Castles Made of Sand

And so castles made of sand...turn into a nine-ton block full of Utahraptor remains, eventually...

I'm pretty sure that's how the song goes. 

I drew this for the Utahraptor contest over on the Love in the Time of Chasmosaurs blog, which I visit often for paleo news, paleoart, and a healthy (?) dose of wry humor. The folks at that blog are kindly bringing attention to The Utahraptor Project, a crowdfunding operation to uncover and prepare Utahraptor fossils from a huge, nine-ton block of quicksand-turned-stone. I was able to see the block myself at last year's SVP meeting in Utah, and it's incredibly impressive. Unfortunately, they've only had the resources to uncover a mere fraction of the fossils mired within, including a tiny (ADORABLE) juvenile raptor jawbone. It's really an amazing thing to see, but it would be more amazing if scientists and preparators were able to get in there and recover everything. Unfortunately, funding does not come easily to this type of thing. So head on over to The Utahraptor Project website, watch a video by the man Jim Kirkland himself, and see what you think! 

P.S.: I've had the opportunity to meet Dr. Kirkland a few times and was able to sit with him and have a long conversation about the geology and paleontology of Utah. He is not only kind, but very passionate about his work, which is yet another great reason to consider donating!

Links!

chasmosaurs.blogspot.com/2017/…

www.gofundme.com/utahraptor?ss…