Earth Science Club of Northern Illinois - ESCONI

Cancelled - Show Preparation day on Saturday, Feb 1 - due to storm warning.

Cancelled - Show Preparation day on Saturday, Feb 1 - due to storm warning.

New View on Dinosaurs in Cretaceous

Via International Science Times:

... The discovery of the fossil remains of a plant-eating sauropod called Yongjinglong datangi by a team of University of Pennsylvania paleontologists in northwestern China may revise the current view that sauropods were predominant in the Jurassic age but were nearly extinct by the onset of the Cretaceous.ADVERTISEMENT

The Yongjinglong datangi, according to a new study published in the online journal PLOS ONE, roamed the earth through to the Early Cretaceous period, more than 100 million years ago. "We now realize that, in other parts of the world, particularly in South America and Asia, sauropod dinosaurs continued to flourish in the Cretaceous, so the thought that they were minor components is no longer a tenable view," said Dr. Peter Dodson of the University of Pennsylvania, in a press release....

Members: Can You Help this Saturday, Feb. 1? - Show Preparation

It is getting to be that time and in preparation, the club is moving inventory from a storage locker in West Chicago to our storage facility in Montgomery. We need cars and help in moving the show inventory.

We will be meeting at 9:00 am this Saturday at CUBE SMART, 27W125 North Ave West Chicago.

Questions? : Contact John Good at 1-630-483-2363

Your time and effort will be greatly appreciated!

 

 

Forgotten Dynasty and Newly Discovered Pharaoh

Via CNN: (hat tip Eric S)

...  Researchers with the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology recently discovered intricate and vibrantly colored pictures in the tombs of Abydos in the Egyptian desert, and what they read in the pictographs astounded them.

The team leader found the name of a previously unknown pharaoh who ruled the area 3,600 years ago, and the first proof of the suspected but shadowy Abydos Dynasty. ...

GSA Special Papers Available - End of Cretaceous - Hell Creek Formation

Geological Society of America Special Papers Online Table of Contents Alert

A new issue of Geological Society of America Special Papers is available online:

Through the End of the Cretaceous in the Type Locality of the Hell Creek Formation in Montana and Adjacent Areas:
2014; Vol. 503

The below Table of Contents is available online at: http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/content/503?etoc

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Articles

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Introduction

John R. Horner

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 ix Open Access
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/full/503/0/ix

 

Foreword

Gregory P. Wilson, William A. Clemens, John R. Horner, and Joseph H. Hartman

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 v Open Access
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/full/503/0/v

 

From Tyrannosaurus rex to asteroid impact: Early studies (1901–1980) of the Hell Creek Formation in its type area

William A. Clemens and Joseph H. Hartman

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 1-87
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/1

 

Context, naming, and formal designation of the Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation lectostratotype, Garfield County, Montana

Joseph H. Hartman, Raymond D. Butler, Matthew W. Weiler, and Karew K. Schumaker

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 89-121
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/89

 

Assessing the relationships of the Hell Creek–Fort Union contact, Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary, and Chicxulub impact ejecta horizon at the Hell Creek Formation lectostratotype, Montana, USA

Jason R. Moore, Gregory P. Wilson, Mukul Sharma, Hannah R. Hallock, Dennis R. Braman, and Paul R. Renne

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 123-135
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/123

 

Magnetostratigraphy of the Hell Creek and lower Fort Union Formations in northeastern Montana

Rebecca LeCain, William C. Clyde, Gregory P. Wilson, and Jeremy Riedel

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 137-147
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/137

 

Carbon isotope stratigraphy and correlation of plant megafossil localities in the Hell Creek Formation of eastern Montana, USA

Nan Crystal Arens, A. Hope Jahren, and David C. Kendrick

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 149-171
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/149

 

A florule from the base of the Hell Creek Formation in the type area of eastern Montana: Implications for vegetation and climate

Nan Crystal Arens and Sarah E. Allen

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 173-207
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/173

 

A preliminary test of the press-pulse extinction hypothesis: Palynological indicators of vegetation change preceding the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary, McCone County, Montana, USA

Nan Crystal Arens, Anna Thompson, and A. Hope Jahren

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 209-227
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/209

 

Euselachians from the freshwater deposits of the Hell Creek Formation of Montana

Todd D. Cook, Michael G. Newbrey, Donald B. Brinkman, and James I. Kirkland

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 229-246
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/229

 

Diversity and paleoecology of actinopterygian fish from vertebrate microfossil localities of the Maastrichtian Hell Creek Formation of Montana

Donald B. Brinkman, Michael G. Newbrey, and Andrew G. Neuman

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 247-270
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/247

 

Extinction and survival of salamander and salamander-like amphibians across the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary in northeastern Montana, USA

