Does New York Have An Official State Dinosaur?

Dinosaurs have captured the world's imagination for many decades. Most of us read the books in school, or saw the Hollywood movies like Jurassic Park, that tell the story of these giant creatures that ruled the Earth over one hundred million years ago. Did you know some states today actually have an official state dinosaur? Dinosaurs are cool, so why not?

NECN reported that Representative Jack Lewis of Massachusetts plans on introducing a bill that will designate a state dinosaur for our neighbors to the east. Lewis posted on Twitter that it would be a fun way to inspire kids and those young at heart during these uncertain times. One potential contender is a dinosaur known as Podokesaurus holyokensis.

What is interesting is that if passed, Massachusetts would be one of several states that actually has an official state dinosaur. Colorado has the stegosaurus. In Wyoming, it's the triceratops. Utahraptor, not surprisingly, is the state dinosaur for the state of Utah.

Does New York have a state dinosaur? Right now, the answer is no.

Have any ideas for what dinosaur would best represent the state? New York does not currently have a state dinosaur, but we do have state fossil (insert joke about some state politician you don't like that's been around forever). Eurypterus Remipes was a creature that lived over 400 million years ago during the Silurian Age. It is distant relative of modern day king crabs and sea scorpions. It is said to have lived at the bottom of the shallow sea that covered where New York state now lies.

What are some dinosaurs that were discovered here in New York? According to Hudson Valley Magazine, the footprints of what could have been a carnivore known as coelophysis were discovered near Albany in 1972. However, this species was more commonly found in what is now modern day New Mexico, so the results are inconclusive. A lot of changes and unfolding of the earth over hundreds of millions of years here in the Hudson Valley has made it somewhat of a poor area to find many dinosaur or prehistoric mammal fossils