🏛️ WE HAVE TO STAND UP FOR OUR NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUMS.Another natural history museum is facing an uncertain future.According to a September 22, 2026 report from the Hays Post, an employee of the Sternberg Museum of Natural History in Hays, Kansas, announced that the museum would close at the end of the year. However, Fort Hays State University has not officially announced a closure, and university officials say the institution is facing difficult decisions following a $2.4 million reduction from the Kansas Legislature.And regardless of what ultimately happens with Sternberg, I think this is something the entire natural-history community needs to pay attention to.Because we’ve seen this happening again and again.Natural history museums are incredibly important places. They preserve fossils, specimens, scientific collections, and the history of life on Earth—but they’re also places where people discover science for the first time.A kid walks into a dinosaur hall and becomes fascinated with paleontology.A family visits a natural history museum and learns about evolution, geology, biology, and the history of our planet.A student sees a real fossil and decides they want to become a scientist.Those experiences matter.And we cannot take our museums for granted.Earlier this month, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University announced that its public museum would close at the end of September after nearly two centuries of public operation. The Academy’s collections and research will continue, but the loss of the public museum is still a tremendous change.So this episode is a rallying cry.🦖 GO VISIT YOUR NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUMS.🦴 Buy a ticket.🏛️ Become a member.💰 Donate if you can.🎁 Support the gift shop.👨👩👧 Bring your family.📚 Tell your friends.📱 Share their posts.And if there’s a small local museum near you that you’ve been meaning to visit…GO.Don’t wait until the museum announces that it’s closing to realize how important it was.And if you’re in Kansas or anywhere near Hays, keep an eye on the situation at Sternberg Museum of Natural History and support the museum and its community however you can.This isn’t about blaming the people who work at these museums. In many cases, museum staff are the people working hardest to preserve collections, conduct research, educate the public, and keep these institutions alive.It’s about recognizing that museums need support.And as someone who dreams of creating a natural history and paleontology museum of my own someday, these stories hit especially close to home.I want to see MORE natural history museums.I want to see MORE dinosaur museums.I want to see MORE people getting excited about fossils, geology, biology, and the history of life.I don’t want to watch these institutions disappear.So please:Stand up for your museums.Support them.Visit them.Talk about them.And make sure the next generation has the opportunity to walk through those doors and discover the prehistoric world for themselves.🦖 WE CANNOT TAKE OUR MUSEUMS FOR GRANTED.🔬 Sources & Further Reading📰 Hays Post — “Sternberg Museum future in question”Read the Hays Post article🏛️ Academy of Natural Sciences / Drexel UniversityAcademy of Natural Sciences🎙️ Prehistoric Life PodcastExploring the past. Discovering the science. Bringing prehistoric life to you.If you care about dinosaurs, fossils, natural history, science, and museums, subscribe to Prehistoric Life and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.🦕 LET’S GET PREHISTORIC!#Paleontology #NaturalHistory #NaturalHistoryMuseum #MuseumsMatter #SaveOurMuseums #SternbergMuseum #Dinosaurs #Fossils #Science #Museum #Kansas #PaleontologyCommunity #PrehistoricLife #PrehistoricLifePodcast
Meet Kayrasaurus changliensis, a newly described therizinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation of western Liaoning, China.
In this episode of the Prehistoric Life Podcast, we’re taking a look at this bizarre new dinosaur and what its discovery can tell us about the evolution and ecology of early therizinosaurs.
The specimen is particularly interesting because it is nearly complete and skeletally immature, yet was already substantially larger than other therizinosaurs known from the same Jehol ecosystem. The researchers estimate that Kayrasaurus was at least 1.6 times larger than Beipiaosaurus inexpectus, the next-largest therizinosaur from the same ecosystem.
We’ll look at:
🦖 What Kayrasaurus changliensis was
🦴 Where it was discovered
🦷 Its unusual, extremely small and densely packed teeth
🦕 Its unusual neck vertebrae and hand claw anatomy
🌎 How it fits into the famous Jehol Biota
🍃 Possible differences in ecological niches between early therizinosaurs
🧬 What this discovery tells us about therizinosaur evolution
🔬 And why the researchers emphasize that more fossils and analyses are still needed to test these ideas
One of the really fascinating parts of this research is that the authors provisionally identify different ecological strategies among Jehol therizinosaurs. Beipiaosaurus and possibly Kayrasaurus show features associated with greater bite force and a more robust, less cursorial body plan, while Jianchangosaurus and Lingyuanosaurus show characteristics associated with greater cursoriality and forelimb-based foraging.
