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David Elliott (palaeontologist)

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David Elliott
OAM
Elliott in 2023
Born (1957-06-06) June 6, 1957 (age 67)
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.[1]
Known forDinosaurs, palaeotourism
SpouseJudy Elliott
Scientific career
Fieldspaleontology, farming
Institutions
Websitewww.australianageofdinosaurs.com

David Anthon Elliott OAM (born June 6, 1957) is an Australian palaeontologist and sheep and cattle grazier who co-founded the Australian Age of Dinosaurs in Winton, Queensland, with his wife Judy and currently serves as Executive Chairman.[2] His significant contributions to the local, national and global communities have been far-reaching, with a profound impact on the field of palaeontology. Through the establishment and development of the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History, he has pioneered a new form of tourism known as palaeotourism, attracting new visitors to regional Australia.

Biography[edit]

Elliott grew up in Winton, Queensland as the second child of Robert and Noreen Elliott. He was a student at All Souls St Gabriels School in Charters Towers before graduating from Longreach Pastoral College in 1974.[1] Elliott married his wife Judy in 1986, and the two went on to raise their four children on their large property, Belmont Station, making a living as sheep and cattle graziers.

In 1999, at the age of 42, Elliott discovered the fossilized bone of Australia's largest dinosaur[3] while mustering sheep at Belmont. This significant find, along with subsequent discoveries made with the Queensland Museum, led Elliott and his wife to hold a public meeting on 17 August 2002, to discuss building a dinosaur museum in Winton.

In October 2002, Australian Age of Dinosaurs Incorporated was established as a not-for-profit organization.[4][5] For the first seven years, the Museum operated on the Elliotts' property, where they conducted annual dinosaur digs and amassed an incredible collection of Australian dinosaur bones. This operation was eventually relocated in 2009 to donated land on The Jump-Up, a vast mesa near Winton.[6] The Museum's growth has been impressive, with various stages of construction leading to the completion of crucial infrastructure.

Contributions to palaeontology[edit]

Over the last two decades, Elliott has been involved in the discovery of several new species of Australian prehistoric animals and has collected the largest collection of Australian dinosaur fossils in the world housed at the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum. Given his role in their discovery and preparation Elliott is listed on the scientific papers of several new species including Australovenator,[7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Diamantinasaurus,[14][15][16][17][18][19][20] Savannasaurus,[21][22] Wintonotitan,[23][20] Ferrodraco[24] and Confractosuchus[25] as well as the 54 meter long Snake Creek tracksite.[26] His contributions to palaeontology include developing a thriving palaeotourism industry in regional Australia, which now accounts for a quarter of Queensland's leisure tourism.[27][28][29]

Australian Age of Dinosaurs[edit]

The Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History was founded by David and Judy Elliott, who continue to expand its operations to attract more visitors to regional Australia. The Museum is located 24 kilometers southeast of Winton, and about 660 kilometres (410 mi) southwest of Townsville, on Australia's first International Dark-Sky Sanctuary.[30] It has been built in stages and has won several awards.[31][32][33] The Museum features Australia's most productive Fossil Preparation Laboratory, the Reception Centre and Collection Room, Dinosaur Canyon (featuring life-sized bronze dinosaur dioramas), the March of the Titanosaurs exhibition and the Gondwana Stars Observatory.

