Connie Sheehan/Dally Nebraskan
Huge teeth dominate the small Tyrannosaurus head, the largest of the meat-eating dinosaurs.
By Mick Dyer
Staff Reporter
The little girl with brown pig
tails squealed in amazement
when the long-necked Apato
saurus raised its tiny head from
the vegetation and looked her
straight in the eye.
Then the enormous creature
opened its mouth and gave a
fierce roar. She squirmed a bit as
she stood there giggling — her
broad smile giving aw ay her ex
citement and delight at the un
usual experience.
Alter all, it's not every day you
see a dinosaur.
“The Dinosaurs: Live on
Tour!” is a mechanically ani
mated menagerie of dinosaur
models, and is visiting Lincoln
through Sept. 30.
The exhibit, consisting of
eight scale-model dinosaurs that
look, sound and move the w ay
scientists believe the real ones
did millions of years ago, is lo
cated at the old Ager Zoo Build
ing, at 27th and A streets.
The educational and enter
taining event is sponsored by
Friends of the University State
Museum, Folsom Children’s Zoo
and Botanical Gardens, and
Dinamation International.
Hugh Genoways, director of
the University of Nebraska State
Museum, said the scale models
are authentic, mechanical repre
sentations of what dinosaurs
were like. He said accuracy is
important to Dinamation Inter
national, the company which
owns the dinosaur robots. The
way the dinosaurs on display
look, sound and behave is based
on scientific data collected by
respected paleontologists and
anatomists, Genoways said.
“Some of it is just great imagi
nation too,” Genoways said.
John Chapo, director of the
Folsom Children’s Zoo, said the
exhibit is the result of a well
organized community effort. In
all, more than 400 people volun
teered their time or money to
bring the dinosaur tour to Lin
coln.
‘The key to pulling off this
event was the volunteers,” he
said.
But the hard work and long
hours volunteers have put in
since the Lincoln groups signed
the contract with Dinamation a
. ... ..,
See DINOon 14, 15
4