Participants:
Series Code: TIJ
Program Code: TIJ007103S
|
00:28 Dinosaurs have been the most spectacular creatures
00:31 that have ever lived. 00:33 They have been an intense source of fascination for many people 00:37 both young and old love the adventure of finding our more 00:41 about these prehistoric giants that once roamed the earth. 00:44 Fortunately, Outback Queensland has a whole lot of 00:49 prehistoric history to discover. 00:53 So, let's go on a journey along Australia's Dinosaur Trail 00:58 that offers visitors a range of unique experiences 01:01 not available anywhere else in the world. 01:04 This unique journey is going to be an amazing experience 01:09 so join me Gary Kent, in our quest to find out more 01:14 about the dinosaurs of Australia. 01:16 I can't wait to see what we'll find as we visit 01:20 Outback Queensland. 01:37 Our first stop on the search for dinosaurs is Winton, 01:41 a town that's actually called "The Dinosaur Capital 01:45 of Australia. "It's also the birthplace of the 01:49 iconic Australian Airline Quanta's 01:51 and where the legend of a jolly swagman waltzed into 01:55 Australia's history. 01:57 Winton is located in the Australian Outback 02:00 about 1,350 kilometers or 840 miles northwest of Brisbane 02:07 so it takes a long time to get here. 02:10 But if you are searching for dinosaurs, then it's definitely 02:13 worth the trip because on the outskirts of Winton is the 02:17 Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum. 02:20 It's the home of Australia's largest dinosaur fossil 02:28 collection and the southern hemisphere's most productive 02:31 fossil preparation laboratory and supervises the site of the 02:36 the world's only evidence of a dinosaur stampede. 02:39 The Age of Dinosaurs Museum is fit between three facilities. 02:45 The fossil preparation laboratory, the collection room, 02:49 and Dinosaur Canyon. Here in the collection room 02:53 the side reception, you can see the real dinosaur skeletons 02:57 on display. This collection room houses the only known specimen 03:03 of Australia's largest and most complete carnivorous dinosaur. 03:08 Australovenator which in essence nicknamed Banjo, 03:12 there's also Australia's most complete Sauropod Dimattinas 03:18 Saurus Matilda nicknamed Matilda, and Savannasarus 03:24 elliotiorum nicknamed "Wade." 03:27 It's truly an awe inspiring collection. 03:35 So, let's find out the story about how the dinosaurs 03:38 and the fossils were first discovered. 03:40 David Elliot is a third generation grazier 03:44 who'd been farming sheep and cattle properties around Winton 03:48 from the age of 17. In 1999, while mustering sheep on his 03:54 property Belmont near Winton, Elliot discovered a large 03:58 fossilized bone of a dinosaur. 04:01 I found probably the biggest best dinosaur by North Sound 04:06 it was just big chunks of bone and (undistinguishable) 04:10 I had him here for a couple of years, we couldn't put him 04:13 all together (undistinguishable) 04:16 and identify it as a big source by sight and it made a fairly 04:20 big media release, it was a fairly large. It was supposed 04:23 to be Australia's largest at the time and really... 04:26 but that's okay and it's still not, but that's okay 04:29 It was sort of a big start for us you know cause we realized 04:35 how excited people around the country got over this stuff. 04:38 Following the discovery of more fossils during digs held in 04:42 conjunction with the Queensland Museum, David and his wife Judy 04:47 called a public meeting in Winton on the 17th of August 04:51 2002. They hope to establish a Dinosaur Museum at Winton 04:55 so the discoveries could be preserved in perpetuity and 05:00 be made available to the public in general. 05:03 A few years later in March 2005 David discovered more dinosaur 05:10 bones on his property. In September of that year 05:13 the site was excavated by a joint Australian Age of 05:17 Dinosaurs and the Queensland Museum team. 05:20 During the dig they uncovered one of the remains of 05:24 Australia's most complete Sauropod skeletons, 05:28 but was even more exciting was that the skeleton belonged to a 05:34 completely new type of dinosaur, it was given the scientific name 05:38 Savannasarus Elliottorum after the open grasslands where 05:43 it was found in the Elliot family. 05:46 The new discovery was nicknamed Wade in honor of a prominent 05:51 Australian paleontologist, Dr. Mary Wade who died 05:55 at the time the dig was being undertaken. 