Thomas the T. Rex

Scientists excavated the skeleton of a young adult Tyrannosaurus rex in southeastern Montana. They estimate the specimen, nicknamed "Thomas," is 70 percent complete, making it a rare fossil find.

The 66 million year old bones are now on display in a newly opened lab at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, where visitors can watch paleontologists prepare and assemble the fossils.

The scientists hope further research at the "Thomas the T. rex Lab" will reveal additional bones and unravel mysteries involving “his” true gender and untimely death.

The fossil was excavated between 2003 and 2005 by a team led by Luis Chiappe, director of the Museum’s Dinosaur Institute.

Photo Credit: Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County

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