As always, it’s important to distinguish between what the fossils directly show and what researchers are interpreting from them. The authors specifically note that additional analyses and more complete specimens will be necessary to rigorously test and refine these ecological hypotheses.
🔬 READ THE SCIENTIFIC PAPER
The research was published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, a scientific journal specializing in paleontological systematics, including taxonomy, phylogenetics, functional morphology, evolution, and paleoecology.
“A new therizinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota and ecomorphological patterns among early therizinosaurians” — Liao et al. 2026
Journal: Journal of Systematic Palaeontology
Volume: 24
Issue: 2
Article: 2710287
DOI: 10.1080/14772019.2026.2710287
🦖 HELP BRING PREHISTORIC LIFE TO SOUTH CAROLINA!
I’m also currently working toward something much bigger: creating a natural history and paleontology museum in South Carolina.
To help make that vision a reality, I’m currently running a Kickstarter to fund the first major physical exhibit for the project—a full-scale dynamic scene featuring an Allosaurus jimmadseni pursuing a juvenile Stegosaurus.
The goal is to create an exhibit that can eventually be displayed in the future museum, while also being transportable for educational events and public outreach along the way.
Even if you can’t donate, sharing the campaign helps tremendously.
🦕 Help Bring Prehistoric Life to South Carolina:
Support the Kickstarter
Every contribution helps move this project one step closer to becoming a reality.
🎙️ PREHISTORIC LIFE PODCAST
Exploring the past. Discovering the science. Bringing prehistoric life to you.
If you enjoy dinosaur discoveries, fossils, paleontology research, museum projects, and prehistoric life, subscribe to Prehistoric Life and join me for the next discovery!
🏛️ WHAT WOULD IT TAKE TO TURN AN OLD SCHOOL BUILDING INTO A NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM?In this episode of the Prehistoric Life Podcast, I’m taking you inside my current vision for a future natural history and paleontology museum in the Bull Street District of Columbia, South Carolina.For years, I’ve talked about my goal of creating a museum where people can experience dinosaurs, fossils, geology, and the incredible history of life on Earth. But one of the biggest questions has always been:What would the museum actually look like?Today, I’m revealing my three-stage floor plan and development concept for transforming an old school building into a future museum.Instead of trying to build everything at once, this plan looks at how the museum could potentially grow in stages—starting with the first exhibits and eventually expanding into a larger experience filled with prehistoric life, fossils, educational opportunities, and more.🦖 In this episode, I discuss:• The old school building I’m envisioning for the project• Why the Bull Street District could be an exciting location• My three-stage approach to developing the museum• How the floor plan could evolve as the project grows• Potential exhibit spaces and future expansion• My vision for dinosaurs, fossils, geology, and natural history• And how this could eventually become a major destination for prehistoric life in South CarolinaThis is still a vision and developing plan, but I wanted to share how I’m thinking about taking this dream from an idea and turning it into something that could potentially grow step by step.🦴 SHOUTOUT TO MEGA CROC!A huge shoutout to Mega Croc for being part of the inspiration and conversation surrounding dinosaur displays, museums, and the incredible world of prehistoric life!Be sure to check out Mega Croc’s YouTube channel:Mega Croc on YouTube🦖 HELP BUILD THE FIRST EXHIBIT!I’m also currently raising support for the first physical exhibit in this larger museum journey: a full-scale dynamic scene featuring an Allosaurus jimmadseni pursuing a juvenile Stegosaurus.This exhibit is intended to be transportable, allowing it to potentially be used for educational events and public appearances as the larger museum vision continues to develop. The Kickstarter campaign is seeking roughly $15,000 toward construction and related costs.👉 Support the Kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/palmettopaleonmuseum/help-bring-prehistoric-life-to-south-carolina?ref=d54almHelp Bring Prehistoric Life to South CarolinaEven if you can’t contribute financially, sharing the campaign helps tremendously!Every museum has to start somewhere.This is my plan to start.🎙️ Prehistoric Life PodcastExploring the past. Discovering the science. Bringing prehistoric life to you.#Paleontology #Dinosaurs #NaturalHistoryMuseum #Museum #MuseumFloorPlan #DinosaurMuseum #BullStreetDistrict #ColumbiaSC #SouthCarolina #PrehistoricLife #PrehistoricLifePodcast #Allosaurus #Stegosaurus #Kickstarter #MegaCroc #Fossils #NaturalHistory
