Riley Black

Riley Black

 

Riley Black is the author of The Last Days of the Dinosaurs and many other books. She is a science correspondent for Smithsonian magazine covering fossils and natural history, and she writes about the prehistoric past for a variety of publications. 

An illustration shows what Shonisaurus popularis might have looked like in the late Triassic.

What Killed These Marine Reptiles Found in a Nevada Ghost Town?

Paleontologists are going high tech to solve the mystery of a mass ichthyosaur death near the old mining town of Berlin

A gibbous moon shines over a large petrified log embedded in the sandstone at Blue Mesa in Arizona's Petrified Forest National Park.

Protecting Arizona's Petrified Forest Can Be as Easy as Taking a Hike

After dispelling myths about vandals and thieves, rangers are working to make this national park more open and engaging

"Baby Louie," formerly of the Indianapolis Children's Museum, is now back home, at the Henan Geological Museum.

Big Baby Dinosaur Finally Goes Home

An infant oviraptorosaur smuggled out of China decades ago comes back to Henan Province with new stories to tell

There's a dinosaur in every chicken.

Genetic Tweaks Are Revealing the Dinosaur Traits in Living Chickens

A Yale paleontologist is blending fossil studies and bird genes to trace the ways dinosaurs transformed into today's feathered flocks

A large display case holds the fossil of a plesiosaur at the Natural History Museum in London.

A Long-Necked Marine Reptile Is the First Known to Filter Feed Like a Whale

The bizarre <em>Mortuneria</em> used sieve-like teeth to strain tasty morsels from the muddy Cretaceous seafloor

The fossil of Jane, a definitive young Tyrannosaurus rex, stands in the Burpee Museum of Natural History in Illinois.

Tiny Terror: Controversial Dinosaur Species Is Just an Awkward Tween Tyrannosaurus

Fossil analysis supports the argument that the proposed <em>Nanotyrannus</em> is not its own unique species after all

Did Diplodocus walk with a spring in its neck?

How Long-Necked Dinosaurs Pumped Blood to Their Brains

Well-preserved fossils include spring-like neck bones that may have helped the giants get blood from their hearts to their heads

A fuzzy Tyrannosaurus roars across the Utah desert at Moab Giants.

New Dinosaur Museum Tracks the “Terrible Lizards” Through Time

The Moab Giants museum in eastern Utah makes a roaring debut

With jaws agape, the Smithsonian's T. rex will eat "Hatcher," the Triceratops.

When T. Rex Meets Triceratops in the New Dino Hall, It Will Be a Violent Affair

The Natural History Museum's dinosaur display highlights the “red in tooth and claw” nature of the Cretaceous way of life

The Allosaurus was a true terror of the Jurassic world.

What Killed the Dinosaurs in Utah's Giant Jurassic Death Pit?

Paleontologists are gathering evidence that may help crack the 148-million-year-old mystery, including signs of poisoned predators

The dusty white rock of the Las Vegas Formation, near the edge of Tule Springs National Monument, bakes in the midday heat.

Discover a Fossil Jackpot Off the Las Vegas Strip

Remains of mammoths, camels and other beasts of the Ice Age tempt visitors out of Sin City and into Tule Springs National Monument

Bat-like Yi qi is the flying dinosaur this forest deserves.

This Fluffy Little Dinosaur Had Bat-Like Wings

About the size of a sparrow, Yi qi probably glided through Jurassic forests on membrane-covered appendages

The Jurassic dinosaur Chilesaurus diegosuarez, a plant-eating theropod.

Meet Chilesaurus, a New Raptor-Like Dinosaur With a Vegetarian Diet

A seven-year-old and his family found the unusual Jurassic theropod while out for a hike in southern Chile

Welcome back, Brontosaurus?

Back to Brontosaurus? The Dinosaur Might Deserve Its Own Genus After All

The popular name could be pulled back out of the scientific wastebasket, based on new analysis of dozens of related dinosaurs

Not so mysterious: This is not a realistic depiction of a T. rex dinner.

The Ten Biggest Dinosaur Mysteries We Have Yet to Solve

Which one was the first, the biggest, the fuzziest? These puzzles continue to perplex paleontologists

A serval kitten.

Ten Amazing Small Wild Cats

Forget the lions and tigers, these prowling felines have much more to tell us about the natural world

Silhouette of the Tyrannosaurus called Stan. This "tyrant lizard king," was excavated and prepared by the Black Hills Institute.

The Top Ten Weirdest Dinosaur Extinction Ideas

Paleontologists, both professional and amateur, have dreamed up some bizarre explanations of how the dinosaurs disappeared from Earth

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How Scientists Are Recreating a Mating Call Last Heard in the Jurassic Period

Preserved in stone, a set of ancient insect wings are “chirping” once again thanks to the work of entomologists

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The Most Exciting (and Frustrating) Stories From This Year in Dinosaurs

From feathers to black market fossil controversies, 2012 was a big year for dinosaurs

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From Golf Courses to Petting Zoos, Dinosaurs Get in the Way

Recently unveiled dinosaur sculptures are frustrating eyesores to some and tourist attractions to others

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