Dinosaur Christmas to include dino naming vote

The H. Earl Clack Museum Board Monday continued planning its Christmas festivities, including to pick a name for one of its newest dinosaur displays.

Judi Dritshulas, chair of the board, said the Dinosaur Christmas Party will run from 1 to 3 p.m. Sat., Dec. 14, outside of the museum, and will be similar to the event held last year, with the addition of a vote to name the albertosaurus head overlooking the paleontological display at the museum.

Dritshulas said she is looking for children to suggest names to put on the ballot to name the dinosaur, and children can give ideas at the museum at the east end of the Holiday Village Mall in person or by calling the museum at 265-4000.

The casting is of the head of a close relative of Tyrannosaurus rex, and lived in this region some 70 million years ago. Other displays in the museum include specimens of albertosaurus fossils.

The Clack Museum acquired the casting from the Fort Peck Paleontology Inc. in an auction, with the Clack Museum Foundation paying the $551 bid using funds left by long-time museum supporter Ardelle Hurlburt to improve the museum’s displays.

The Fort Peck nonprofit went out of business after it payed an out-of-court settlement in a lawsuit filed by South Dakota-based Black Hills Institute of Geological Research alleging Fort Peck Paleontology had illegally made unauthorized castings of fossils.

This will be the third dinosaur exhibit the museum has named using children’s suggestions or votes.

The board has used contests to find names for exhibits before, including Ducky, a display of locally found infant duck-billed lambeosaurus fossils, and Melvin, the 1/10th size casting of an infant maiasaura, and Stigy, the casting of a stygimoloch head the museum won in a Montana Dinosaur Trail contest.

Dritshulas said most of the Dinosaur Christmas event will be similar to last year’s, including children decorating dinosaur cookies, making dinosaur-themed gingerbread houses and with stories read to the children.