Reproduction in Troodon, North America’s First Dinosaur. Ever wonder how dinosaurs did it?  Really?!?!  Hmm…..might be time to develop a hobby.  Nevertheless, the fossil record provides an excellent record on the breeding behavior in some dinosaurs. For example,  we have collected eggs, clutches, a nest and other reproduction-related fossils for Troodon, a small (person-sized) dinosaur from Montana.  This talk explores how these fossils document the reproductive ecology of this curious dino and how it fits into the origins of birds and maybe even the extinction of dinosaurs.

David Varricchio, a paleontologist at Montana State University-Bozeman, studies the biology of dinosaurs by blending geologic field data with anatomical information within a broader evolutionary context.  Recent work includes work on dinosaur reproduction from carnivorous dinosaurs to modern birds, dinosaur bonebeds, and modern nesting sites as guides to the fossil record.