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Two 19th-century women bond over ground-breaking archeological discoveries.
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The Stealing of Fossils from Dinosaur Dig Sites
Dinosaurs are big business, dinosaur fossils, especially rare skull material or parts of the most famous dinosaurs such as T. rex and Triceratops are much sought after by private collectors. A number of fossil specimens have been put up for auction recently and they have fetched large sums, even in these difficult times. For example, last year a virtually complete and mounted Triceratops (T. horridus) was sold to a private collector for over $940,000 USD. This is an enormous figure and exceeds the annual purchasing budget of a number of natural history museums that we know. There is no way that a public body such as a local museum can compete when dinosaur fossils are sold at these high prices.
The most expensive dinosaur specimen sold to date was the near complete Tryannosaurus rex specimen called "Sue" (SUE-BHI2033).  On October 27th 1997 this beautifully preserved specimen was sold for a staggering $8.36 million USD at a special auction event held by Sotheby's. Such high prices prevent public institutions from competing with wealthy individuals and many fossils are now being purchased by private collectors, often preventing scientists from studying them in detail.
With such huge sums involved, a number of dig sites have been raided by thieves and looters hoping to remove valuable fossils and sell them for a vast profit on the black market. Several hundred incidents of theft or of vandalism have been reported in the western United States, but in truth, no one really knows how extensive the practice of fossil looting is.
New Technique offers Hope to Palaeontologist
A new technique that ties fossil bones to their site of origin may help deter raiders of dinosaur dig sites. With the number of incidents of looting on the increase, then this new "finger printing" system that helps identify the source of any fossil put up for auction may act as a deterrent for would be thieves.
The theft of fossil bones and other ancient relics from dig sites is an increasingly common occurrence. Thieves recently stole several important Sauropod fossils from a dig site in the US state of Utah, this particular dig site held the fossilised bones of a young Diplodocus that lived 150 million years ago. Scientists have lost valuable palaeontological evidence about this particular specimen. Sites that are raided in this manner also suffer damage and a lot of other information about the specimen and environmental data has also been lost.
Unfortunately, it is highly unlikely that these fossils will ever come to light again, stolen fossils end up being sold for large amounts of money in a black market of illegal fossil sales.
New American Technique may give Law Enforcers the Edge
However, a new fossil identifying technique being pioneered in the USA could give state officials and regulators the edge when it comes to tracking down fossil thieves. Scientists are testing a number of methods designed to chemically match a fossil with naturally occurring elements that seep into the bones during the fossilisation process from the surrounding matrix. Although the work is in its early stages, the techniques could help identify the unique "chemical fingerprint" of a fossil site and help link any fossil bones up for auction to a particular site. Using this information it would be possible to determine whether the bones and other relics had been obtained for sale by legal means.
Testing on the chemical analysis of fossil matrices is continuing in the western United States. So far, results indicate these new methods could tie 85% to 98% of fossil samples back to their original sites. The theft of fossils from a dig site is extremely frustrating for the palaeontologists, not only are valuable fossils removed but often the sites are damaged as the thieves recklessly dig out the bones. Valuable information is being destroyed or lost, limiting the amount of information a fossil site can yield.
Although the impact of the recession has dampened down the prices paid for rare fossils at auction, dinosaur bones, especially those of famous dinosaurs such as T. rex or Triceratops still fetch hundreds of thousands of dollars at auction. Wealthy private collectors keen to add a "prize specimen" to their collection will gladly pay a high price to obtain a rare and precious dinosaur fossil.
These new mapping techniques, in association with stronger legislation could help protect many important palaeontological sites, helping to preserve them so that they can be properly studied.
With looting and vandalism of fossil sites on the increase, let's hope that this new technique provides an effective deterrent.
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Our aim is to help young people learn more about Earth sciences through their fascination with dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals. Team members are happy to provide advice and support supplying free quizzes, drawing materials, puzzles, games even recipes for dinosaur themed biscuits and birthday cakes. With something like 600 products on line including dinosaur party supplies, Everything Dinosaur http://everythingdinosaur.com/ has built up a strong reputation assisting parents, guardians and fellow teachers, helping young people to learn more about science through creative play.
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