August 7, 2007

Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection Announces Dinosaur State Park Day on Saturday,
August 18, 2007

Rain or Shine

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Friends of Dinosaur State Park, Rocky Hill announce Dinosaur State Park Day on Saturday, August 18, 2007 celebrating the discovery of 2,000 early Jurassic dinosaur footprints in Rocky Hill. In addition to regular park programs, there will be outdoor activities including: two live animal shows, live performers, visits with Smokey Bear and Dilly the Dilophosaurus, crafts, games for the whole family with prizes, face painting and more.

NEW THIS YEAR

Visitors who are interested in mining for gems or fossils can purchase bags of "mining rough" in the park’s bookstore to participate in this activity.

OUTDOOR PROGRAMS

At 11:00 a.m. in the Park’s outdoor amphitheater there will be a live animal program, "Wind Over Wings" from a Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center in Clinton, CT. (www.windoverwings.org) The program will feature live birds including a Peregrine Falcon, Red-shouldered Hawk, Great Horned Owl and an Eastern Screech Owl.

At 1:00 p.m., also in the amphitheater, will be a show featuring live reptiles by Animal Adventures (www.animaladventures.net) from Bolton, Massachusetts.

Dilly the Dilophosaurus and Smokey Bear will be on hand to greet visitors. There will be guided nature walks in the park’s 2 ½ miles of graveled nature trails. Pets are not allowed on the hiking trails or in the museum. (This does not apply to service animals.)

The park’s unique casting area will be open until 3:30 p.m. Visitors who bring 10 lbs. of Plaster-of-Paris and a ¼ cup of cooking oil can make a life-size dinosaur footprint to take home.

Food concessions will be available on park grounds on the day of the event. The outdoor programs are free and will run from 10:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

INDOOR PROGRAMS

Admission fees for the museum are $5.00 for adults, $2.00 for children ages 6-12 and children under the age of 6 are free. In the museum there will be education programs and films throughout the day. The park’s bookshop will have a variety of specials on merchandise unique to the park. All special activities are sponsored by the Friends of Dinosaur State Park.

Programs will include a variety of films, including the Park’s own original film, "Step Into the Early Jurassic," live animal demonstrations, and fossil and geology programs. In the museum, visitors will also have the opportunity to view 500 early Jurassic dinosaur footprints, preserved in place. The park’s museum is built directly over the trackway of footprints, preserved in gray sandstone.

The museum will be open from 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

HISTORY OF DINOSAUR STATE PARK

In August 1966, bulldozer operator Edward McCarthy was excavating a rocky site for a state building. He turned over a slab of gray sandstone and discovered six large, three-toed

dinosaur footprints. Officials, local scientists and the media were notified, and the news of the discovery quickly spread. Many more tracks were uncovered and the site was fenced in and guarded. Within a few short weeks, then Governor John Dempsey declared the site a state park. Two seasons of careful excavation resulted in one of the largest on-site displays of dinosaur tracks in the world.

The Parks’ tracks are named Eubrontes, which is the Connecticut State fossil. No remains of the dinosaur that made these tracks have been found in the Connecticut area. However, most scientists agree that the trackmaker was a carnivorous dinosaur similar in size to Arizona’s Dilophosaurus. The park’s trackway, which has been preserved in place, is a Registered Natural Landmark.

Today, Dinosaur State Park attracts over 50,000 visitors annually. A unique domed museum, built directly over the tracks, showcases 500 footprints for public viewing, along with related exhibits, a theater, a gift shop and a demonstration room. The park sits on a 60-acre site and outdoors includes 2 ½ miles of nature trails, a butterfly garden, an outdoor picnic area and a casting area. The museum is open to the public year round Tuesday-Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Both the trails and bookshop have an earlier closing time of 4:00 p.m. The museum is conveniently located just 1-mile east of I-91 off Exit 23. To learn more, please contact Meg Enkler at (860) 529-5816.