Discover “Fossils, Feuds, and Fantastical Creatures: The Cope and Marsh Saga.” Journey back to 1863 Berlin, where Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh kickstart a rivalry for the ages. Originally friends, their bond fractures at a New Jersey fossil quarry, escalating into a public spat that seizes the paleontological world. Tune in for this thrilling ride into history, dinosaurs, and the power of human rivalry.

Evolution Talk is also a book! You can find links to Amazon, Barnes & Noble and others on the front page of EvolutionTalk.com, or call your local bookstore and ask them to order a copy.

Works Cited

  • American Experience, PBS. “O.C. Marsh And E.D. Cope: A Rivalry.” American Experience | PBS, 29 Oct. 2018, www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/dinosaur-rivalry.

  • Chris, and Chris. “The Bone Wars: A Real Life Battle for Bones | BEYONDbones.” BEYONDbones, June 2019, blog.hmns.org/2019/06/the-bone-wars-a-real-life-battle-for-bones.

  • Engber, Daniel. “A Brilliant Paleontologist, Unfit for Battle in the Bone Wars.” Slate Magazine, 7 Aug. 2013, slate.com/business/2013/08/dinosaur-bone-wars-othniel-charles-marsh-edward-drinker-cope-and-their-forgotten-rival.html.

  • Flemming, Clare. “This Means War! A History of the Bone Wars.” Biodiversity Heritage Library, 2 May 2018, blog.biodiversitylibrary.org/2012/11/this-means-war-history-of-bone-wars.html.

  • Harmon, Rose. “What Were the Bone Wars? – the Smartie Newsletter – Medium.” Medium, 22 Jan. 2022, medium.com/the-smartie-newsletter/what-were-the-bone-wars-10959017dd25.

  • McNearney, Allison. “The Fossil Hunters Who Went to War Over Dinosaur Bones.” The Daily Beast, 3 Feb. 2021, www.thedailybeast.com/the-fossil-hunters-who-went-to-war-over-dinosaur-bones.

  • Sabrina. “The Bone Wars That Made Dinosaurs so Popular.” The Big Dinosaur Podcast, 15 Mar. 2023, iknowdino.com/the-bone-wars-that-made-dinosaurs-so-popular.

  • Survey, Wyoming State Geological. Wyoming State Geological Survey. www.wsgs.wyo.gov/public-info/guide-como-bluff.aspx.

  • Switek, Brian. “The Bone Wars: How a Bitter Rivalry Drove Progress in Palaeontology.” BBC Science Focus Magazine, June 2022, www.sciencefocus.com/nature/the-bone-wars-how-a-bitter-rivalry-drove-progress-in-palaeontology.

Music in this Episode

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