Bust in and meet Buster at the Dinosaurs of BC exhibit this summer at the Okanagan Heritage Museum.
Previously hosted at the Royal BC Museum in Victoria, the exhibit is now in Kelowna for the summer, thanks to funding from the Government of Canada and Chances Casino.
“We’re just so excited to have it here,” said Kelowna Museums Society’s curatorial manager Amanda Snyder. “Everyone loves dinosaurs.”
Included in the exhibit is Buster, a newly discovered species of dinosaur, that was found along the railway near the Systut River near Smithers, B.C. in the 1970s. Geologist Kenny Larsen found the fossil bones from a small, plant-eating dinosaur that was a distant cousin of the Triceratops.
In 2019, after examining the bones again, two Canadian paleontologists identified the bones as a dinosaur unique to B.C. – Ferrisaurus sustutensis, otherwise known as The Iron Lizard or Buster.
RESD MORE: Behind the scenes with a B.C. dino hunter, plus tips for finding fossils
In addition to the new dinosaur, the exhibit features many different dinosaur displays, including early versions of tyrannosauruses, plus displays of tracks from the prehistoric creatures.
“We have a number of different trackways,” Snyder says. “Some of the oldest fossils are from 145 million years ago.”
The exhibit will be in Kelowna until Sept. 30, with a special opening on Saturday, June 15 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. where children can dig real fossils.
During the four months it’s in town, the museum will host a variety of public programs, including Dino-Sundays, activities for kids throughout the summer weeks, various speakers and Wine-and-Dinos for adults.
READ MORE: Inside Victoria B.C.’s T.rex invasion
If you go:
- See Dinosaurs of B.C. through Sept. 30, with an opening celebration June 15.
- The Okanagan Heritage Museum is open daily in Kelowna at 470 Queensway Ave.
- Learn more at kelownamuseums.ca/museum/okanagan-heritage-museum
Plan your adventures throughout the West Coast at westcoasttraveller.com and follow us on Facebook and Instagram @thewestcoasttraveller. And for the top West Coast Travel stories of the week delivered right to your inbox, sign up for our weekly Armchair Traveller newsletter!