05:59 Wade, the Savannasaru was found to be a medium-size 06:03 Titanosaurs approximately a half of a length of a basketball 06:07 court with a long neck and a relatively short tail. 06:12 Later that year a partial Sauropod humorous was discovered 06:17 nearby on Elderslie Station near Winton. 06:20 This led to a series of digs held by the museum 06:24 and the recovery of two more dinosaur skeletons preserved 06:28 together, one being a Sauropod skeleton as we've noted called 06:33 Matilda and the other a Theropod a carnivirous dinosaur 06:38 called Banjo. Here he is, named after the famous Australian 06:44 poet Banjo Patterson. 06:46 In mid-2006 David and Judy Elliot opened an Australian 06:52 Age of Dinosaurs temporary fossil preparation facility 06:56 in their shed at Belmont which was known locally as 07:00 The Prep Shed. 07:02 It was here that fossil preparation was carried out 07:05 by a small group of staff and volunteers who were accommodated 07:09 in the station's Jackaroo and Sheriff's quarters. 07:12 Prep work and cleaning commenced on Wade the Savannasarus fossil 07:18 and the expanded to include the bones of Banjo, and Matilda 07:23 as each dig proved further fossils, this work continued 07:28 for almost three years with the help of over 100 volunteers. 07:32 In September 2006 Peter and Carol Briton, owners of 07:38 Mount Lansbury Station near Winton donated 1,400 hectares 07:43 of Mesa country or what the locals call the Jump-up 07:48 to Australian age of dinosaurs as a sight for the future museum. 07:53 The prep shed of Belmont was then closed and all the fossils 07:58 and equipment were relocated to the Jump-up site 08:01 in early 2009. The new facilities were open to the 08:06 public in July that same year as part of Queensland's 150th 08:12 year celebrations. 08:13 This multi-million working dinosaur museum facility 08:18 has a preparation laboratory, a collection room, classrooms, 08:23 theaters, and display rooms. 08:26 There are also a wide range of outdoor displays, dioramas, 08:31 walking trails, and guided tours. 08:33 So, let's start at the fossil preparation laboratory, 08:38 here we get to see behind the scenes of one of the most 08:42 productive fossil preparation laboratories in the southern 08:46 hemisphere. Jessie, one of the tour guides at the museum and 08:51 lab will explain to us what happens here. 08:54 When we cut open our jackets, we'll find our bones breaking 08:57 into some combination of big solid chunks and little smashed 09:00 bits as well as the most biggest frustrating jigsaw puzzle 09:03 where half the pieces are missing and we don't even have 09:06 the lid from the box to know what to make it look like 09:08 when we are done. 09:10 So when we find the bits that go together we want them to 09:11 to stay together, so we glue them into place, for the big 09:14 chunks we use some type of fluid that some people 09:16 might have used at home called heraldic, for little pieces 09:20 we use this really high-tech paleontological adhesive called 09:24 super-glue -we get little tubes that works just fine. 09:27 And our bones are also be covered in rock and dirt, 09:30 we need to get to get the off so we can see the bone 09:32 that we are working with and to do that we are 09:34 mostly use air tools. 09:35 Here at the workstations in the lab, you can watch the 09:39 fossil technicians prepare dinosaur bones for research 09:43 and display. Well what I'm doing is following color change 09:47 looking for texture and content and trying to identify where 09:54 the bone is sitting. So on this material we have a lot of clay, 09:59 plant material, and limestone staining so I'm following 10:05 material and I'm looking for the characteristics 10:08 of fossilized bone. 10:09 I love this kind of work because you are discovering something 10:13 new every day, every specimen we get is unique, 10:17 it's never boring, it's never really repetitive and 10:22 it is just fascinating. 10:23 The museum already has the world's largest collection 10:29 of bones from Australia's biggest dinosaurs 10:32 and the number of specimens already collected is easily 10:36 outpacing the number being prepared by volunteers 10:40 and staff here in the laboratory. 10:42 So, if working with fossils is something you would like to do, 10:46 then there is the Prep Dino Experience, 10:50 you can join the team here and learn how to prepare 10:54 real dinosaur fossils for display. 10:57 And finally, if you really want to have an incredible 11:01 dinosaur experience, then you could join the Digger Dino Team 11:06 from here and help them find more dinosaurs in 11:10 Outback, Queensland. 11:12 But now, let's catch a shuttle for two kilometers to the 11:18 Dinosaur Canyon and see the Gondwana Observatory 11:21 and the march of the Titanosaurs Exhibit. 