Dino Institute Turtle Skeleton Removed as Indiana Jones Transformation Continues

Written by Joshua Posted February 28th, 2026

The Dino Institute is going through some things. As crews continue transforming the former DINOSAUR home into an Indiana Jones-themed attraction, plenty of longtime “artifacts” are being shown the door. Bioreconstruct recently captured one of those relics sitting near piles of rubble outside the building’s entrance. The ancient sea turtle skeleton would’ve looked great in my living room. But alas, Disney seems to have other plans.

Protostega skeleton mounted to a wall in Animal Kingdom's DINOSAUR queue

For years, DINOSAUR housed two massive prehistoric turtle skeletons. The first, a Protostega, was mounted to the wall in the museum-style room inside the queue. That one doesn’t match what we’re seeing in Bio’s aerial.

The discarded skeleton in the construction zone has a solid plate with visible mounting points in the center of the shell. The Protostega in the queue featured a more intricate skeletal structure and no obvious hardware. It appears that one had a different fate. I hope it’s safe.

That leaves the second option, the prehistoric turtle that once hung from the ceiling inside the Dino Institute Gift Shop. Cables were attached to the top of its shell in roughly the same spots we’re seeing in the aerial photos.

A massive prehistoric turtle skeleton hanging in the Dino Institute Gift Shop

Now I’m tall, but not tall enough to have ever taken pics from above that turtle. Still, based on the mounting plate, cable points, and overall shell shape, the gift shop turtle appears to be our casualty.

You know, with Indy moving in, I wonder what he would say about trashing that beautiful reproduction fossil. I hope he’d say it belongs in a museum. Or my house.