TPR Fun Fact | Texas History

Texas Once Replaced Its Official State Dinosaur

Even a dinosaur can lose its official title.

In 2009, Texas lawmakers adopted House Concurrent Resolution 16, replacing Pleurocoelus with Paluxysaurus jonesi as the official Lone Star State Dinosaur.

The change followed research by Southern Methodist University graduate student Peter Rose. His work concluded that Texas fossils previously attributed to Pleurocoelus represented a different dinosaur, which he named Paluxysaurus jonesi in research published in 2007.

The Legislature responded by changing the state designation.

It is an unusual example of the official record changing when the underlying evidence changed.

Sources

• Texas Legislature — HCR 16, 81st Legislature (2009), enrolled resolution
• Texas Legislative Reference Library — HCR 16 history and adoption status
• Peter J. Rose — A New Titanosauriform Sauropod (Dinosauria: Saurischia) from the Early Cretaceous of Central Texas and its Phylogenetic Relationships (2007)
• Southern Methodist University — Already extinct, official dinosaur of Texas could now lose title too (January 8, 2009; Fort Worth Star-Telegram report)

Verified through October 7, 2026. This fact describes the 2009 designation and the research behind it.

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