Michigan’s Prehistoric Creatures
Were there dinosaurs roaming the Michigan land 100 million years ago?
Yes, there were.
Where’s the proof? There is none. No dino fossils have ever been uncovered in Michigan…now, this means no monsters like T-Rex, Brontosaurus, Ankylosaurus, Triceratops, etc.
Why not, if they roamed this area? Scientists claim it’s because the sediments in the state were eroded; therefore, the dino corpses didn’t have a chance to get fossilized.
However, there are plenty of other prehistoric creature remains and fossils that HAVE been discovered in Michigan…and here they are:
In September 2015, the bones of a wooly mammoth were found in a Chelsea field. Scientists determined the mammoth was over 15,000 years old and had signs that it was killed by humans. More bones and part of the skull were found in 2017.
The American mastodon has become Michigan’s official state fossil. The mastodon wandered around Michigan up to two million years ago. The mastodon and wooly mammoth seemed to be good buddies, sharing Michigan space with each other.
Michigan’s Great Lakes also contained some prehistoric whales, ancestors of the current fin whale and sperm whale. Part of Michigan was once underwater, which may explain the whales’ existence, coming in from major seas. Some prehistoric whale remains have been dated back to only one thousand years.
500 million years ago, when Michigan was basically covered in shallow water, small marine organisms had made their home and thrived. This accounts for the endless supply of fossils you find along the beaches and elsewhere throughout the entire state. Petoskey Stones are one of the best examples. These organisms were algae, brachiopods, coral, trilobites…..and crinoids. The crinoids were small creatures with tentacles - sort of related to starfish but kind of resembling squids.
So if anyone asks if actual dinosaurs roamed Michigan, yes they did. The dino skeletons you see in Michigan museums were shipped in from elsewhere. But we do have proof of prehistoric elephants, whales and marine organisms.
And I guess we’ll have to make do until some Michigan farmer finds a T-Rex skull.