- 5/26/2025
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00:00THE FOURTH CENTURY AND A HUNDRED THOUSAND YEARS AGO
00:20Over 66 million years ago
00:23Our world was ruled by dinosaurs.
00:42The largest animals that have ever walked the earth.
00:53Today, dinosaur experts across the globe are uncovering the bones they left behind.
01:04Allowing us to imagine how these extraordinary creatures may have lived.
01:14So that we can tell their stories.
01:17And they can walk again.
01:47Deep in the ancient forests of Alberta, Canada.
02:05A team of dinosaur hunters has come to unearth an astonishing find.
02:12We've got at least three bones sticking out here.
02:16Discovered on the edge of a creek are the bones of a Pachyrhinosaurus.
02:25A unique horned dinosaur.
02:32Lying here is a toddler.
02:34It's such a tiny little bone.
02:36They call Albie.
02:39I don't think I've seen one that small before.
02:43And he's not alone.
02:47He's part of one of the largest dinosaur herds ever found.
02:53Numbering in the thousands.
02:57We have big adults, we have little babies, we have every age in between.
03:02This was a huge herd of animals.
03:06Why so many are buried here is a mystery.
03:13But by studying the bones, we can begin to tell their extraordinary story.
03:21Canada.
03:3873 million years ago.
03:42What will one day be northwestern Canada is part of a landmass called Laramidia.
03:59Mountain ranges extend for thousands of miles.
04:05Towering over a wilderness of dense forested valleys.
04:13This vast terrain is roamed by gigantic groups of plant-eating dinosaurs.
04:28That like today's caribou or elk, migrate each season.
04:34And by far the largest of these prehistoric herds are the pachyrhinosaurus.
04:54A close relative of Triceratops, these social dinosaurs have spent the winter in the south.
05:15But with the land now almost completely barred, staying here would mean starvation.
05:35So the herd is setting out on an epic 400 mile trek north.
05:42Where by summer the vegetation should be abundant.
05:53It will be a grueling journey.
05:57Especially if you're one of the youngest.
06:03Like Albie.
06:12At less than a year old, he's only half a meter tall.
06:20Which makes keeping up a bit of a challenge.
06:32Even so, he must stay close to his mother.
06:42Because the herd aren't the only ones that are hungry.
06:51Following in their wake, an Ashdarkid pterosaur.
07:01With a six meter wingspan and estimated speed of 60 miles an hour.
07:11A young pachyrhinosaurus makes for an easy target.
07:42A close call.
07:53But it's only the start of the challenges they will face.
08:02As the search for food takes them across the prehistoric wilderness.
08:2573 million years later.
08:30The work to understand this enormous herd is well underway.
08:36There's a pretty large cluster of bones there.
08:39Seem to belong potentially to a large animal.
08:44It's a painstaking process.
08:48Led by Dr. Emily Bamforth.
08:52Who is piecing together the journey that brought the herd here.
09:01And in one corner of the site.
09:05Is that a little vertebra?
09:08Something has caught her eye.
09:11Oh man, that is so little.
09:14Look right in this corner.
09:17Baby bone, baby bone, baby bone.
09:21Emerging from the rock are not just Albie's bones.
09:26But those of other youngsters.
09:33And comparing their size.
09:36Juvenile vertebra is seven centimeters.
09:40That's another really young animal.
09:42Reveals something significant.
09:45All of the juveniles here, these are all about a year old.
09:48Wow.
09:49They're all the same age.
09:52Born around the same time.
09:56They have to have been born on the previous summer's migration.
10:00That to me is interesting.
10:04Emily's findings suggest the herd was making its yearly journey.
10:09For more than just food.
10:22They were returning to their summer nesting ground.
10:34And joining them are thousands more.
10:40As every Pachyrhinosaurus on the continent heads north.
10:52Merging into one of the greatest spectacles of the prehistoric world.
11:13But with such a colossal gathering.
11:18Tension is in the air.
11:26Breeding season is upon them.
11:29So bulls in the herd must compete for their right to mate.
11:38From old veterans.
11:43To their younger rivals.
11:53And there's only one way to prove their worth.
12:13In a contest as brutal as this.
12:19Albie's mother must keep a watchful eye.
12:25Making sure he isn't trampled or even killed.
12:43But as one of the youngest.
12:47Curiosity gets the better of him.
13:02Using their thick armoured noses.
13:09Each male seeks to deliver a bone shattering blow.
13:21And the ultimate target.
13:25Is behind the other's horned armour.
13:32The young rival.
13:36Gains the upper hand.
13:47That is weird.
13:51At the dig site.
13:55Uncovering what appears to be the rib of a huge bull.
