet  or 9-12 meters long and was a top predator of the Jurassic Period.  It was very successful.  Between 44 and 60 Allosaurs died at this site.  The bones are all jumbled up and not together or disarticulated so an exact count is kind of difficult.  This many predators in one place is remarkable.  In fact, there were far more predator dinos and crocodiles than there were herbivorous (plant eating) animals.  So this site is considered a predator trap. 

Here is one theory of what happened here. . .  The carnivores saw the trapped animal in the mud and thought, "FREE FOOD!"  But then the predator got trapped in the mud too.  This is jokingly called, thinking with your stomach.   Although predatory dinos had bigger brains than herbivores, they also did not have enough intelligence to avoid the trap.  Although since most of the Allosaurs are juviniles or subadults. . . maybe most of the older Allosaurs were wise enough to avoid the trap. 

So. . . here are some older drawings of the species of dinosaurs from the Cleveland Lloyd Quarry.
Remember that you can search the list of dinosaurs of the Jurassic Period by clicking on the top button that says Paleontology.  The picture will match the caption on today's post.   I am starting with some of the Predators. 

Allosaurus by a River

Maybe Allosaurus was striped. . . 

Allosaurus Caring for her Chick

Crocodiles and Alligators carry their chicks in their mouths so maybe Theropods did too.  

Allosaurus mommy 

Allosaurus from Quarry Visitor's Center

The following photos are of Allosaurus' weapons. . . 

Allosaurus Hand and Claws

Allosaurus Jaw and Teeth

Ceratosaurus was more primitive than Allosaurus.  In fact, some Paleontologists think that it was outcompeted by Allosaurus and went extinct long before the Allosaurs did.  

Ceratosaurus by a River

Ceratosaurus 

Torvosaurus was a larger type of Allosaur.   .   . but it was not Allosaurus.  Torvosaurus had a much bigger head and recent finds in other quarries in both North America and Europe have indicated that although we have considered Allosaurus as the top predator. . . with its huge head and probably more powerful bite perhaps Torvosaurus was the real king of the Jurassic.  However...since far more Allosaurus fossils have been found it is thought that somehow Allosaurus was more successful.  

The below photo is of a Torvosaurus fossilized skeleton on display at the Thanksgiving Point Museum of Ancient Life in Lehi, Utah.  ONE Torvosaurus was found at the Cleveland Lloyd Quarry.  

Torvosaurus at Museum of Ancient Life

Torvosaurus and Ramphorhynchus

Torvosaurus as Feathered Theropod

Some Paleontologists think that it is possible that ALL Theropods were feathered.  

By the,way, this drawing is good for seeing the rather flatter skull of Torvosaurus.   

Torvosaurus on the Prowl

We now will see drawings of the Sauropods.  Sauropods were the largest land animals ever to walk the Earth.  They were once thought to have only lived in the Jurassic Period.  Now we know that they evolved and lived on into the Cretaceous Period.  In fact, they grew to be even bigger in the Cretaceous.  

Brachiosaurus

 Torvosaurus vs Allosaurus

Notice the smaller head on Allosaurus. . . although the dinos may have been the same length Torvosaurus was more robust.  That means more heavily built.  

Brachiosaurus feeding on Cycad Tree

Brachiosaurus was the biggest dinosaur found at the quarry.  It was thought to be around 85 feet or 26 meters long.  ONE type of Brachiosaur, called Sauroposeidon, was 60 feet tall.  Brachiosarus weighed around 38 tons.  

Brachiosarus for small children to color

We now know that these Saruopods were LAND animals.  It was once thought that they lived in lakes and rivers and used their high nostrils as a snorkel.  This in now considered incorrect.  The great Paleontologist Robert Bakker was the one who pointed out that they had elephant like feet, not hippo type feet.  I will be drawing more of the Sauropods from the Quarry for a later post.  

Sauropod Feet from Utah State University East Prehistoric Museum

Sauropod Vertebrae from Quarry

NOTE:  I am posting this now but I will continue to post more drawings on this post.   All will be drawings of animals found at the C L Quarry.  

Jesus coming in Clouds of Glory

Jesus in the Clouds

Jesus will return to Earth someday.  He will have a glorified resurrected body.  When he comes all the righteous or good people will also get to be resurrected.  He will be wearing red, so his outer robe and sash should be colored red.  I saw some painting like this with Jesus in clouds and I thought it would be a good coloring page.  But the main things to color here are Jesus, his robe, his skin, his hair and his beard. 