Gregory P. Wilson, David G. DeMar, Jr., and Grace Carter

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 271-297
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/271

 

Temporal changes within the latest Cretaceous and early Paleogene turtle faunas of northeastern Montana

Patricia A. Holroyd, Gregory P. Wilson, and J. Howard Hutchison

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 299-312
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/299

 

A stratigraphic survey of Triceratops localities in the Hell Creek Formation, northeastern Montana (2006–2010)

John B. Scannella and Denver W. Fowler

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 313-332
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/313

 

Cranial morphology of a juvenile Triceratops skull from the Hell Creek Formation, McCone County, Montana, with comments on the fossil record of ontogenetically younger skulls

Mark B. Goodwin and John R. Horner

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 333-347
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/333

 

Paleobiological implications of a Triceratops bonebed from the Hell Creek Formation, Garfield County, northeastern Montana

Sarah W. Keenan and John B. Scannella

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 349-364
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/349

Mammalian extinction, survival, and recovery dynamics across the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary in northeastern Montana, USA

Gregory P. Wilson

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2014;503 365-392
http://specialpapers.gsapubs.org/cgi/content/abstract/503/0/365

Tonight's Board Meeting Rescheduled to 8:00 - meeting via phone conference

Board Meeting rescheduled to 8:00 pm - and will be via phone conference (due to weather) -

All board members should have received the instructions to call in by email. If you need the instructions - call Dianna at (phone -224-735-9894)

Blue Diamond Found

Via Sploid:

This 29.6 carat blue diamond was found last week at the Cullinan Diamond Mine near Pretoria, South Africa, the same mine where the famous South of Africa blue diamond—the second largest cut diamond in the world—was discovered. The mining company claims that it is "extremely valuable."

Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology - Online Course

Coursera is currently offering Dino 101: Dinosaur Paleobiology - Online Course  -  

It is a free course.

Complete with videos, quizzes and if you hurry, you can even sign up to get a certificate for a fee.

Phil Currie and the baby Chasmosaurus

Via Edmonton Journal: (go to site to see video)

EDMONTON - Phil Currie sits in a room in the Dino Lab at the University of Alberta poring over a baby chasmosaurus. “A dinosaur this size is very rare,” says Currie, the lab’s curator and Canada Research Chair in Paleontology. “In Alberta, dinosaurs this size often got eaten by tyrannosaurs, so it is pretty exciting when you find one.”

On public display for the first time next month, the young ceratopsid fossil was found by Currie in 2010 in Dinosaur Provincial Park. Only one to three years old when it died, the chasmosaurus is 1.5 metres long and intact with the exception of its forelimbs. Full grown, it would have reached a length of seven metres......

 

2014 ESCONI Show Auction Item - Preview

This year, you will be seeing on the website - specimens that are expected to be auctioned at the ESCONI Show this year.

Fluorite (locality unknown)

2014 ESCONI Gem, Mineral & Fossil Show, March 15 & 16

Location -

View Larger Map

 

Saturday, March 15 - 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday, March 16 - 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Free admittance and parking !

Explore
your interests

Shop
for jewelry, gems, fossils, minerals from world-class vendors -

Rock Stars
Rib River
Exclusive Inspiration
Hell Creek Dinosaurs
Agate and Wood
Lavins Gems and Jewelry

Southwest Treasures

Mineral Miner

Find
unique and interesting books at the used book sale

Learn
from members of club demonstrating their hobbies and collections

Bid and buy
gems, minerals and fossils at the
Silent Auction
and Live Auctions
(photos of some items will be posted on website a week before show)

Enjoy
amazing displays from the
Field Museum & Lizzadro Museum

Win
an amazing earth-science related prize in the hourly raffle if your ticket chosen

AND MORE FOR KIDS ~

Receive
a FREE collection of minerals and fossils at the Junior Booth

Play
games and do crafts at the Kiddie Corner

Split
your own geode

Accomplish
some of the requirements for badges....
 Boy Scout Geology or Archaeology Badge
 Girl Scout Jeweler Junior Craft Badge
4-H Science Project

 

Click here to see more photos of past ESCONI Shows

Gem Show Flyer 2014

Questions? Comments?

email: [email protected]

www.esconi.org

www.facebook.com/ESCONI.fb

twitter.com/ESCONI

1/26/2014 Mahlburg Scholar Lecure by Dr. Kolata at Burpee Museum - Ancient Seaways

 Sun, 1/26, 2:00 pm

Burpee Museum, Rockford, IL. 2014 Mahlburg Scholar Lecture by Dr. Dennis Kolata (ISGS Retired) will be presenting “Life and Times of a 450 Million Year Old Seaway”.  Dennis is an expert on Illinois Geology, especially the Platteville and Galena Groups.  His research focus includes crinoids and trilobites.  He recently edited the Geology of Illinois Book.