Awards and recognition[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Burton-Joness, Joan (2009). Queenslanders all over. Gold Coast, Queensland: Bond University Press. p. 170,198–199. ISBN 9780980618709.
  2. ^ "Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission". June 25, 2024.
  3. ^ "Elliot, Australia's largest dinosaur". June 25, 2024.
  4. ^ Cook, A.G., Bryan, S.E. & Draper, J.J. (2012). Post-orogenic Mesozoic basins and magmatism. Pp 515–575. In Jell, P.A. (ed.). Geology of Queensland. (Geological Survey of Queensland, Brisbane)
  5. ^ "Our History". June 25, 2024.
  6. ^ "Three new Australian dinosaur species found in Western Queensland". July 3, 2009.
  7. ^ Hocknull, Scott A.; White, Matt A.; Tischler, Travis R.; Cook, Alex G.; Calleja, Naomi D.; Sloan, Trish; Elliott, David A. (2009). Sereno, Paul (ed.). "New Mid-Cretaceous (Latest Albian) Dinosaurs from Winton, Queensland, Australia". PLOS ONE. 4 (7): e6190. Bibcode:2009PLoSO...4.6190H. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0006190. PMC 2703565. PMID 19584929.
  8. ^ White, M. A.; Cook, A. G.; Hocknull, S. A.; Sloan, T.; Sinapius, G. H. K.; Elliott, D. A. (2012). Dodson, Peter (ed.). "New Forearm Elements Discovered of Holotype Specimen Australovenator wintonensis from Winton, Queensland, Australia". PLOS ONE. 7 (6): e39364. Bibcode:2012PLoSO...739364W. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0039364. PMC 3384666. PMID 22761772.
  9. ^ White, M. A.; Falkingham, P. L.; Cook, A. G.; Hocknull, S. A.; Elliott, D. A. (2013). "Morphological comparisons of metacarpal I for Australovenator wintonensis and Rapator ornitholestoides: Implications for their taxonomic relationships". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. 37 (4): 435–441. doi:10.1080/03115518.2013.770221. S2CID 82672110.
  10. ^ White, Matt A.; Benson, Roger B. J.; Tischler, Travis R.; Hocknull, Scott A.; Cook, Alex G.; Barnes, David G.; Poropat, Stephen F.; Wooldridge, Sarah J.; Sloan, Trish (July 24, 2013). "New Australovenator Hind Limb Elements Pertaining to the Holotype Reveal the Most Complete Neovenatorid Leg". PLOS ONE. 8 (7): e68649. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...868649W. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0068649. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 3722220. PMID 23894328.
  11. ^ White, Matt A.; Bell, Phil R.; Cook, Alex G.; Barnes, David G.; Tischler, Travis R.; Bassam, Brant J.; Elliott, David A. (September 14, 2015). "Forearm Range of Motion in Australovenator wintonensis (Theropoda, Megaraptoridae)". PLOS ONE. 10 (9): e0137709. Bibcode:2015PLoSO..1037709W. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0137709. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 4569425. PMID 26368529.
  12. ^ White, Matt A.; Bell, Phil R.; Cook, Alex G.; Poropat, Stephen F.; Elliott, David A. (December 15, 2015). "The dentary of Australovenator wintonensis(Theropoda, Megaraptoridae); implications for megaraptorid dentition". PeerJ. 3: e1512. doi:10.7717/peerj.1512. ISSN 2167-8359. PMC 4690360. PMID 26713256.
  13. ^ White, Matt A.; Cook, Alex G.; Klinkhamer, Ada J.; Elliott, David A. (August 3, 2016). "The pes of Australovenator wintonensis(Theropoda: Megaraptoridae): analysis of the pedal range of motion and biological restoration". PeerJ. 4: e2312. doi:10.7717/peerj.2312. ISSN 2167-8359. PMC 4975041. PMID 27547591.
  14. ^ Hocknull, Scott A.; White, Matt A.; Tischler, Travis R.; Cook, Alex G.; Calleja, Naomi D.; Sloan, Trish; Elliott, David A. (2009). Sereno, Paul (ed.). "New Mid-Cretaceous (Latest Albian) Dinosaurs from Winton, Queensland, Australia". PLOS ONE. 4 (7): e6190. Bibcode:2009PLoSO...4.6190H. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0006190. PMC 2703565. PMID 19584929.
  15. ^ Poropat, S.F.; Upchurch, P.; Mannion, P.D.; Hocknull, S.A.; Kear, B.P.; Sloan, T.; Sinapius, G.H.K.; Elliot, D.A. (2014). "Revision of the sauropod dinosaur Diamantinasaurus matildae Hocknull et al. 2009 from the mid-Cretaceous of Australia: Implications for Gondwanan titanosauriform dispersal". Gondwana Research. 27 (3): 995–1033. doi:10.1016/j.gr.2014.03.014. hdl:10044/1/27497.
  16. ^ Poropat, S.F.; Mannion, P.D.; Upchurch, P.; Hocknull, S.A.; Kear, B.P.; Kundrát, M.; Tischler, T.R.; Sloan, T.; Sinapius, G.H.K.; Elliott, J.A.; Elliott, D.A. (2016). "New Australian sauropods shed light on Cretaceous dinosaur palaeobiogeography". Scientific Reports. 6: 34467. Bibcode:2016NatSR...634467P. doi:10.1038/srep34467. PMC 5072287. PMID 27763598.
