This artist’s depiction shows a female Nanuqsaurus near the prehistoric Colville River in northern Alaska. (Image by Raven Amos/Not for republication)
In an effort to boost awareness of the University of Alaska’s research success, a Fairbanks Republican has proposed that the state name an official state dinosaur.
Nineteen other states have official state dinosaurs, said Rep. Will Stapp, R-Fairbanks, who has proposed picking Nanuqsaurus, a carnivorous dinosaur whose remains were discovered in the North Slope Borough in 2006.
“It’s a chance to talk about all the great research that UAF does. So that’s why I introduced the bill, because, if nothing else, we can have a conversation bringing up the visibility of our university system and some of the work that they did,” he said.
Other states with an official state dinosaur made their declarations to honor local scientific or paleontological feats.
Idaho and Washington state are the most recent of those. In 2023, Washington declared the Suciasaurus rex as its official state dinosaur to honor the first dinosaur fossil discovered in the state. That same year, Idaho named the Oryctodromeus as its state dinosaur.
Both state legislatures passed the dinosaur-naming legislation by wide, bipartisan margins and little debate.
Alaska, like other states, has a list of official state symbols in law, including an official fossil (wooly mammoth), mineral (gold), sport (dog mushing) and bolt-action rifle (pre-1964 Winchester Model 70).
Nanuqsaurus, literally “polar bear lizard,” is one of a number of dinosaur species whose remains have been discovered in Alaska in recent decades.
“If you look at all the dinosaurs and megafauna and stuff like that we have in Fairbanks, that’s something that’s really exciting and it’s not really well known, and we should get some visibility on that,” Stapp said.
Pat Druckenmiller, director of the University of Alaska Museum of the North and a paleontologist who has studied Nanuqsaurus, had limited comment when reached by email on Monday.
He suggested a different dinosaur species might be a better fit.
“All I am ready to say is that there are existing problems with this species scientifically speaking (a long story), and for that reason alone, I don’t think this is a good choice,” he said by email.
Stapp’s legislation picking the state dinosaur, House Bill 82, has been referred to the House State Affairs Committee. No hearing date has been set.
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