Doug Goodreau, senior preparator of the Dinosaur Institute, is working on the Gnatalie skeleton in preparation for its display in NHM Commons. (photo courtesy of NHMLAC)

The 75-foot-long green dinosaur skeleton that will serve as a focal point of NHM Commons – the museum’s new wing scheduled to open this fall – officially has a name following an online vote. With more than 36% of approximately 8,100 votes, Gnatalie (pronounced nat-uh-lee) prevailed over Esme, Sage, Verdi and Olive, making it the winning selection for the Jurassic newcomer.

The name was inspired by the gnats that pestered scientists and volunteers while excavating the fossils in Utah. Gnatalie’s unusual bone coloring is due to infilling by the green mineral celadonite during the fossilization process.

After being excavated from a 150-million-year-old riverbed, the long-neck dinosaur’s green bones were painstakingly prepared, packed in multiple crates and trucked to Ontario, Canada, for armature and mount fabrication. The colossal skeleton is technically a composite of several specimens belonging to a new diplodocus-like species from the late-Jurassic period that will be scientifically named in the future. When NHM Commons opens this fall, Gnatalie the Green Dino will be the first green dinosaur skeleton to be mounted for public display.

“We are delighted to see how many people voted and how much they loved our name for this unusual dinosaur,” said Lori BettisonVarga, president and director of the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County.”

The Natural History Museum is located at 900 Exposition Blvd. For information, visit nhm.org/gnatalie.