 I understand that not all Christians believe in the literal resurrection of all of us.  But in the LDS or Mormon Church we do believe that.  In fact, we believe that after He comes Jesus will rule on Earth for a thousand years and after that thousand years even the people who were wicked will also be resurrected.  Then all those who lived on Earth will receive a final judgement and go to one of four places.  For the very wicked that would be Outer Darkness.  For less wicked but still pretty bad people they go to the Telestial Kingdom.  These would be people that regularly broke the Ten Commandments.  Then the good people who were misled some on Earth will go to the Terrestrial Kingdom.  The most righteous people who kept all the commandments or repented when they broke some...and who received the saving ordinances will go to the Celestial Kingdom.  

We all will be rewarded for our good works but without the atonement of Jesus Christ to pay the eternal price for our sins... we would all be going to Outer Darkness with Satan and his angels.  I guess you could say that Satan's angels were demons.  

On the other hand, because Jesus paid the eternal price for our sins, IF we repent we don't have to pay that price and we can live in a Kingdom of Glory.  In fact, we believe that our righteous family members . .  including our spouse... can live with us forever in God the Father's Eternal Kingdom.  

Protopteryx in Ginkgo Tree

Protopteryx in Ginkgo Tree

Protopteryx was an early bird from the early Cretaceous Period.  It lived about 130 million years ago.  Its name means first wing or first feather.  It was about 8.5 inches or 21.5 cm long.  That is slightly smaller than the American Robin.  Protopteryx had three claws on its arms or wings and 3 front claws and a dew claw for grasping on each foot.  

Protopteryx from Dinosaur Train

This drawing was inspired by an episode of Dinosaur Train.  That was a great show.  I just learned yesterday that last season was its last.  But it exists on reruns and on Amazon Prime and our granddaughter LOVES it!  I was watching the show with my granddaughter and learned about Protopteryx.  I then looked up more about the species online.  Its barbed at the tip long tail feathers are like those found on the Red Bird of Paradise. 

Red Bird of Paradise 

Photo from Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Plants and Animals 2

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Plants and Animals 2
This is a Common Gray Fox , a Kangaroo Rat, and a Gopher Snake with Desert Plants

This is the second drawing of the plants and animals of Coral Pink Sand Dunes.  The central figure in this drawing is the Common Gray Fox.  This predator can range from 30-44 inches,  That is 76-112 cm.  They live in much of North America . . . clear down to and in Central America.  Unlike a red fox these foxes are black, grey, and white.  The Gray Fox preys on small animals, but it is unique in that it can and does climb trees to escape from bigger predators and to find small prey in trees. . . like birds and squirrels.  The Common Gray Fox can climb trees up to  60 feet  or  18 meters tall.  They climb down backwards or they hop from branch to branch to get down.  This fox has long sharp claws that they use to climb trees.  It should be pointed out the the Gray Foxes at Coral Pink Sand Dunes don't have any trees 60 feet tall to climb.  There ARE juniper, pine, and fir trees there but, they are not near that tall.  

The small rodent hopping across the drawing is a Kangaroo Rat.  They are small rodents that live in the Desert Southwest.  They live without hardly ever if ever drinking water.  They get all the water they need from the seeds they eat.  Kangaroo rats are amazing animals.  Even though they are so small they can jump up to 9 feet or 2.75 meters in one jump.

The snake is a Gopher Snake.  They are among the largest and most common snakes in North America.  They are not venous but they do prey on smaller animals like rodents, frogs, and toads.  I was bit by a Gopher Snake when I was a boy and it hurt like crazy but the wound healed up fine.
People often mistake the Gopher Snake for a rattlesnake.  But a Gopher Snake is far less dangerous.

The Golden  Eagle IS in the drawing.  It is flying high far off in the distance.  I once came across a Golden Eagle on a rural highway in Western Utah.  It was sitting or standing in the middle of the road eating roadkill.  These animals are magnificent.  They have a wingspan of 78 inches.  That would be nearly 2 meters.  They can be around a yard or a about a meter long, yet they weigh only 14 lbs or 6.35 kg.  Now, on to the plants....

The plants are all desert plants, although one of the species is an invasive species.  It can be seen up front and in a couple of other places in the drawing.  It is called Cheatgrass.  It came to America on the boots of some pioneer from Europe or Asia.... or maybe as part of contaminated straw packing in items shipped from Europe or Asia.  This happened in the mid 1800s.   Cheatgrass is very aggressive and can often out compete other native grasses.  It grows so abundantly in the Western USA that it can carry lightning caused fires to spread very quickly.  This is a problem because we have lost a lot of native plants, like sage brush to fire.  Before Cheatgrass a bolt of lightning might hit a Juniper tree or a Sage Brush.  This led to one plant dying.  Now, with Cheatgrass, there are whole areas of many acres that get burned due to one lightning strike because of the Cheatgrass carrying the fire from native plant to native plant.  Cheatgrass has the multipronged head that come off in your stockings and drove me crazy as a kid growing up in the Western Utah Desert.   It drys out in late spring or very early summer and so it is dry and yellowish gold and ready to burn very early in the fire season.