13:59It seems like the rib trends this way.
14:02But then starts back up that way.
14:06Emily and her team mate Max Scott.
14:10Are finding evidence of a punishing injury.
14:16This part of the rib and that part of the rib are slightly offset.
14:20So it looks as if this rib has actually been broken in the middle.
14:26It seems like it was almost shoved off to one side.
14:30The rib is twice as thick as a bear's.
14:34The fact it's snapped.
14:37Means this bull suffered a potentially fatal blow.
14:42It would have to be a considerable impact.
14:45So either the opponent striking it really hard.
14:48Or when it fell sideways.
14:50Whatever happened it would have been very painful.
14:52Like with an impact this size the rib could puncture the lung.
15:01But examining the fossil reveals something curious.
15:06It's really bulgy there.
15:08I think that's a bone callus.
15:11Bone calluses form over a break as part of the healing process.
15:16The bone has broken and has actually shifted.
15:20Sideways while the animal was alive.
15:23And this big bony bump healed around it and set it.
15:27It would have been very painful for the animal but they would have survived it.
15:30It's really quite an impressive feat.
15:32It really shows just how tough he really is.
15:39The healed injury is important evidence.
15:44It suggests the strongest bulls in the herd.
15:48Were capable of taking severe punishment.
15:58And getting back on their feet.
16:14An ability they need.
16:18To come out on top.
16:44North.
16:49With a winner firmly established.
16:56The monumental herd continues its journey to the fertile north.
17:14But though the fighting may have subsided.
17:18For Albie the danger is only just beginning.
17:34In the chaos he has become separated from his mother.
17:40And lost in the crowd.
17:50In a herd of this magnitude.
17:54Finding her won't be easy.
18:10Look at this.
18:14But at the dig site.
18:16Evidence is emerging that suggests every one of this enormous herd.
18:20May have looked unique.
18:24It looks like it's relatively complete and this is a big one.
18:28Buried in the rock is an incredibly rare find.
18:32An adult's bony headdress.
18:36Known as the frill.
18:40This might be the front.
18:42And that's the back.
18:44Yeah that's what I was thinking too.
18:46So like the nose is over here somewhere.
18:48And like the body is back there.
18:50I don't think I've ever seen any where one of the middle horns.
18:54Is going the opposite direction of the other.
18:58Given this frill's highly unusual shape.
19:02Emily is keen to compare it with others found in the creek.
19:09So on this individual.
19:11The horns that stick out the side of the frill.
19:14They're straight.
19:16Whereas this one is interesting.
19:18This is an asymmetrical frill.
19:20So this horn is straight.
19:22And that one is curled.
19:27Each frill is distinct from the other.
19:32It is very striking that these frills.
19:35Despite being from almost exactly the same place in the bone bed.
19:38From the same community of animals.
19:40Like they're still very different from one another.
19:44Remarkably no two frills found at the site.
19:48Have ever looked the same.
19:52Leading the team to think their variation.
19:55Served a crucial purpose.
19:57Based on the differences in these frill horns.
20:00It would be very easy for the individuals to recognize each other.
20:03Yeah in a herd environment like this.
20:06It's very important to be able to recognize.
20:08Your friends and your family easily.
20:12With every member of the herd.
20:14Displaying their own unique frill.
20:21It could help a youngster like Albie.
20:25Pick out his mother.
20:27From the masses.
20:30Or a youngster like Albie.
20:33Pick out his mother.
20:35From the masses.
20:39By scanning each and every one.
20:43For her familiar features.
20:57But in the sea of Pachyrhinosaurus.
21:00Streaming past.
21:04She is still.
21:06Nowhere to be seen.
21:34Without his mother's protection.
21:37He has little chance.
21:40Of surviving the long journey.
21:43Alone.
22:04Alone.
22:10Alone.
22:12Until.
22:14Alone.
22:16Finally.
22:18The distinctive outline of a frill.
22:23He knows better than any other.
22:30Alone.
22:32And a mother relieved.
22:34To have found her young.
22:55But though reunited.
22:58There is much danger still ahead.
23:1730 miles from the main dig site.
23:21A long way to go.
23:28Emily and paleontologist Jackson Sweeder.
23:33Have travelled to the edge of a forest.
23:42Here, ancient footprints follow the herd's route.
23:48That's a toe.
23:50And then that's a toe.
23:51Missing the third one here.
23:52See it again, missing that toe over there.
23:55Once you get your eye in, they're actually all over the place.
23:58They're everywhere.
24:02And one stands out from all the others.
24:06Clearly a carnivore.
24:09And you can even see the claws.
24:12That's a point.