11:23 Inside the March of the Titanosaurs building 11:29 is a 54-meter or 170 foot long Sauropod footprint track site 11:35 the footprints are of a family or herd of sauropods 11:39 walking through mud and also includes some two-legged 11:43 meat-eating dinosaurs called theropods and 11:47 two-legged plant-eating dinosaurs called ornithopods. 11:52 Just outside are two magnificent life-size sauropods 11:56 overlooking the fabulous Dinosaur Canyon. 12:00 In this beautiful place are exhibits that recreate 12:04 dinosaur life. You can see the bones of the large sauropod, 12:11 a stampede of 24 small dinosaurs 12:14 leaping across a chasm to escape a larger theropod 12:18 dinosaur, and three life-size models of kunbarrasaurus 12:23 an armor-plated dinosaur. Nearby is the Gondwana 12:28 Staff's Observatory which showcases the extraordinary 12:31 dark skies above the Age of Dinosaurs here at the Jump-up. 12:37 Without the city lights you get a simply amazing view 12:41 of the night sky, you can clearly see planets and stars 12:45 and constellations. 12:50 Now the last place to visit near winter is the one place 12:53 I've always wanted to see, The Dinosaur Stampede National 12:57 Monument at Lark Quarry and finally, I've made it. 13:02 But to get to the site we've had to drive off the 13:05 beaten track 110 kilometers or 70 miles west of Winton. 13:09 Here at The Dinosaur Stampede National Monument at Lark Quarry 13:13 Conservation Park, we have the only evidence anywhere in 13:16 the world of a dinosaur stampede 13:19 so what we had towards the back of the building was 13:22 the lake, and we had some small dinosaurs, some allosaurus and 13:26 ornithopods dinosaurs that were at the edge of that lake 13:29 maybe having a drink of water until they were disturbed 13:32 by something. So the footprints we have here eleven large 13:35 predator footprints heading towards that lake and then about 13:39 3,300 smaller footprints all running the opposite direction 13:43 which would have been towards open temperate forest 13:46 that was about 150 meters from here so their running 13:48 for cover where they might be able to hide and maybe not 13:51 get eaten by a large predator dinosaur. 13:59 From Lock Quarry and the Dinosaur Stampede we continue 14:04 along the dinosaur trail 200 kilometers north of Winton 14:08 to another outback town called Richmond where some amazing 14:13 ancient fossils have been found. 14:15 The first thing you see here at Kronosaurus Corner Museum 14:20 in Richmond is this huge marine reptile with its mouth 14:24 wide open, it's actually a Kronosaurus, 14:28 a large apex predator that could grow up to 10 meters 14:32 or 33 feet in length and how appropriate. 14:36 You see Richmond is best known as Australia's premium 14:40 marine fossil site and has some of the most awe-inspiring 14:44 ancient marine fossils, this area is rich in fossils. 14:48 and this museum is home to over 1,500 of them. 14:54 Here you can step back in time to where much of this area was 14:59 underwater and meet the carnivorous creatures 15:02 that dominated the life below the surface. 15:05 This small outback town with the population of around 800 people 15:10 came to the attention of Australia and the world 15:14 in 1989 when the skeleton of plesiosaur was discovered 15:19 nearby Marathon Station by Grazier Inn Ivers while 15:23 mastering his cattle. 15:25 It's one of the best preserved vertebrae fossils in the world 15:31 and the most complete plesiosaur skeleton discovered in Australia 15:35 This amazing completeness gives us a window into the life 15:40 of this amazing creature. Scientists are still studying 15:45 this skeleton and the species currently has no scientific name 15:50 but it's been nicknamed Kenny, the Richmond plesiosaur. 15:54 It was about five meters or 16 feet in length 15:58 and had a relatively long neck and head, the skull is robust 16:04 and contains many conical teeth presumably for 16:08 feeding on fish and squid which were abundant 16:11 in Australia's inland vast sea which covered much of this area 16:15 in ancient times. It has four long flippers for propelling 16:20 and steering it through the water. 16:22 It's important to remember that these marine reptiles 16:26 we're not dinosaurs even though many of them coexisted with 16:31 dinosaurs. Originally much of this particular specimen 16:36 was encased in sedimentary rock, it took two lab specialists 16:41 over two years full-time to prepare and remove the 16:45 fragile bones from the rock. 16:47 Now Penny the Richmond plesiosaur was the second 16:52 major discovery of an important fossil in this area. 16:55 The famous Kronosaurus queenslandicus a 10 meter 17:00 or 33 feet giant reptile was discovered north of Richmond 17:05 60 years earlier in 1929 by a team of paleontologists 17:10 from Harvard University. 