Dino Days returns to the Perot Museum Sept. 5–6
Long before Dallas had highways, skyscrapers or even dry land, enormous marine reptiles swam above what is now North Texas.
This Labor Day weekend, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science is digging into that prehistoric history with Dino Days, a two-day celebration Sept. 5–6 featuring hands-on fossil activities, dinosaur exhibits, themed food and a chance to meet some of the scientists still studying the region’s prehistoric past.
Scientists Are Still Making Discoveries In North Texas
During the museum’s Out of the Lab experience, visitors can meet Dr. Ron Tykoski, vice president of science and curator of vertebrate paleontology, and Dr. Dori Contreras, director of paleontology and curator of paleobotany. They’ll take visitors behind the scenes of how fossils are excavated, prepared and conserved.
Their work has also contributed to discoveries close to home. Tykoski and Contreras were among the researchers behind the identification of Ampelognathus coheni, a small dinosaur species described in 2023 from a fossil discovered near Grapevine Lake. The discovery came from a fossilized jaw measuring only about two inches long.
More recently, Perot researchers helped identify another prehistoric North Texas resident and this one was considerably larger. In 2026, researchers from the Perot Museum, SMU and the American Museum of Natural History announced Tylosaurus rex, a newly identified species of giant mosasaur based largely on fossils discovered in North Texas.
The marine reptile lived roughly 80 million years ago and could grow to approximately 43 feet long. That might seem like an unlikely creature for Dallas, but the Perot Museum’s Life Then and Now Hall explains that during parts of the Cretaceous Period, much of what is now North Texas was covered by a shallow sea.
Photo: Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Dig Into Dino Days
Dino Days brings that history into a much more hands-on setting. On Sept. 5 and 6, visitors can try Dino Puzzles in the Moody Family Children’s Museum, Dig Those Dinos in the Lamar Hunt Family Sports Hall and Out of the Lab in the T. Boone Pickens Life Then and Now Hall.
The museum’s permanent prehistoric attractions will also be open, including its towering Tyrannosaurus rex and Alamosaurus skeletons and the glass-walled Paleo Lab, where visitors can watch paleontologists work with real fossils.
The café is getting prehistoric too, with Pterodactyl Wings, Prehistoric Pizza, a T. rex Burger, Jurassic Juice and a Dino Nuggets Kids Meal.
Visitors can also add the 3D film T. REX, which explores the life of the Tyrannosaurus rex.
All Dino Days activities are included with general museum admission. Admission is $27 for adults and $17 for children ages 2–12, while Perot Museum members receive free admission. The T. REX 3D film costs an additional $8 for adults and children, with discounted pricing available to members.
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