06/24/2026
A seven year old Calgary girl with a keen eye and passion for dinosaurs has made quite the discovery at a local park.
Alyssa discovered a dark shape on a big rock at the park, and urged her parents to call in the dinosaur experts at the Royal Tyrell Museum.
It turns out she found a rare sea star fossil believed to be between 250 and 400 million years old.
The boulder and fossil have been sitting there since 2005 when the playground was built.
The fossil has been removed and taken to the museum for cleaning and cataloging and eventually may be put on display.
- MJ
This is so cool 🎉
Young Calgarian Discovers Rare Fossil at Local Playground
••• Alyssa had found a rare 250 to 400-million-year-old sea star fossil measuring around five centimeters in size. It had been there in the playground for over 20 years, unnoticed. The fossil was taken back to the Tyrrell Museum where it will be cleaned, cataloged, and may eventually go on display.
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Calgary playgrounds are designed to spark adventure and curiosity for thousands of children each year. For one seven-year-old girl, this sense of adventure led to an extraordinary discovery. After playing on the equipment of a local playground, Alyssa decided to examine some of the medium-sized stacked boulders surrounding the perimeter of the park. As Alyssa looked for bugs and collected rocks, she spotted a dark shape embedded in the top of one of the boulders. Fascinated by all things dinosaur, Alyssa immediately knew what she had found and amazingly knew exactly what to do about it. She urged her parents to contact experts at the Royal Tyrrell Museum who confirmed the validity of the discovery. Alyssa had found a rare 250 to 400-million-year-old sea star fossil measuring around five centimeters in size.
Dr. Don Henderson, the Curator of Dinosaurs at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, said sea stars require extremely specific conditions to fossilize, making specimens of this age very rare and limited to only a handful of sites worldwide. The boulder that holds the sea star was placed there during the playground's construction in 2005 leading us to believe the fossil has remained there for over 20 years. Dr. Henderson says he has inquired where the boulders were sourced from, but the exact location has not been confirmed.
Sitting at the playground where the fossil was found, Alyssa crouched down studying her discovery further. When asked what her favorite thing about the fossil was, she replied, “I love how preserved it is”. Even at the age of seven, Alyssa is thinking beyond this moment, recognizing the importance of preserving a piece of Alberta’s history.
Speaking with Alyssa’s parents, it was clear this was a special moment for their family filled with pride, excitement and a touch of disbelief. They described their daughter’s passion for palaeontology and the thoughtful questions she brought to the Tyrrell team, including “how do sea stars fossilize if they don’t have bones?” a question that left many adults saying, “I had never thought of that.”
Dr. Henderson explained that “Tyrrell’s mandate is to preserve the fossil heritage of the province” meaning the fossil must be carefully removed from the park and stored in a controlled environment for research and conservation. The Tyrrell team used a diamond saw to diagonally cut into the stone, removing the section of rock containing the fossil, leaving the remaining boulder in place. City crews are working to smooth out the area and will be pouring new concrete to reconstruct the remaining rock. The fossil was taken back to the Tyrrell Museum where it will be cleaned, cataloged, and may eventually go on display.
Alyssa watched from a distance as the fossil was removed, climbing to the highest point of the playground for a better view. Once the rock was lifted, she had a chance to hold her discovery — a small but meaningful moment after her curiosity set everything in motion.
Laureen Bryant, an Archaeologist from The City of Calgary’s Cultural Landscapes group, says in Alberta fossils are protected under the Historical Resources Act. It is very important to report suspected fossil finds directly to the Royal Tyrrell Museum. This includes noting the location, photographing the find, and most importantly leaving it undisturbed, making sure not to damage any fossils you encounter. For more information about reporting fossil finds, visit the Royal Tyrrell Museum website.
The City of Calgary Parks & Open Spaces team was amazed by Alyssa’s commitment to conservation and recognized her unbound potential and enthusiasm for science. As a thank-you, Parks & Open Spaces presented her with some small tokens of appreciation. These included swimming passes from The City of Calgary’s Recreation and Social Programs group, admission from Calgary Civic partners at the Calgary Zoo, TELUS Spark Center and Heritage Park along with a tree to plant in memory of the day she uncovered a remarkable piece of history.
