The Field Museum(CHICAGO) — Sue, the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever discovered, started the move to her new home in the Chicago Field Museum on Monday.
The T. rex known for an active Twitter presence is being moved to make room for a cast of the biggest dinosaur ever discovered, the titanosaur or Patagotitan mayorum, an herbivore discovered in Argentina, according to the museum.
The titanosaur is 122 feet long from nose to tail and is expected to be available for visitors in late spring of this year. Sue will be moved to a new gallery in another part of the museum that will open in spring 2019.
Sue has tweeted that her “private suite” or “throne room” isn’t far away and even said in the release announcing the move that she’s been pitching the move for a “better defensible position against velociraptor attacks.”
The T. rex also said in an announcement that her Twitter presence will continue during the move. The museum will also post updates on the move on its Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook pages.
The process of taking Sue apart will take several weeks, according to the museum.
Staff began removing the T. rex’s feet and the tip of the tail on Monday, according to a press release, and will gradually disassemble the rest of the skeleton to be reassembled in the new exhibit.
Sue will also get a scientific upgrade before she goes back on exhibit. When the skeleton is reassembled, it will include the gastralia, bones that scientists believe helped dinosaurs breathe and look like an extra set of ribs. Scientists weren’t sure of how to include them in the display when Sue was first introduced in 2000.
The skull on the assembled skeleton is not the real thing, which weighs more than 600 pounds and is on display in another part of the museum.
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