  17. ^ Poropat, Stephen F; Kundrát, Martin; Mannion, Philip D; Upchurch, Paul; Tischler, Travis R; Elliott, David A (January 20, 2021). "Second specimen of the Late Cretaceous Australian sauropod dinosaur Diamantinasaurus matildae provides new anatomical information on the skull and neck of early titanosaurs". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 192 (2): 610–674. doi:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa173. ISSN 0024-4082.
  18. ^ Rigby SL, Poropat SF, Mannion PD, Pentland AH, Sloan T, Rumbold SJ, Webster CB, Elliott DA (2022). "A juvenile Diamantinasaurus matildae (Dinosauria: Titanosauria) from the Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia, with implications for sauropod ontogeny". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 41 (6): e2047991. doi:10.1080/02724634.2021.2047991. S2CID 248187418.
  19. ^ Poropat, S. F.; Mannion, P. D.; Rigby, S. L.; Duncan, R. J.; Pentland, A. H.; Bevitt, J. J.; Sloan, T.; Elliott, D. A. (2023). "A nearly complete skull of the sauropod dinosaur Diamantinasaurus matildae from the Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation of Australia and implications for the early evolution of titanosaurs". Royal Society Open Science. 10 (4). 221618. doi:10.1098/rsos.221618. PMC 10090887.
  20. ^ a b Beeston, S. L.; Poropat, S. F.; Mannion, P. D.; Pentland, A. H.; Enchelmaier, M. J.; Sloan, T.; Elliott, D. A. (2024). "Reappraisal of sauropod dinosaur diversity in the Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia, through 3D digitisation and description of new specimens". PeerJ. 12. e17180. doi:10.7717/peerj.17180. PMC 11011616.
  21. ^ Poropat, S.F.; Mannion, P.D.; Upchurch, P.; Hocknull, S.A.; Kear, B.P.; Kundrát, M.; Tischler, T.R.; Sloan, T.; Sinapius, G.H.K.; Elliott, J.A.; Elliott, D.A. (2016). "New Australian sauropods shed light on Cretaceous dinosaur palaeobiogeography". Scientific Reports. 6: 34467. Bibcode:2016NatSR...634467P. doi:10.1038/srep34467. PMC 5072287. PMID 27763598.
  22. ^ Poropat, S.F.; Mannion, P.D.; Upchurch, P.; Tischler, T.R.; Sloan, T.; Sinapius, G.H.K.; Elliott, J.A.; Elliott, D.A. (2020). "Osteology of the Wide-Hipped Titanosaurian Sauropod Dinosaur Savannasaurus elliottorum from the Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia" (PDF). Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 40 (3): e1786836. doi:10.1080/02724634.2020.1786836. S2CID 224850234.
  23. ^ Hocknull, Scott A.; White, Matt A.; Tischler, Travis R.; Cook, Alex G.; Calleja, Naomi D.; Sloan, Trish; Elliott, David A. (2009). Sereno, Paul (ed.). "New Mid-Cretaceous (Latest Albian) Dinosaurs from Winton, Queensland, Australia". PLOS ONE. 4 (7): e6190. Bibcode:2009PLoSO...4.6190H. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0006190. PMC 2703565. PMID 19584929.
  24. ^ Pentland, Adele H.; Poropat, Stephen F.; Tischler, Travis R.; Sloan, Trish; Elliott, Robert A.; Elliott, Harry A.; Elliott, Judy A.; Elliott, David A. (December 2019). "Ferrodraco lentoni gen. et sp. nov., a new ornithocheirid pterosaur from the Winton Formation (Cenomanian–lower Turonian) of Queensland, Australia". Scientific Reports. 9 (1): 13454. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-49789-4. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 6776501. PMID 31582757.
  25. ^ White, M.A.; Bell, P.R.; Campione, N.E.; Sansalone, G.; Brougham, T.; Bevitt, J.J.; Molnar, R.E.; Cook, A.G.; Wroe, S.; Elliott, D.A. (2022). "Abdominal contents reveal Cretaceous crocodyliforms ate dinosaurs". Gondwana Research. 106: 281–302. Bibcode:2022GondR.106..281W. doi:10.1016/j.gr.2022.01.016.
  26. ^ Grounds, Ellie (June 17, 2021). "Dinosaur footprints reveal behaviour of prehistoric animals living near Winton 95 million years ago". ABC Western Qld.
  27. ^ "Australian of the Year Awards". June 25, 2024.
  28. ^ "Queenslanders shining bright at Australian of the Year Awards". January 25, 2024.
  29. ^ "Tourists flock to paleo attractions in outback Queensland, with new discoveries added to dinosaur trail". May 14, 2021.
  30. ^ "The Jump-Up". May 22, 2019.
  31. ^ "2022 Australian Street Art Awards: public art celebrates communities". February 16, 2022.
  32. ^ "Australian Age of Dinosaurs honoured at museum awards". February 9, 2022.
  33. ^ "Our Awards". June 25, 2024.
  34. ^ "Queensland Museum Medal". June 25, 2025.
  35. ^ "Winston Churchill Trust". July 9, 2015.
  36. ^ "Medal (OAM) of the Order of Australia in the General Division" (PDF). September 2, 2015.
  37. ^ "Queen's Birthday honours: More than 50 Queenslanders receive awards". June 9, 2015.
  38. ^ "2019 winners". December 12, 2019.
  39. ^ "Outback operators big winners at Queensland tourism awards". November 11, 2019.
  40. ^ "2024 Australian of the Year Award recipients for Queensland announced". November 8, 2023.
  41. ^ "Queenslanders shining bright at Australian of the Year Awards". January 25, 2024.
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