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Edwin Colbert

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description Edwin Colbert Overview

Edwin H. Colbert (1905–2001) was an American paleontologist who spent most of his career at the American Museum of Natural History. In 1969 he discovered fossils of the dicynodont Lystrosaurus in Antarctica's Transantarctic Mountains, finding the same genus in rocks on other southern continents. The discovery provided key evidence that those landmasses were once joined in the supercontinent Gondwana, supporting the theory of continental drift.

Colbert also described numerous early dinosaur and synapsid specimens.

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What was Edwin Colbert's most famous paleontological discovery in Antarctica?

In 1969, Edwin H. Colbert discovered the fossilized remains of the dicynodont Lystrosaurus in Antarctica's Transantarctic Mountains. The discovery was monumental because the same creature had been found in Africa and India.

Where did Edwin Colbert spend the majority of his paleontology career?

Edwin Colbert spent the majority of his long career as a curator and researcher at the American Museum of Natural History in New York. He was also a prolific author who wrote several influential books on paleontology.

How did Edwin Colbert's Antarctic discovery prove the theory of continental drift?

The discovery of Lystrosaurus in Antarctica provided undeniable biological evidence that the continents were once joined together in a supercontinent known as Pangea. A land-dwelling reptile could not have swum across the vast oceans separating these modern continents.

What other major dinosaur discoveries is Edwin Colbert known for?

In 1947, Colbert led the excavation of a massive bonebed at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico, which contained hundreds of Coelophysis skeletons. This discovery provided an unprecedented look at a population of an early theropod dinosaur.

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