17:13 Kronosaurus had a short neck and large head, 17:17 Its skull was 2.5 meters or eight feet long, 17:21 it was a fierce predator that used its two-meter 17:25 or six-foot flippers to propel itself quickly through the water. 17:30 It had rows of long conical teeth that it use to hunt large fish, 17:36 turtles and giant squid as well as ammonites, giant shellfish. 17:41 It was equipped with enormous crocodile like jaws 17:45 that had twice as much bite force as a saltwater crocodile 17:49 today. Certainly not the kind of creature you'd want to have 17:54 splashing about in the water with you. 18:00 The fossil of another giant marine reptile was found in 2005 18:05 here in the area around Richmond, Eromangasaurus Australis 18:10 was a large plesiosaur named after the vast Australian 18:14 inland sea that it lived in. 18:16 It's about 10 meters or 33 feet long and like other Plesiosaurs 18:22 had four flippers to propel it through the water 18:24 with a short round tail and no fin. 18:27 It had an incredibly long neck about half the length 18:32 of its entire body, it's the only known skeleton of its kind 18:36 to exist in the world, the museum also exhibits wonder. 18:42 This is the largest fish fossil in Australia, you know with all 18:47 these magnificent ancient fish and marine reptile fossils 18:50 we mustn't forget the special dinosaur fossils found near here 18:55 as well. 18:56 This is kunbarrasaurus ieversi which means shield lizard 19:03 it's a plant-eating dinosaur with short legs and 19:07 bony body armor made up of hundreds of tiny bony plates 19:11 interlaced with larger plates to protect it from predators. 19:16 The fossil is affectionately known as The Armored Car of 19:21 Marathon Sheep Station where it was found by 19:24 Grazier Ian Ivers in 1989. Now Ivers had discovered 19:30 one of the most complete dinosaur skeletons ever found 19:34 in Australia, or the world for that matter 19:37 even the stomach contents of the creature were preserved 19:41 which is exceptionally rare and gives us an insight 19:45 of the food the dinosaur ate which was a selection of 19:49 flowering plants. 19:51 Sometimes fossils are covered by sandstone or mudstone 19:56 which needs to be removed and cleaned away 19:59 and many of these fossils are prepared and processed 20:02 right here at the museum in the fully equipped laboratory. 20:06 Here you watch experts at work with their air tools 20:10 and mechanical drills and view fossils being processed. 20:14 The equipment and preparation techniques used here 20:18 are of a world-class standard with some of Australia's best 20:22 and most significant fossil finds having been prepared 20:26 for display right here. 20:28 Most of these fossils here are unearthed in the quarry 20:32 just 12 kilometers or eight miles out of town. 20:36 Kevin Peters the museum fossil expert took us out to show us 20:42 his latest find, a magnificent Ichthyosaurus fossil 20:46 still encased in rock but clearly showing the outline 20:50 of this huge dolphin-like aquatic reptile skeleton. 20:54 This quarry is a fossil gold mine and is given up it's 20:59 hidden secrets as Kevin and his fellow fossil hunters 21:03 continue the search for ancient treasure 21:08 but, it's time to get back on the road and move on to our 21:11 next destination on the dinosaur trail. 21:14 Our next stop is Hushenden about 100 kilometers 21:18 down the road, let's see what interesting and awesome 21:21 dinosaurs are waiting for us there. 21:27 And you don't have to travel far into Hushenden to find one, 21:30 this is Mutt the local dinosaur that resides beside the town's 21:35 main street. Now Mutt is a replica of a Muttaburrasaurus 21:40 a huge seven-meter or 22-foot long plant-eating dinosaur 21:45 that live along the shores of the ancient Inland Sea 21:48 that once covered this area now called the Great Artesian Basin. 21:56 Large marine reptiles like the ones we've seen back in Richmond 21:58 such as Ichthyosaurus and Plesiosaurs swam here as well, 22:04 while on land dinosaurs like the Muttaburrasaurus browsed on 22:09 vegetation along the shore. 22:12 A short distance further along the road the Flinders Discovery 22:17 Center provides more information and exhibits of Muttaburrasaurus. 