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11) Shane begins the laboratory preparation of one of the plesiosaur blocks from the shoulder girdle. This will be an important part of the specimen to see because much of the classification of plesiosaurs is based upon the shape of these bones. |
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12) Bruce begins working on part of the neck. Until detailed preparation is done in the lab, no one really knows how complete or well preserved the bones will be. The first bones exposed indicate that preservation is excellent. |
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| 13) Vertebrae begin to emerge from one of the blocks Bruce is preparing. It is now evident that there was some scavenging of the skeleton before it was buried, perhaps even before the carcass sank to the bottom of the sea. |
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14) A string of five articulated neck vertebrae show how well preserved the specimen is. The bones are very brittle and skilled preparation is necessary to expose the bones' surface without doing damage. |
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15) A closer view of some of the neck vertebrae. Many hours of additional preparation will be needed before this block is ready to be turned over so that the other side can be prepared. Eventually, all the matrix will be removed and the bone stabilized with consolidants. Updates will be posted in additional web stories to follow. Stay tuned! |
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Photojournal page 1 | 2 | 3
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