The plant you see part of on the right in the foreground is Utah Juniper or Juniperus ostesperma.   On mountain slopes you often see another type of juniper tree called Rocky Mountain Juniper with a scientific name of Juniperus scopulorum.  All juniper trees or bushes have scale-like leaves and a hard gray-blue berry.  It is common to see a native juniper bush planted around homes and businesses in the Rocky Mountain West.  It is called Spreading Juniper or Juniperus horizontalis.

There are a few Yucca plants to be seen in the drawing as well.  It is called Kanab Yucca or Yucca kanabensis.  This is a desert plant that is called a succulent because it is capable of storing water in its thick leaves.  It has towering seed pods that rise from the middle of the plant. My wife was once bucked off a horse and had a very painful landing on a yucca plant.

The following photos are from the Coral Pink Sand Dunes.  Some are from the displays in their small but excellent visitor's center.  .  .

Common Gray Fox

Golden Eagle

Kanab Yucca

Kangaroo Rat Tracks

Gopher Snake

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Plants and Animals 1

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Plants and Animals 1

This is a drawing of some of the plants and animals at Coral Pink Sand Dunes in Southern Utah.  This is a spectacular Utah State Park that is located just few miles  south of other great parks  that are National Parks, like Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park.  I highly recommend a visit!

By the way, this drawing is number 1 because I am  working on another drawing for tomorrow.  It will be number 2.

Lets start with the animals in my above drawing.  The beetle is a very rare animal that is only found at the Coral Pink Sand dunes.  It is a Coral Pink Sand Dunes Tiger Beetle.  The small mammal with big ears is a Pinyon Mouse.  The larger rodent is also a mammal called an Antelope Ground Squirrel.  In my drawing the beetle is in the foreground, climbing a small dune. . . so he or she appears larger than actual size in comparison to the rodents.  

The Tiger Beetle are only active as adults for a few months in the spring.  .  .  during this time they mate and the females lay eggs 2-3 inches under the sand... then the adults die.  When the eggs hatch the larva stage of life of the beetle lives 2-3 years before it goes through metamorphosis and turns into an adult tiger beetle.  The adults only live about 2-3 weeks.  A portion of the Coral Pink Sand dunes are kept free of off road vehicles to preserve the habitat of the Tiger Beetle.  The entire habitat for this rarest of the rare animals is about 1/4 the size of Central Park in New York City.  This beetle is just under a half inch long or 1,2 cm.  The Tiger Beetle preys upon other insects.  The beetle's tracks look a bit like tiny bicycle tire tracks.  Several scientists were there doing a beetle count the day we were there.  

The Pinyon Mouse is noted for its rather large ears.  These ears help it be aware of predators like the Common Grey Fox and Owls.  The Pinyon mouse is found in much of the Southwest USA as well as Baja California in Mexico.  They are omnivores and they eat fungi, plants, and insects.  The Pinyon Mouse can grow up to 9 inches or 23 long.  They can also be quite a bit smaller in some parts of the Southwestern U.S.   

The Antelope Ground Squirrel is between 5,5-6.7 inches long.  That is about 17 cm long.  They are amazing animals in their adaptation to the desert.  They can handle a body temperature of up to 104 degrees Fahrenheit. . . or 40 degrees Celsius.  Of course they are found in the hot deserts of the American Southwest. . . although they can handle higher elevations as well.  For example, Coral Pink Sand Dunes is located at 6,000 feet or 1829 meters of elevation above sea level.  Even in Southern Utah it can get quite cold at that elevation.  My Brother in Law got his truck stuck in the snow at Coral Pink Sand Dunes one winter.  So it can snow a lot up there at that elevation.  

I can identify two of the plants in the drawing.  The cactus with a yellow flower (now you know what color the flower should be colored) is a Prickly Pear Cactus.  The Mexicans call them nopales and they taste wonderful. . . once you remove the spines.  I think they taste a bit like green beans.  

The tall flowers belong to a plant called Rubber Rabbitbrush or just Rabbitbrush.  Their narrow leaves help them not lose too much water to evapotransporation.  These leaves are a soft pastel blue-green.  The  flowers are medium yellow or pastel yellow.  Rubber Rabbitbrush is related to sage brush.  They both have blue-green leaves.  