22:22 The star attraction here is Hughie a life-size skeletal 22:27 replica of a Muttaburrasaurus. In 1962 a well-preserved 22:33 skeleton of a Muttaburrasaurus was found near an outback town 22:38 called Muttaburra where it gets its name from. 22:41 The bones were preserved because the carcasses had been 22:46 washed into the sea and became buried in the mud 22:49 which protected them from destruction. 22:52 In a sense these bones from the ancient past 22:56 now helped bring these magnificent dinosaurs 23:00 back to life by giving us an insight into their size, 23:05 body structure, diet, and way of life. 23:08 Thousands of fossils of many different species of 23:12 ancient creatures are on display here at the center 23:16 including Sauropods, Ammonites, and Ichthyosaurs. 23:23 Hughenden situated on the banks of Queensland's longest river 23:27 the Flinders is a fabulous place to marvel at 23:30 and learn about these magnificent fossils as well as 23:34 experience the true spirit of the Outback, 23:38 here our journey into the world of dinosaurs ends 23:42 but certainly not our interest and fascination in these 23:46 great creatures of the ancient past. 23:51 Dinosaurs have certainly captured our attention 23:54 and imagination on our journey along the Dinosaur Trail 23:58 in Outback Queensland and given us a renewed and ongoing 24:02 zeal for fossils. We've seen the fossils of some of the 24:07 magnificent dinosaurs that roamed here in the ancient past. 24:11 We've seen that they come in an incredible array of shapes 24:16 and sizes, some of these ancient creatures had enormous bodies 24:22 and were the most colossal creatures ever to have lived 24:25 on this continent while others were only the size of birds. 24:30 Some were fierce and had slashing claws and bone-crushing teeth 24:35 while others were harmless and docile. 24:38 Many of them had spikes, horns, plates and frills and were 24:44 the weirdest animals to have walked on this great south land. 24:48 We've also seen that even though they are now extinct, 24:52 these ancient creatures continue to attract our interest and 24:57 captivate our imagination and in a sense, they unite us 25:02 regardless of our world view, our religion, culture, 25:07 nationality, dinosaurs bring people together in the shared 25:12 love of nature, the ancient past, and natural history. 25:16 And so for me personally, The Dinosaur Trail ends 25:22 where it all began. 25:23 Right here at the beginning of all beginnings 25:27 in the very first page of scripture, In the beginning 25:31 God created the heavens and the earth. 25:34 God, the master designer, He made the heaven and earth 25:40 the sea and everything in them, and that includes dinosaurs, 25:45 the great land reptiles, and plesiosaurs, the water reptiles. 25:51 And Pterosaurs, the flying reptiles, in fact, 25:55 they were possibly among the foremost, the chief, 25:58 the grandest and the most amazing of all God's creatures. 26:02 No wonder we wonder and stand in awe of these magnificent 26:08 creatures that once roamed this great land, 26:11 it's sky and seas. 26:13 If you'd like to know more about dinosaurs 26:19 and their origins, then I'd like to recommend the free gift 26:22 we have for all our Incredible Journey viewers today, 26:26 It's the booklet Are Dinosaurs Real 26:30 This booklet is our gift to you and is absolutely free, 26:34 I guarantee there are no costs or obligations whatsoever 26:38 so make the most of this wonderful opportunity 26:42 to receive the free gift we have for you today. 26:45 Phone or text 0436.333.555 in Australia, or 020.422.2042 26:56 in New Zealand, or 770.800.0266 in the United States, 27:03 or visit our website tij.tv, or simply scan the QR Code 27:09 on your screen and we'll send you today's free offer 27:12 totally free of charge and with no obligation. 27:15 You can also write to us at the addresses on your screen 27:19 or email us at info@tij.tv, don't delay call or text us now. 27:26 Be sure to join us again next week when we will share 27:31 another of life's journey's together. 27:34 Until then, let's pray to the great Creator God 27:38 who made the dinosaurs and also made and loves us. 27:43 Dear Heavenly Father and great Creator God, 27:47 As we've journeyed along The Dinosaur Trail 27:50 we've been reminded that you are the majestic and all-powerful 27:54 God who made this world and all that's in it including the 27:58 dinosaurs. And Lord we are grateful that even though 28:02 the dinosaurs were magnificent, You have bestowed Your special 28:07 love and focus on us and call us your children. 28:11 Thank you! Please guide our lives and bless us and 28:16 our families. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen! |
Revised 2024-12-11