magnifier
Teach PA History
magbottom
 
Explore PA History
Related Stories
The Missing Piece: A Tale of a Tail
Further Reading

Anderson, Bridget. What Fossil Tell Us: the History of Life. New York. New York, NY: Bank Street College of Education in Association with the American Museum of Natural History for Lickle Publishing, 2003.

This book explains what fossils are and how they form. It also looks at what fossils reveal about life on Earth and how it has changed since prehistoric time.

Clinton, Susan. Reading Between the Bones: The Pioneers of Dinosaur Paleontology. New York, NY: Reed Business Information, Inc, 1997.

This book documents the discoveries of eight major dinosaur paleontologists. It also discusses how the scientist arrived at their conclusions, as well as the challenges faced by their study.

Cope, E.D. "On Elasmosaurus platyurus Cope.." American Journal of Science, Series 2, 50 (148), (1870): 140-141..

Edward Drinker Cope responds in this professional journal to Professor Leidy's observations of his construction and identification of the "Elasmosaurus platyurus Cope".

Everhart, Michael J. Oceans of Kansas: a Natural History of the Western Interior Sea. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 2005.

The book provides a description of the prehistoric creatures that inhabited a water mass in the middle of North American continent in the final years of the Cretaceous period. These creatures included giant sharks, reptiles, and birds that were discovered in the 1860s.

Farlow, James Orville. Bringing Dinosaur Bones to Life: How Do We Know What Dinosaurs Were Like? . New York, NY: F. Watts, 2001.

This book provides information about the lives of dinosaurs, and tells how scientists have learned about these giant creatures. It shows how paleontologists study fossils to reconstruct the skeleton and make guesses as to the dinosaur's organs, skin, etc..

Garcia, Frank A. Discovering Fossils: How to Find and Identify Remains of the Prehistoric Past. . Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1998.

This book is a guide to paleontology which teaches where to search for fossils, how to study the textures and shapes, what tools are needed, and much more. Illustrations for identifying and comparing fossils are provided.

Goodhue, Thomas W. Curious Bones: Mary Anning and the Birth of Paleontology. Greensboro, NC: Morgan Reynolds Publishing,, 2002.

This book looks at the life and work of a woman, Mary Anning, who collected fossils and made other discoveries when paleontology was first beginning.

Holmes, Thomas. Great Dinosaur Expeditions and Discoveries: Adventures with the Fossil Hunters. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow Publishing, 2003.

This book follows paleontologist through places such as America, Africa, Canada, Patagonia, and elsewhere.

Jaffe, Mark. The Gilded Dinosaur: The Fossil War Between E.D. Cope and O.C. Marsh and the Rise of American Science. New York, NY: Three Rivers Press, 2001.

This book brings to life the political and historical background of the story of Elasmosaurus platyurus Cope.

Ottaviani, Jim. Bone Sharps, Cowboys, and Thunder Lizards: a Tale of Edward Drinker Cope, Othniel Charles Marsh and the Gilded Age of Paleontology. Ann Arbor, MI: G.T. Labs, 2005.

This book contains a graphic novel that presents a fictionalized historical tale of two late-nineteenth century scientists, Edward Cope and Othniel Marsh, who fight over the discovery of dinosaur bones.


Web Sites

Academy of Natural Sciences, "Bone Wars: The Marsh-Cope Rivalry" http://www.ansp.org/explore/online-exhibits/stories/bone-wars-the-cope...

This article discusses the rivalry between two famous paleontologists, Edward Cope and Othniel Marsh. It gives an overview of their accomplishments, personalities, and professional relationship. The rivalry begins when Cope mistakenly puts the head on the wrong end of Elasmosaurus platyurus.

American Heritage Magazine, "PROFESSOR COPE vs. PROFESSOR MARSH," http://www.americanheritage.com/articles/magazine/ah/1971/5/1971_5_4.s...

This American Heritage article by James Penick chronicles the events of the rivalry between Professor Cope and Professor Marsh which became known as "The Bone Wars."

Lefalophodon, An Informal History of Evolutionary Biology, "Othniel Charles Marsh (1831-1899)," http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/~alroy/lefa/Marsh.html

This webpage offers a brief résumé of Marsh's career.

Lefalophodon, An Informal History of Evolutionary Biology, "Edward Drinker Cope," http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/~alroy/lefa/Cope.html

On this webpage John Alroy, a Center Associate at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis, provides a quick synopsis of Cope's career, colleagues, and published works, as well as an image of Cope.

Oceans of Kansas Paleontology, Fossils from the Late Cretaceous Western Interior Sea, The tale of a tail: Or how easy it was to put the head on the wrong end of Elasmosaurus platyurus Cope 1868 http://www.oceansofkansas.com/

This is a wonderful resource that illustrates and explains the discovery and story of the famous Elasmosaurus platyurus Cope of 1868. Cope put the head on the wrong end of Elasmosaurus platyurus Cope.

Prehistorics Illustrated, "The Elasmosaurus files: E. platyurus (Cope, 1868) type species," http://prehistoricsillustrated.com/files_ml_elasmosaurus.html

This website offers a chart of facts regarding the elasmosaurus and its identification. For images of a museum display of the dinosaur, click on "Illustrations" at the top right of the page. Images are from the Burke Museum in Seattle, Washington.

Project Exploration, "Science Education, Dinosaur Expeditions, Discoveries and Exhibits," http://www.projectexploration.org/qa_library.htm

A question and answer library for students. David Blackburn answers questions about paleontology.

University of California Museum of Paleontology, Evolution Wing, "Othniel C. Marsh," http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/marsh.html

This page not only recounts the career accomplishments of Marsh, but also the antagonistic relationship which was developed with his contemporary, Edward Drinker Cope.

University of California Museum of Paleontology, "Edward Drinker Cope," http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/cope.html

This web page from the University of California Museum of Palentology clearly explains Cope's evolutionary ideas and touches generally on his accomplishments as an herpetologist, mammalogist, and paleontologist.


Back to Top