I live in Northern Utah but my wife and I went to Southern Utah last week for the graduation of our nephew.  What follows are some photos of the dunes and the animals and etc. as well as of displays in the small but excellent visitor's center.  Look closely at the photos of the tracks.  In the visitor's center there is a cool tracks interpretation display.   One of the beautiful things is how the dark green plants and the blue green plants stand out against the coral pink sand.   

Coral Pink Sand Dunes mostly Tiger Beetle Tracks

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Tiger Beetle and Stinkbug Tracks

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Kangaroo Rat Tracks with some Tiger Beetle Tracks

Coral Pink Sand Dunes with Beetle Tracks and then Yucca in foreground

Coral Pink Sand Dunes Tiger Beetle
 drawing from outdoor display at conservation area

Pinyon Mouse
 from photo inside visitor's center

Antelope Ground Squirrel
from photo inside visitor's center

Coral Pink Sand Dunes
Great view from View Platform near visitor's center

Starship Enterprise

Star Ship Enterprise

This is a drawing of the Starship Enterprise from Star Trek The Next Generation.  Well, it is MY version of the ship.  It is not exact so maybe it is a later version of the Enterprise.  In Star Trek the original series the ship had the code NCC 1701.   In Star Trek The Next Generation it was
NCC 1701 D.  So maybe this is NCC 1701 F or NCC 1701 G .   

I think that Star Trek was and is an amazing franchise.  It featured humans from many races as crew members and as officers.  It had aliens who also were crew members and everyone was viewed as equals.  I read that Nichelle Nichols who played Lt. Uhura wanted to quit but Martin Luther King Jr. talked he out of it.  He said that Star Trek was the only show he let his kids stay up late to watch.  He told Nichelle that it featured her as Uhura who was black and an officer.  She was an important role model.  Whoopi Goldberg, who later would be on Star Trek TNG...was a little girl when she saw Lt. Uhura on Star Trek.  She ran to her mom saying, "Mamma Mamma, there is a black woman on TV and she aint no maid!" 

One of the amazing things about Star Trek is how it predicted some technologies.  Captain Kirk sings off on a tablet computer.  Captain Picard reads novels on a tablet as well.  Those scenes were shot many years before a tablet  computer existed.  Now with talking computer access like Siri and Alexa we live in a world that connects us to the computer in one way you could communicate with the computer on Federation Starships...by talking to it and it talking back to you.  Also, some of the first cell phones were designed by Star Trek fan engineers.  They insisted on a cell phone design that flipped open like a communicator from the original Star Trek series. 

The two smaller engine like things that you see on the Star Ships from the Star Trek series are Warp Nacelles or the warp engines.  The theory...that IS something scientists are working on....is that if you can warp space in front of you you can travel faster than light.  This has also been referred to as folding space in the Dune series of books.  Maybe one day we WILL be able to travel at warp speed.  Right now if you accelerated to just under the speed of light in an interstellar ship and went to the nearest star other than the sun.  By the time you got back 80 years would have gone by.  The crew of the ship would only have aged 5 or 6 years because of how time slows down when you are traveling fast like that.  With warp drive you could travel that distance in a few hours instead of 80 years. 

Star Trek also has a message of unity.  The people of Earth learn to get along.  People are still proud of their culture they were raised in, but they are not bigoted.  Of course in  Star Trek some species from other planets are bigoted against species from different planets.  But the message is bigotry is wrong. 

Technology is used for  good much of the time in Star Trek.  Of course often they are fighting against those who want to use tech for bad purposes.

Fairy named Celest

Fairy named Celest

I imagined that this fairy has used magic to make her near  human sized.  She is a forest fairy.  Celest is a real person.  She posed for a photograph so I could do this drawing.  I met her at a family wedding.  She is the bride's best friend.  She is a lovely African American.  I drew her as a fairy, but in a coloring page quality of drawing it is difficult to capture the beauty of a real person.  It kind of bothers me how you rarely see fairies drawn with races other than white. I am white...mostly.  But, I am also part Native American.  In fact, I read somewhere that around 80% of Americans are part native American.  To me it is great to know about your family history.  For us Americans it usually shows how diverse we are.  My wife found out from her DNA testing that she is like half German.  She did not know this.  She also found out that she is 5% Irish and around 25% Norwegian, some Swedish and some English.  The Irish genes are probably because Vikings used to kidnap people from Ireland.  I am part Iroquois Native American, English, Spanish, Danish, and Welch plus to my surprise I am a small percent Russian.  In my opinion we should celebrate our diversity! 

In the Fablehaven book series the Fairies are from different parts of the world and so they are made up of fairies from Europe, Africa, Latin America, Native American, Arabian, etc. ancestry.  That makes sense to me.  Many cultures around the world have stories of fairies and or little people.  So it makes sense that not all fairies would be only of European ancestry.