Field Museum

 An invertebrate is an animal that does not have a backbone or spine, examples can include: insects, crabs, lobsters, snails, octopuses, and worms. Here are some examples of invertebrates from the Field Museum’s collections!

What is an invertebrate?

Tully Monster Mystery

A vertebrate is an animal that does have a backbone or spine. Examples can include fish, mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians. Here are some examples of invertebrates from the Field Museum’s collections!

What is a vertebrate?

After 50 years of research and mystery, scientists finally pulled together enough evidence to solve the Tully Monster Mystery! 

Mystery Solved! 

In this activity, try to label recognizable parts of this creature that for decades puzzled scientists, the Tully Monster! Can you identify: The body? The eye-bar? The proboscis (long trunk)? The fins? Try your hand and use the key at the end of the slideshow in the next activity to check your answers!  

Tully Monster ID 

Here are some of the fossils in the Field Museum collections that scientists used to study the Tully Monster. Can you think about why it might be hard to reconstruct what a creature looked like from its fossils?

Tully Monster Fossils

Here are the parts of the Tully Monster in a labelled diagram. Were you able to find these parts in the last exercise? What made it difficult to identify these body parts?

Tully Monster ID Key

This creature puzzled scientists for decades! Is it a vertebrate? Is it an invertebrate? Work your way through this kit to find out!

To give students additional opportunity to explore Mazon Creek fossils, consider renting the “300 Million Years Ago in Illinois” Experience Box from the 

Life Science

Science

Can you identify some similarities or differences between this Tully Monster fossil and the other Tully Monster fossils in this slideshow?

Tully monster was a soft bodied creature that lived in the Pennsylvanian period about 300 million years ago.

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Tully Monster

Organisms can also become fossils in all sorts of positions. What position do you think this Tully Monster was in when it was fossilized?

Thousands of Tully monster fossils have been found in
Illinois.

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Not all fossils show complete organisms - this can make it difficult to tell organism a fossil might be! 

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Fossils come in all shapes and sizes, and not all fossils are complete! Do you think you can see all of the Tully Monster's body in this fossil?

Resource Kits

Object Library

Museums

Tully Monster Mystery

Tully Monster Fossils

Tully Monster Fossil