24:14A big animal as well.
24:17What, eight metres?
24:20Yeah.
24:26To confirm the identity of this large predator.
24:31Emily and Jackson use liquid rubber.
24:35To make a cast that reveals how it moved.
24:41The back of the track is shallower than these toes here.
24:45Toes are super deep.
24:47So it's moving on the front of his feet.
24:49Sort of like fast animals today, like cheetahs would do.
24:52Definitely wider than it is deep.
24:54So it can move side to side if it has to.
24:57So probably a very agile animal as well.
25:01This kind of speed and agility belongs to only one predator in the region.
25:10A terrifying relative of T-Rex that hunted in packs.
25:17Those Pachyrhinosaurus definitely would have had to worry about this animal.
25:21Yeah.
25:22It's very efficient at moving long distances.
25:25It could follow them for miles and just wait for an opportunity.
25:30The Gorgosaurus.
25:41With exceptional hearing.
25:46And a sense of smell more powerful than any other dinosaur.
25:53It's thought they could track their prey from up to ten miles away.
25:59Allowing them to ambush at a moment of their choosing.
26:29Unaware of the approaching threat, the herd moves deeper into the forest.
26:38Surrounded by its narrow pathways.
26:47An attack could come from any direction.
26:59But there is no sign of the danger yet.
27:29The sound of intruders draws Albie away from the herd.
27:59But these aren't the stealthy footsteps of a Gorgosaurus.
28:06Something else is closing in.
28:23Take care with your footing.
28:27Journeying along the herd's migration route,
28:31Emily and her team have discovered evidence of another mysterious dinosaur.
28:38Which has emerged on the edge of what is now a river.
28:45Yeah, it's a little chilly.
28:47Oh yeah, it's cold.
28:51Exposed by receding water, its fossilized remains are all along the riverbank.
29:00That's huge.
29:04It's just packed with stuff.
29:07It's crazy that it's just kind of sitting out here on the surface.
29:10Man, that's big.
29:14It definitely seems to be in a layer here.
29:17Whatever this is.
29:23And it isn't long before the team hits the jackpot.
29:27Oh my goodness.
29:33That's a huge bone.
29:37Buried in the rock is part of its gigantic hind limb.
29:42Do you have your measuring tape?
29:43Yeah, let's just take a quick measurement.
29:46They can use this to estimate the animal's full size.
29:52It's really long.
29:54Even if it's only to there, that's still definitely over a meter.
29:58Yeah, so I would say with legs like this, it's probably about the size of a school bus.
30:03About nine meters long or so.
30:05That's huge.
30:07There's not much that gets bigger than this.
30:10Even larger than a Gorgosaurus.
30:14Its nine meter length means it could be only one dinosaur.
30:26And the forest is the ideal place for it to find its next meal.
30:44But this isn't a killer.
30:52It's an Edmontosaurus.
30:58Which, along with its herd, is on the same migration north.
31:06As plant eaters, they pose no threat.
31:13But these six ton giants make a lot of noise.
31:34And it's drawing the pack of hungry Gorgosaurus straight towards them.
31:44GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
31:47GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
31:50GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
31:53GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
31:56GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
31:59GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:02GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:05GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:08GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:12GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:15GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:18GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:22GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:36For Albie, it's another narrow escape.
32:41GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:44GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:47GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:50GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
32:53And as the herd pushes on, the aurora lighting up the skies above
33:00is a sign their journey north is almost over.
33:17GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
33:20GORGOSAURUS GROWLS
33:22Do you have a chisel?
33:23Yep.
33:24Not far from the main dig site,
33:29Emily and Jackson are finding evidence of exactly what the herd was looking for.
33:36That's huge.
33:37Yeah.
33:38An abundance of food just waiting to be discovered.
33:42There's so many different plants here.
33:44Just on this one slab, not just big leaves like this.
33:49Also, lots of flowering plants as well.
33:52All of these things would be really great food for pachyrhinosaurs.
33:57The plants in these rocks would have flourished in the summer,
34:02in time for the herd's nesting season.
34:07Looking at all of these plants, there's enough food for the adults and the juveniles.
34:12More than enough to draw the pachyrhinosaurs out here.
34:15And when the babies hatch, there's food for the babies as well.
34:21This place would mark the end of the herd's long migration.
34:32A haven where they could settle and begin to nest.
34:42But while the exhausting 400-mile walk may finally be over,
34:49the pachyrhinosaurs are still looking for food.
34:54They're looking for food.
34:57They're looking for food.
35:00They're looking for food.
35:03They're looking for food.
35:06They're looking for food.
35:09Their journey may finally be over.
35:16There is one problem they haven't left behind.