For those of you at colleges/universities, you can post the flyer below  and /or pass it out to students who might be interested.  The lecture is free for members or with general admission.   FLYER

Ice quake

From Milwaukee Sentinal via geolgoy.com:

A weather phenomenon known as an ice quake has left a Waupun family with a giant, 100-foot long crack in their rural driveway.

Read more from Journal Sentinel: http://www.jsonline.com/weather/headlines/ice-quake-leaves-100-foot-crack-in-waupun-familys-driveway-b99182994z1-239936381.html#ixzz2qa6kc1m1
Follow us: @JournalSentinel on Twitter

 

 

Walking Fish Update

Via New York Times:

...  before subsequent discoveries turned up well-preserved hindquarters of Tiktaalik roseae, a transitional species that lived 375 million years ago. New findings, reported Monday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, challenge the theory that vertebrates did not gain four-limbed mobility until well after they had settled the land.

Five new specimens of Tiktaalik (pronounced tic-TAH-lick) fossils found in the Canadian Arctic reveal that the modification of fins into four limbs actually began as adaptations for life in shallow water, according to a research team led by Neil H. Shubin, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Chicago. The change may have enabled the fish to walk on a lake floor, paddle about and even make brief forays on land, the scientists said. ...

 

 

Minerals from Inner Mongolia

Kyber Minerals has posted some good photos of minerals from Inner Mongolia.

Archaeology Study Group Auction Deferred

Eric wrote in to remind everyone that the the archaeological study group auction will be deferred to a later date please stay tuned for further updates.

Events this Friday and Saturday

Friday: Jan. 10 - ESCONI General Meeting 8:00 p.m. College of Dupage,  - Tech Ed (TEC) Building, Room 1038B (Map) Topic: "Paleosculpture:Traditional & Digital Recent Advances in Paleoart"

University of Chicago's award winning paleoartist Tyler Keillor will discuss his techniques for creating some recent prehistoric life-reconstructions that have been in the news, including the traditionally sculpted bust of Heterodontosaurus tucki, and the digitally sculpted full body of a recently published baby Parasaurolophus. The talk will be illustrated with slides showing Tyler's process and finished results, and some examples of his sculptures will be on hand for a closeup look after the talk.

 

Saturday, Jan. 11 - ESCONI Mineralogy Meeting 7:30 p.m. College of Dupage, - Tech Ed  (TEC) Building, Room 1038B (Map) - Topic: Mineral Video

 

Mazon Creek in the News

From Chicago Tribune:

... Before the time of the dinosaurs, long-nosed Bandringa sharks were leaving their freshwater homes to lay eggs in the shallow coastal waters of a long-gone sea that stretched over most of the American Midwest, according to a new paper published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology....

...

In 1969, researchers discovered beautifully preserved fossils of baby Bandringa sharks, as well as their spiral egg casings, along Mazon Creek in northeastern Illinois. The juvenile sharks, just 4 to 6 inches long, had pronounced spoon-billed snouts that stretched half as long as their bodies. At the time, scientists thought the babies might be adult specimens of a mini-shark species that they dubbed Bandringa rayi.

Ten years later, in 1979, the same scientists discovered more juvenile Bandringa shark fossils in a different part of Mazon Creek that had once been a brackish swamp. Thinking they were a new species, the scientists called them Bandringa herdinae. That same year, researchers in Pennsylvania found a 10-foot-long adult shark that also had the same long spoon-billed snout and lived in freshwater rivers. A few years later, another large adult was discovered in what was once a freshwater river in Ohio.

In a paper published online Tuesday, University of Michigan paleontologist Lauren Sallan argues that all of the sharks are members of the same species....

Burpee Museum News - Please Read

Letter sent out by Burpee Museum:

 

Burpee Museum of Natural History is still dealing with the aftermath of the late December Christmas flood. Sometime between December 23 and December 26 Burpee Museum of Natural History suffered a flood on it's first floor which leaked into the lower level in the Museum's biology and paleontology collections.

 

As a result, a number of our collections were damaged, some very badly, and greatly affected by the water. Over 700 gallons of standing water was removed from the first floor and many more repairs are to follow. Over 200 irreplaceable items from the Museum's collections were damaged and nearly all of the specimens from the biology collections have been moved and are currently being stored in classrooms and meeting rooms while our collections space is repaired and cleaned.

 

We are currently in the process of getting quotes from contractors and have been in touch with conservators to assess and repair the damaged specimens.

 

If you would like to help we are accepting donations at the front desk and over the phone at (815)965-3433.

Membership Dues Are Due

Please send your check payable to ESCONI for $20.00 for one year of $50 for three years to Eileen Mizerk, ESCONI Membership, 2094 Windward Lane, Hanover Park, IL 60133-6183.