Dinosaur specimens preserved with skin, tendons, and stomach contents intact. An Edmontosaurus found here still had its last meal preserved, revealing diet details impossible to learn from bones alone. Mummification in the badlands.
Badlands Mummification
Horseshoe Canyon cuts through layers of rock from the Late Cretaceous period, exposing the 74 to 67-million-year-old Horseshoe Canyon Formation. This geological unit contains many dinosaur fossils, including those of the large, plant-eating hadrosaur, Edmontosaurus regalis. In rare cases, the conditions here led to the formation of "dinosaur mummies." These are not mummies in the Egyptian sense, with preserved organic material. Instead, they are exceptionally detailed fossils where impressions of skin and other soft tissues are preserved in the surrounding rock.
This remarkable preservation happens when a dinosaur's body is buried rapidly in fine-grained sediment, like silt or mud from an overflowing river. The rapid burial protects the carcass from scavengers and the elements. Before the skin and other tissues could completely decompose, minerals in the sediment created a natural cast, preserving the texture and shape of the animal's exterior. Sometimes, a thin film of clay, attracted to the decaying body by microbial action, would form a precise template of the skin's surface.
Reading the Skin
Finds in and around Horseshoe Canyon have given paleontologists a clear picture of hadrosaur skin. Unlike modern lizards, the skin of Edmontosaurus was not covered in large, overlapping scales. Instead, it was a mosaic of non-overlapping bumps called tubercles or scales, which varied in size from 1 to 5 millimeters in diameter. These pebbly skin textures show that hadrosaurs were complex in their appearance compared to the smooth-skinned animals of early reconstructions.
While the most famous dinosaur mummies with stomach contents, like the nodosaur Borealopelta and the hadrosaur "Dakota," were found in other parts of Alberta and North America, they show the scientific importance of such preservation. These specimens show details about dinosaur diets. For example, the stomach contents of Borealopelta showed it was a selective feeder, primarily eating specific types of ferns. In a juvenile Gorgosaurus (a tyrannosaur) found in nearby Dinosaur Provincial Park, the remains of two small, bird-like dinosaurs were found in its stomach cavity, revealing the diet of young predators. Discoveries of hadrosaur remains are common in Horseshoe Canyon, with ongoing excavations regularly uncovering new skeletons. Each find may reveal more details about the lives of these Cretaceous animals.
💡Fun Facts
The term "dinosaur mummy" was first used by paleontologist Henry Fairfield Osborn in 1912 to describe an exceptionally preserved *Edmontosaurus* found in Wyoming.
The dark stripes visible in the walls of Horseshoe Canyon are seams of coal, formed from ancient swamp vegetation.
The landscape of the Canadian Badlands, including Horseshoe Canyon, was carved by massive glacial meltwater floods at the end of the last Ice Age.
Besides *Edmontosaurus*, fossils of the tyrannosaur *Albertosaurus*, the horned *Pachyrhinosaurus*, and the ostrich-like *Ornithomimus* are also found here.
Horseshoe Canyon is a public area with hiking trails that are always accessible. The primary interpretive center for the region's fossils is the Royal Tyrrell Museum, which has seasonal hours. In summer (May 15 - Aug 31), it is open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. In the off-season, it is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday to Sunday.
Admission
Access to Horseshoe Canyon itself is free. Admission to the Royal Tyrrell Museum requires a ticket, with adult prices around $25.00 CAD (prices vary for seniors, youth, and families).
Accessibility
The trails in Horseshoe Canyon are unpaved, steep, and can be slippery. The Royal Tyrrell Museum is fully accessible to wheelchairs and strollers.