35:26The gorgosaurus have stayed close.
35:32And with the pachyrhinosaurus backed up against the river,
35:41it gives these ferocious predators the perfect opportunity
35:46to pick off one of the herd's more vulnerable members.
36:02But Albie is not alone.
36:07His mother's instinct is to fight.
36:13But their confrontation is about to pale into insignificance.
36:19Both predator and prey,
36:24Albie and his mother are ready to fight.
36:29But their confrontation is about to pale into insignificance.
36:35But their confrontation is about to pale into insignificance.
36:45Both predator and prey face a far greater threat.
37:04They're ready to fight.
37:15Investigating what happened at the end of the herd's journey.
37:24And why so many are buried here.
37:29Emily's team is mapping the bones.
37:33We've obviously got a pretty large cluster in that corner.
37:47They can then scan them to create a full 3D model of the site.
37:57It's coming through really well.
38:03The imaging allows them to see exactly how the fossils are laid out.
38:08You can see how the bones are stacked on top of each other.
38:13Everything here is bone.
38:18There's actually very little rock in between there.
38:23It's just a solid mass of bone material.
38:29The bones of young and old are jumbled together.
38:37And there's even more in the ground than the team first realised.
38:42You think of the sheer density of bones in just this little area that we've scanned.
38:47And then put that together with the grid mapping.
38:52There's something like 100 to 300 bones per square metre.
38:57And then we know the bone bed goes back into the hill for another kilometre.
39:02Good for now.
39:07Their findings bring the estimate of Pachyrhinosaurus preserved at the site into the tens of thousands.
39:12To have died in such large numbers,
39:17they must have faced a catastrophic event.
39:28Looking for answers,
39:33Emily and Max cut deep into the rock that encases the herd.
39:41Tilt it up.
39:46I just want to take a look at the cross section.
39:51It reveals a vital clue.
39:56It's plant material that's been shredded.
40:01Something has picked up the mud and has twisted it with enough energy
40:06to move the amount of material and to shred the plants up like that.
40:11And that's right in with the bones.
40:16And all these swirls in here.
40:21There's a rock underneath it, like a fossilised wave.
40:26So this was a huge energy event.
40:31The evidence all points to one thing.
40:41A devastating flash flood.
40:47Triggered by huge storms
40:52raging over the mountains.
41:02Water cascades into the valley,
41:07swelling into an unstoppable torrent
41:12that destroys everything in its path.
41:42As the floodwaters near,
41:47the herd begins to panic.
41:52Mother and child
41:57waiting by each other's side.
42:13Thunder.
42:18Waves.
42:23Music.
42:28Rain.
42:33Music.
42:39Music.
42:44Little could have withstood a flood on this scale.
42:49Music.
42:54Music.
42:59Music.
43:05And for Albie and much of his herd,
43:10it marks a tragic end.
43:15Music.
43:20Music.
43:25Music.
43:30Music.
43:35But despite the devastation,
43:40this was perhaps not the end for them all.
43:45Music.
43:50Music.
43:55The next morning,
43:58they set out for the main dig site.
44:03Emily and Jackson have travelled out
44:08into the hills of Canada's Grand Prairie
44:13to investigate an incredible find.
44:18So there's three sites that have been identified.
44:23And the other two, I think there's one over there,
44:28and there's one behind us as well.
44:33Across the area,
44:38a series of fossils has been unearthed
44:43that point to an extraordinary possibility.
44:49But absolutely tiny.
44:52That also is from a very, very small animal.
44:55Like that to me looks like it's from an animal
44:58that has either just hatched, like a hatchling,
45:01or is actually still in the egg.
45:03It's an embryonic dinosaur.
45:05An animal this size has to have been born here.
45:09The young belong to both Pachyrhinosaurus and Edmontosaurus.
45:15Dinosaurs that were heading for the same destination.
45:20To me, it's not a coincidence that they're both here.
45:24We're only 30 or 40 kilometres away from the site of the flood,
45:28so surviving animals could eventually have made their way here.
45:32This might have been the nesting ground
45:34for both of these mega herbivores after the flood.
45:40Emily and Jackson are continuing to look for more evidence.
45:47But this remarkable discovery means that maybe,
45:58despite all the odds,
46:02some of the herd did survive.
46:09Continuing on to find another place to nest.
46:40Survivors.
46:44With a chance to pave the way
46:50for the next generation to thrive.
47:10So that one day,
47:16their herd can rise again.
47:30Next time.
47:33One of the largest dinosaurs ever to walk the planet.
47:39Goes looking for love.
47:43A quest that will become a life and death struggle.
48:08To be continued.
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