Dora the Explorer to visit Peabody Museum, meet 'dinosaurs'

Dora (contributed)

NEW HAVEN - The popular Nickelodeon cartoon character Dora the Explorer, backpack in tow, is headed to the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History on  Aug. 15, for "her newest adventure: coming face to face with 150-million-year-old dinosaur skeletons," according to a release. 

 

Dora is scheduled to greet visitors from 10 a.m. to noon in the Great Hall of Dinosaurs under the watchful glance of Brontosaurus and Stegosaurus, the release said.  Visitors may take photos with Dora using their own cameras, the release said.

The visit with Dora is free with museum membership, Yale I.D. or admission of $6-$13 ($13 adult, $10 senior 65+, $6 children age 3-18 and students with I.D.).  There is no admission cost for children younger than  3. 

The Yale Peabody Museum is a member of the Connecticut Dinosaur Trail (ctdinotrail.com), which made Dora’s visit possible, the release said..

NOTE NEW HOURS AND ADMISSION FEES: 

The Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m, and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m.  The Museum is closed Mondays except for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Columbus Day and Presidents Day.  Admission prices are:  Adults $13, seniors 65 and over $9, children 3-18 $6. Admission is free for Museum members, Yale I.D. holders, and children under age 3. No admission is charged Thursdays from 2 to 5 pm from September through June.  

Dinosaur Egg and Baby Exhibition opening at Peabody Museum in New Haven

 

NEW HAVEN - "Tiny Titans: Dinosaur Eggs and Babies," a multimedia, hands-on exhibition opens at the Peabody Museum Feb. 8 and runs through Aug.  30, accoring to a release.

 

The exhibit will include "the amazement of seeing and in some cases touching such unique fossils," and visitors to "Tiny Titans" will be able to "appreciate their enormous scientific value," the release said.

 

"They will see life assemblages of baby dinosaurs frozen in time at the moment of their demise. One such fossil from China, 'Early Ceratopsian Dinosaur Nursery—Fossil Life Assemblage,' shows a herd of 34 very young psittacosaurs, all about the same age, intertwined in a group with one adult. All the skulls are above the mass of bodies as they would have been in life. "

 

"Another highlight is the extremely rare embryonic skin preserved inside an egg, a scientific first. Fossils of embryos are among the rarest of dinosaur remains but the fossilization of soft tissue such as skin is even more so because it usually decays soon after death and burial. This rare glimpse into the past enables scientists to visualize the skin of the living animal."

 

Also noted in the release: "Over 150 fossil dinosaur eggs, including sauropods (long-necked dinosaurs), theropods (meat-eating dinosaurs) and ornithopods (duck-billed dinosaurs and their relatives), are on view as well as nests, embryos and young . Animated computer games, hands-on exploration stations and a fossil dig invite discovery. Exquisite paintings show interpretations of dinosaur family life and dinosaur nesting. Animated video presentations feature renowned dinosaur experts reporting some of the latest dinosaur research."

The exhibition was developed by the Stone Co., of Colorado, and augmented for the Peabody by its rare egg and nest collections. Support for Tiny Titans was provided by the 2013-2014 O.C. Marsh Fellows of the Yale Peabody Museum, yhe release said.
 

Editor's note: All information and the photo in this post were contributed. Click one of the buttons below to share it.