Geeking Out on Dinosaurs
'The Coolest Thing Ever,' Says Maryland Scientist

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Thomas Holtz can't remember a time when he wasn't obsessed with dinosaurs.

When he was very young, he told his parents he knew exactly what he wanted to be when he grew up: a Tyrannosaurus rex.

It didn't quite work out that way, but Holtz thinks he figured out the next best thing. He's a paleontologist at the University of Maryland and spends all day studying, writing and talking about his favorite prehistoric creatures. He even has a nickname: King of the Dino Geeks.

"They're big and scary and weird, like dragons or monsters, but these are big, scary, weird things that you can find out more about all the time," Holtz says while sitting in his office. As you might expect, it's decorated with dino-gear -- dinosaur bookends and figurines and fossils and posters. Even a pop-up calendar.

Another Day, Another Discovery

Holtz says he really became interested in dinosaurs once he realized that "there are still new discoveries to be made. It wasn't just going to be memorizing a bunch of facts."

There seems to be an announcement of a new species of dinosaur about every other week. That might seem odd, considering that they all became extinct about 65 1/2 million years ago.

But Holtz says that's what makes his job so exciting. This year alone, more than 30 new types of dinosaurs have been given names and scientific classifications.

"It's a big world. There are rocky places that haven't been explored scientifically yet," Holtz explains, adding that as researchers explore more remote places, they're finding evidence of previously unknown dinosaurs.

Following in Their Footsteps

Only a dozen miles from Holtz's office, the remains of a giant, plant-eating dinosaur were found more than 100 years ago. Scientists named that species Astrodon, and it became the official state dinosaur of Maryland.

Most states, including Virginia, don't have a state dinosaur. The District does, however. Can you guess why it's called Capitalsaurus? If you live near First and F streets Southeast, you're walking on its turf!

It's funny to think that dinosaurs used to walk around where kids now play soccer and go to school. There is less evidence of the dinosaurs that lived in this area than there is in other places because our climate has lots of moisture, which makes fossilization difficult.

Holtz says that "Maryland's dinosaur history is one of the best-kept secrets in paleontology." The Maryland Science Center in Baltimore is a great place to learn about that history, he says.

Holtz is fascinated that new information is being learned about dinosaurs that were discovered long ago. Did you know that some dinos, including the Velociraptor, had feathers covering much of their bodies? That discovery was made in the past 10 years.

New findings like that inspired Holtz to write the book "Dinosaurs: The Most Complete, Up-to-Date Encyclopedia for Dinosaur Lovers of All Ages."

So what's his favorite dinosaur? The T. rex, of course.

"They're just the coolest thing ever," he says with a big smile. "They're the climax of the carnivorous dinosaurs."

-- Ellen McCarthy

Learn More

After digesting the more than 420 pages of Thomas Holtz's "Dinosaurs" book, you'll know almost as much about these wildly popular creatures as he does.

Luis Rey's dramatic illustrations, which decorate nearly every page, are amazing. He's drawn some pretty mean-looking dudes, many of which seem to be charging off the page right at you! (Let's hope they're not meat-eaters.)

Whether your tastes favor the carnivores or the herbivores, the fluffy dinosaurs or the ones with armor, you'll be spellbound by this book. And by the time you finish it, just think how many more new dinosaurs will have been discovered.