Alaska's ecosystem during the Cretaceous Period. Mural located at the Murie Science and Learning Center, Denali NP&P
Artwork by Karen Carr
Wrangell-St. Elias preserves more than just the plants and animals that visitors can see today. The park is also home to the fossilized remains of many plants and animals that have lived here through time.
Dinosaurs roamed through towering forests at a time when Alaska had a milder climate. There were wet winters and warm, dry summers, similar to the present day Pacific-Northwest coastline. During the Cretaceous, the annual average temperature is estimated to have been 51° F (11°C) while today it is below freezing at 28°F (-2°C). This reflects the pattern of globally warmer climate that persisted throughout the Cretaceous geological time period, which lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago.
Learn more about fossils, dinosaur bones and tracks on the National Park Service Paleontology website.
Numerous bluish-gray ichthyosaur bone fragments lie scattered across the surface of a hilltop near McCarthy, Alaska in Wrangell-St Elias NPP
Note: The activity booklet is for independent use of the material for non-commercial, educational purposes only.
The Junior Paleontologist Program is a part of the National Park Service Junior Ranger Program. The goal of the Junior Ranger Program is to connect young people to their national parks through a variety of in-park activities that are designed to introduce them to the national park system and cultivate future generations of park stewards. Programs range from simple scavenger hunts for younger children, to multi-day ranger-led activities. Over 200 National Park Service areas currently have Junior Ranger programs. Learn more about NPS Junior Ranger programs.
Prehistoric Life in the National Parks Coloring Book
NPS
Prehistoric Life Coloring Book
In order to tap into your scientific detective skills and encourage your creativity, we are excited to share with you the Prehistoric Life of the National Parks coloring book. The main coloring book features 40 simple line drawings of ancient animals and plants known from fossils discovered in national parks. An additional 10 bonus “web exclusive” drawings are available.
One of the fun and interesting aspects of studying fossils, known as the science of paleontology, is trying to figure out what these prehistoric animals and plants looked like when they were alive! Typically, the soft parts of ancient organisms, features such as the skin, feathers, or hair, are not preserved or fossilized. Therefore, we may not have good evidence available for determining the color or surface patterns of prehistoric life forms. Modern organisms show a wonderful diversity of coloration and external patterns, which may be considered when thinking about these features in prehistoric life. Can such patterns as stripes, spots, and other ornamentation seen today in mammals, birds, insects, and even plants, provide us clues to similar patterns seen in past organisms?
With each drawing you are able to work as a paleoartist, an artist specializing in reconstructing ancient life and the environments in which these organisms lived. The work of paleoartists can be found in museum exhibits, illustrations in books and magazines, captured on websites, and even featured in motion pictures and cartoons. The illustrations used in the Prehistoric Life of the National Parks were designed as simple drawings, to provide more opportunity for you (the paleoartist) to be creative in your work to bring these extinct life forms back to life. Good luck and have fun!
Available for Download
Prehistoric Life in the National Parks Coloring Book
National Park Service, 2020 (58 pp.)—[PDF, 9.8 MB]
Coloring Book Credits
The Prehistoric Life in the National Parks Coloring Book is a collaborative project between the National Park Service (NPS) Paleontology Program and the American Geosciences Institute (AGI). The NPS and AGI share a vision and are committed to inspire children, of all ages, to embrace science and stewardship through their interests in dinosaurs and other prehistoric life.
Content, Design, and Layout: Vincent L. Santucci, J.P. Hodnett, Justin Tweet, and Alison Mims
Artwork: Studio 105 and Benji Paysnoe
Technical Review: Arvid Aase, Robert Blodgett, Diana Boudreau, Geoffrey Camphire, Ronnie Colvin, Tim Connors, Bill DiMichele, Pat Druckenmiller, Nick Famoso, Scott Foss, Stephen Godfrey, Rebecca Hunt-Foster, Adam Marsh, Jim Mead, Herb Meyer, Bill Parker, Kari Prassack, Roy Plotnick, Don Prothero, Ed Robeck, Mariah Slovacek, Christy Visaggi, Ed Welsh, and Jeff Wolin.
Website Development: Jim Wood
First Edition—July 15, 2020
Dedication
The Prehistoric Life in the National Parks Coloring Book is dedicated to Georgia Hybels, a National Park Service geographer who shared her time to foster children’s interests in fossils, caves and national parks.
Celebrate Our Geologic Heritage
National Fossil Day! Join paleontologists, educators, and students in fossil-related events and activities across the country in parks, classrooms, and online during National Fossil Day, an annual celebration in October held to highlight the scientific and educational value of paleontology and the importance of preserving fossils for future generations.
Read the abstract and get the link to the article published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology: Dzyuba, O. S., C. D. Schraer, C. P. Hults, R. B. Blodgett, and D. J. Schraer. 2018. Early Bajocian belemnites of Southcentral Alaska: new data and new perspectives on mid-Middle Jurassic Megateuthididae and Belemnopseidae biogeography. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology DOI: 10.1080/14772019.2018.1486335
Locations:Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, Cape Krusenstern National Monument, Kobuk Valley National Park, Noatak National Preserve
ossil remains are bountiful in northwest Alaska, with the Baldwin Peninsula, Kotzebue Sound, and Seward Peninsula being particularly fossil-rich areas. Recorded paleontological discoveries were made in the immediate area as early as 1816. However, the region has lacked the level of attention and scientific study of other northern areas such as the Klondike and the Yukon, and is therefore lesser known.
Science summary (2011) - What kinds of dinosaurs used to roam the earth in Denali? After the initial discovery of a fossil theropod track in 2005, the field of paleontology in the park was forever changed. Learn about more of the fascinating discoveries scientists have made within the park.
Science Summary (2013) - Since the first discovery in 2005, paleontologists continue to find fossilized dinosaur tracks and other evidence of life in Denali 70 million years ago.
Locations:Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, Gates Of The Arctic National Park & Preserve
Where did woolly mammoths roam when they lived in Beringia? What can learning about their movements tell us about their lives and their extinction? Read more here: Wooller, M. J., C. Bataille, P. Druckenmiller, G. M. Erickson, P. Groves, N. Haubenstock, T. Howe, J. Irrgeher, D. Mann, K. Moon, B. A. Potter, T. Prohaska, J. Rasic, J. Reuther, B. Shapiro, K. J. Spaleta, and A. D. Willis. 2021. Lifetime mobility of an Arctic woolly mammoth. Science 373(6556): 806-808.
Locations:Gates Of The Arctic National Park & Preserve
Since the discovery of a prominent obsidian source near the Indian River, a tributary of the Koyukuk, numerous researchers have investigated obsidian use in prehistoric Alaska. Learn more about the studies from Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve that have illuminated evidence of an elaborate network of long distance trade and cultural interaction throughout prehistoric Alaska and beyond.
