The spectacular digital images below illustrate mineral formation in Haversian canals of a fossilized Hadrosaur bone recovered in Canada. Hadrosaurs, often called duck-billed dinosaurs, belong to the order Ornithischia that lived during the late Cretaceous periods. These dinosaurs possessed wide, toothless beaks and mobile jaws with batteries of up to 1000 "cheek" teeth for cropping and chewing leaves. Over two dozen genera of Hadrosaurs have been classified, ranging in length from 12 to over 45 feet. Fossils from these animals have been uncovered in North America and Asia.

Darkfield illumination digital images were captured using an Intel Play QX3 computer microscope modified for reflected light darkfield illumination. Oblique light was applied to the specimens using light pipes from a Dolan-Jenner Model 180 fiber optics illuminator containing a 150 watt projection lamp. The mixing chamber and diffusion screen were removed from the stage and a large piece of dark construction paper placed beneath the stage to avoid images of the paper being superimposed over the photomicrographs.

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