Royal Tyrrell Museum Of Palaeontology

‪Planning to visit the Drumheller Valley between now and Saturday? With the area under a heat warning, make sure you bring a hat, sunscreen, and plenty of water!‬

During the Silurian Period (444 – 419 million years ago), sea levels rose; the climate became more stable and warmer. Vertebrates that had appeared in the oceans during the Ordovician Period began to diversify.

How do you display fossils that are so small they can only be seen under a microscope? Our solution was to create three-dimensional models made of blown glass of the fossil pollen and spores from Late Cretaceous Alberta. Firebrand Glass Studio

Each year, we prospect for new sites in unexplored areas. One of our teams has been travelling along the South Saskatchewan River as part of our provincial palaeontology survey. #FossilFriday

Arthropods are the most abundant and diverse group of animals. This group includes shrimps, spiders, insects, as well as, extinct animals like trilobites and sea scorpions. They are one of the few invertebrate groups to have successfully invaded land. #TrilobiteTuesday

Our Director of Preservation & Research, Dr. Don Brinkman, discusses what some of our scientists are working on this summer.

Since its inception in 2005, our Speaker Series has offered hundreds of lectures to the public about palaeontology and other Earth sciences. The Cooperating Society’s support helps cover the presenters’ travel costs and lodging, and ensures that the lectures are free to attend. Presentations since 2011 are available to watch on our YouTube channel! #25YearsRTMCS http://ow.ly/EgtR30lbqC0

Mosasaurs had powerful jaws, sharp teeth, and flattened tails that propelled them through the water. Some of them reached over 15 metres long. They are related to modern monitor lizards. #FossilFriday

We’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of our Cooperating Society! Since 1993, the Society has supported numerous exhibits, researchers, conferences, lectures, and events at the Museum. Watch for posts with the hashtag #25YearsRTMCS in the coming weeks recognizing the Society’s important contributions.

Some pretty tasty planning is going on between the Museum, Kin+Pod Chocolate and Beakerhead for a special event this September. Stay tuned for details.

This block of sandstone contains a mass-death assemblage of 25 fossil gars. They died together 63 million years ago. Although death assemblages of gars are fairly common in the fossil record, skeletons are often found preserved on their sides. This group is unusual because each individual is preserved fully articulated in a three-dimensional belly-up death pose, indicating rapid burial after death. #FossilFriday #MuseumCollection

Fossils were recently discovered at Syncrude's North Mine, just north of Fort McMurray. Dr. Donald Henderson has identified the find as a marine reptile, possibly a plesiosaur.

From our research collection. Mammal teeth from Manyberries and Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta. Scollard and Foremost formations. These teeth are so small that they must be stored in vials. The majority of these teeth are from the Cretaceous Period, with some from the Palaeogene Period. #MuseumCollections

The climate was warm during much of the Ordovician Period (485 – 444 million years ago). Oceans covered large portions of the globe, including North America. The first vertebrates (animals with backbones) appeared in the form of jawless fish.

Take a journey through time at your own pace. Our new Museum app will guide you through Earth’s 4.6-billion year history and introduce you to the plants and animals that once lived in ancient Alberta. Download from the App Store today. Available in English, French, Spanish and Chinese (Simplified).

Very impressive museum. Lots of people though, lol, so hard sometimes to get that perfect shot so I recommend going first thing or later in the day if you want to have more elbow room. But it really is worth it and wear good walking shoes to go on the walking tour. Totally awesome experience.

This was pretty neat. The glass floor!! The whole place was packed. Saw prairie dogs there, that was cool too. The mountains were just phenomenal!!!

This was my favourite place when I was a kid, and I rekindled my interest with this weekend’s visit. I love this museum! Next time, we need to join one of the dig tours.

This was definitely worth the wait. Absolutely amazing. We did the 7 wonders of the Badlands & fossil casting with Lauren. Both were great adventures. Lauren was friendly, knowledgeable & fantastic with the children. She did a great job

The well presented displays and easy access to information is complimented by helpful staff (which I noted included some multilingual staff in languages other than English and French), and lots of follow-on information available. It's worth the trip, no matter what your reason for being in Alberta is.

The museum has an outstanding collection of paleontological exhibits and fossils. It was well worth the drive from Florida to see it.

The Royal Tyrrell Museum's speaker series published on Youtube is one of the most outstanding examples of an academic institution providing a wonderful smorgasbord of fascinating brain food for the general public. The speaker series covers a huge range of topics concerning the biology, natural history, paleontology and paloecology of everything from bats to dinosaurs to horses to sharks. Each of the topics covered by the Museum's speaker series are presented by very knowledgeable individuals in a clear, understandable manner that makes each video not only educational but also enjoyable. Best of all, the speakers and their programs inspire critical thinking about the evolution of both extinct and extant organisms and the ecosystems they are (or were) part off.

Stopped in for a visit while visiting Calgary from Ontario. I couldn’t believe the amount of fossils and wasn’t expecting to see black beauty! I was so impressed! I figured the museum would be small in comparison to the ROM’s dinosaur exhibit but I was completely wrong. We actually ran out of time and had to start rushing through the exhibits. If you have a dinosaur lover in your family this place is a must!

Much better than I remember! I went over 10 years ago and they've added so much! So many interactive things for the kids and all visually stunning. I just wanted to sit with a sketchbook all day and take it in. Lots of places to take great photos. The new cafeteria is wonderful and spacious. Can't wait to come back in the summer!

I’ve lived in Alberta for over 30 years and it’s just not summer until we’ve gone to see the museum. Amazing how it’s changed over the years, we enjoyed the latest “version”. We’re also excited to come back and see the expansion next summer!



A quick additional note - the museum app was very much appreciated, it helped us find the proper procedure to notify the museum when we found what might be some large pieces of petrified wood.

I was screaming and running around in excitement like all of the kids that were also there. No regrets!! This is an amazing museum!

I have so many amazing memories from thus museum as a child, and I try to come back at least once a year. Last year I went for my birthday and it's just as amazing as when I was a kid! It inspired my love for dinosaurs when I was little and continues to foster that love now, as an adult.

Had a great day looking at the fossil collection. I will be definitely be going for another visit!

Fantastic museum! Aurora Ammolite brought some of our staff to the museum last week and it was worth the trip! Beautifully laid out with incredibly easy language used to communicate processes. We are still talking about!

An educational place for the family. Beautifully displayed, easy to navigate. My first time visiting Alberta and the first place in my list to visit was the Museum. Well worth the drive. (Staying in Edmonton)

An amazing dinosaur experience. A pleasant well organised museum with incredible displays and easy to read information. A bucket list destination!

Amazing, Fascinating, Incredible!!! I highly recommend anyone that hasn't been to Drumheller... YOU MUST GO!! This museum is a learning experience that takes you on a walk through time right from the start. It is brilliantly laid out. It really opens your eyes to how we came to be! We went in the evening so the crowds weren't so bad. Able to get great pics and see things without a bunch of people crowding around. 🖒

A great way to spend an afternoon with the family while visiting Alberta. The Museaum was Well organized, there was so much to see and learn. The kids loved it!

A great place to visit as a family.

Fossil casting is totally worth it and "mad scientist" Alex that hosted it on Saturday at 1pm was an added entertainment bonus