Triceratops teeth talk: ask the scientists at Naturalis

Dinosaurs left no diaries, but teeth record what they ate and the landscape in which they lived. On 13 August, Naturalis researcher Koen Lansing treats Triceratops teeth as environmental archives, following wear, shape and food clues back to a habitat more than sixty million years old. This is not a prerecorded explanation. It is a short Spotlight in LiveScience, where a working scientist explains the evidence to the public and children can put their “why” directly to someone who handles fossils. The following two Thursdays shift the story from reading teeth to field excavation and long-term preservation.

Naturalis excavated the bones of five Triceratops in Wyoming, United States, then spent years cleaning, studying and mounting them into an exceptionally rare herd. That history makes the series more than a general dinosaur talk. It breaks the long chain of research into three human tasks: Koen Lansing reads teeth; Erwin Zethof explains an excavation on 20 August; and Natasja den Ouden shows on 27 August how a fossil is kept stable for the future. “Dinosaurus” carried comparatively strong relative interest in the NL 90-day Trends check, but only accurate activity wording enters the copy.

• Koen Lansing discusses teeth and habitat on 13 August; excavation follows on 20 August and preservation on 27 August.
• The sessions take place in Naturalis LiveScience and are aimed at visitors aged 8+.
• Every Spotlight is free; admission rules for the paid museum galleries remain separate.
• Address: Darwinweg 2, 2333 CR Leiden; check the day programme for the precise session time.

Hokimi field note: ask a child to write two specific questions before leaving, such as how a tooth reveals food or why fossils crack. LiveScience itself is free, but arrange a museum ticket separately if the family also wants the full galleries.