Badlands Dinosaur Museum Specimen Featured in Global Study

A dinosaur specimen known as “Warwick’s Duck,” housed at the Badlands Dinosaur Museum in Dickinson, North Dakota, has gained international attention for its role in a significant research study on mating injuries in hadrosaurs. The study, led by Filippo Bertozzo, Ph.D., investigates rear spinal injuries across various hadrosaur specimens worldwide, suggesting that these injuries may have resulted from mating behaviors.

The research paper, which was released on November 4, 2025, employs both statistical analysis and computer simulations to explore the origins of these injuries. According to the study, the injuries were likely caused by male hadrosaurs crushing the spines of females during mating. A press release announcing the publication noted, “Statistics and computer simulation of bone stress led the international team of paleontologists to suggest that the bone fractures were caused by the male crushing the backbones of the female during mating.”

Co-authors of the study include Elizabeth Freedman-Fowler, dean of applied science at Dickinson State University, and her husband, Denver Fowler, curator of the Badlands Dinosaur Museum. They elaborated on the findings in an interview with local media, highlighting the implications for understanding sexual dimorphism in dinosaurs. “All of the specimens that show this injury should be female; they should all show some of the features that we’re suggesting might be female,” Denver Fowler stated.

Despite the exciting possibilities presented by the study, both Freedman-Fowler and Fowler cautioned that further independent research is necessary to definitively determine the sex of the dinosaurs. They emphasized that rear spinal injuries alone cannot be used to distinguish male from female dinosaurs.

The specimen known as “Warwick’s Duck” was discovered by Denver Fowler’s father, Warwick Fowler, in 2009. Since then, it has been on loan from the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, Montana. Denver Fowler remarked on the fossil’s significance, stating, “When my dad found this specimen, I thought straight away this looks like these kinds of mating injuries. It was like the best one I’d ever seen.”

The exhibit at the Badlands Dinosaur Museum quickly drew interest from paleontologists, including Darren Tanke of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Drumheller, Alberta, Canada. Tanke has dedicated years to cataloguing similar injuries in fossils. Freedman-Fowler joined the research project shortly after, and in 2019, the trio presented their findings on “Warwick’s Duck” at a paleontology conference in Dickinson.

At that conference, they met Bertozzo, then a doctoral student in Ireland. He expressed enthusiasm for the specimen and invited them to contribute to a larger study that examined additional specimens globally. Bertozzo’s research includes fossils from various locations, including as far as Russia. The collaborative effort involved scientists from multiple countries, such as Italy and the United Kingdom.

The full research paper is accessible through iScience, an open-source scientific journal, allowing interested readers to delve into the findings. Meanwhile, “Warwick’s Duck” remains on display at the Badlands Dinosaur Museum, continuing to captivate visitors with its remarkable history and scientific importance. More information about the museum’s hours and exhibits can be found on their official website and social media channels.