🦖 Welcome to Day 2 of Prehistoric Live 2026!📅 May 2nd, 2026 — the final day of an incredible journey into dinosaurs and prehistoric life.From cutting-edge research to fossil reconstructions and deep-time discoveries, Day 2 brings together a diverse group of speakers to close out Prehistoric Live with insight, passion, and serious prehistoric energy.🎤 Day 2 Speaker Lineup:🕒 3:00 PM EST – Jonas CruzAn 18-year-old published researcher focusing on dinosaur soft tissue, insect scavenging, and taphonomy. His work uses advanced microscopy to study preserved materials in dinosaurs like Triceratops and Edmontosaurus, while also making science accessible through outreach.🕓 4:00 PM EST – Colin BoisvertA PhD student studying theropods and sauropods, with a focus on dinosaur transitions between the Jurassic and Cretaceous, including topics like the Mid-Cretaceous Sauropod Hiatus and allosauroid extinction.🕔 5:00 PM EST – The Dinosaur Skeleton TeamA specialist studio producing scientifically accurate, museum-quality dinosaur skeleton reconstructions and replicas for institutions and collectors worldwide.🕕 6:00 PM EST – Brian CurticeAlso known as “Dr. BC,” a paleontologist and founder of Fossil Crates, known for breaking down major dinosaur discoveries and sharing insights from the field.🦕 This marks the conclusion of Prehistoric Live 2026 — thank you for being part of it!🔗 Learn more about the event:https://prehistoriclifepodcast.com/prehistoric-live/👍 Subscribe for more dinosaur content, interviews, and future live events.🦖 LET’S GET PREHISTORIC#PrehistoricLive #Dinosaurs #Paleontology #Fossils #Science #LiveEvent
🏛️ ANOTHER NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM IS CLOSING.https://www.inquirer.com/education/academy-of-natural-sciences-closing-museum-philadelphia-20260901.htmlOn September 1, 2026, Drexel University and the Academy of Natural Sciences announced that the Academy’s museum in Philadelphia will close at the end of September, ending nearly 200 years of public museum operations. The museum opened to the public in 1828.And honestly… this one hurts.In this episode of the Prehistoric Life Podcast, I talk about the closure of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, what it means for the natural history and paleontology community, and why I think this should be a wake-up call for all of us who care about museums.The Academy isn’t simply disappearing as a scientific institution. Its collections, research, and scientific mission will continue. The institution currently cares for more than 19 million biological specimens, fossils, archives, and other scientific resources, including more than 73,000 type specimens.But the public museum is closing.And that distinction matters.The Academy and Drexel have cited declining visitation, changes in audience behavior following the COVID-19 pandemic, and increasing operating costs as major factors behind the decision.In this episode, I discuss my frustration with the situation, including the larger challenges facing museums when funding becomes increasingly difficult and major academic institutions have to make difficult financial decisions.But I also want to look at our responsibility as museum visitors.Because here’s the uncomfortable truth:If we don’t support our museums, we can’t expect them to survive.If you have a natural history museum in your city—GO VISIT IT.If there’s a small paleontology museum nearby—GO VISIT IT.Buy a ticket.Become a member.Buy something from the gift shop.Donate if you can.Bring your kids.Bring your friends.Share their posts.Tell people about them.Don’t wait until the museum announces that it’s closing to suddenly realize how much it meant to you.And most importantly, if you are able to visit the Academy of Natural Sciences before the closure, please go.The museum’s regular public hours are scheduled to end September 27, with the institution’s announcement stating that the museum itself will close September 30.🦖 Dinosaur museums.🦴 Natural history museums.🌎 Science museums.🏛️ Local museums.They need us.This episode isn’t meant to attack the people working at the Academy or pretend that there is one simple explanation for an incredibly complicated financial situation.It’s a rallying cry.Support your local museum before you lose it.Because every museum that closes means fewer places where the next generation can discover dinosaurs, fossils, geology, biology, evolution, and the incredible history of our planet.And as someone who dreams of someday creating a natural history museum of my own, this hits especially close to home.🎙️ Prehistoric Life PodcastExploring the past. Discovering the science. Bringing prehistoric life to you.🏛️ Support the Academy of Natural Sciences:Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel UniversityIf you enjoyed this episode, share it with someone who loves museums.And then go visit one.
