Dinosaur history could help draw tourists to Eastend, Sask., mayor says

The town of Eastend, Sask., wants to be designated as the province's official dinosaur research centre.

Eastend is already the site of a T. rex Discovery Centre, featuring information on "Scotty" the large tyrannosaurus whose fossilized remains were discovered nearby 18 years ago.

Since then, the community's identity has become entwined with the paleontological find. "It's a huge deal for the town," Eastend Mayor Scott Morvik told CBC News. "Traditionally, you know, agriculture was the driver for Eastend."

Now Morvik says the town of 471 wants to be named Saskatchewan's official centre for dinosaur studies, hoping that will attract scientists to set up shop in Eastend. Morvik said the T. rex centre has asked for additional money to fund research in the area. More dinosaur digs, could help boost tourism, Morvik said.

"The materials are here," Sean Bell, manager of the T. rex Discovery Centre, told CBC News about the potential for new discoveries. "We're eager to get them better explored. It's been over a hundred years of exploration down here and there's still a lot to do."

"You know, a dig site is exciting stuff," Morvik added. He said many people would be interested to see how that work is done.

Information on Scotty is also being updated, as experts continue to piece together the dinosaur's life.

It is now estimated that the creature may be the heaviest and most mature Tyrannosaurus rex ever found. Paleontologist Philip Currie told CBC News that the animal's weight is estimated at eight tonnes and its age at 35 years.

Scotty, as the dinosaur was dubbed, has put Saskatchewan on the scientific map, according to Harold Bryant, chief curator of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in Regina.

"It's been a long haul, in terms of getting Scotty out of the rock," Bryant told CBC News. "Now we're at the phase where we've got enough of the skeleton out of the rock that we can really get into the science."

Bryant said that as more scientific information about Scotty is developed, it should improve the province's stature in the field. "Hopefully, [that] will make more people aware that Saskatchewan has a very important contribution to make to the story of dinosaurs," Bryant said.