This is the "Fossil Friday" post #99. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to [email protected]. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world!
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Our first Mazon Monday was about the Tully Monster. First discovered in 1955 by an amateur fossil collector named Francis Tully, Tullimonstrum gregarium became the state fossil of Illinois in 1989.
Since then, it has captured the heart of both amateur and professional paleontologists. Hey, how many Pennsylvanian fossils can be found as a stuffed animal? Actually, quite a few!
In recent years, the mystery of where T. gregarium belongs on tree of life has been somewhat solved. It is a vertebrate like us.
This week's Fossil Friday is a very nice Tully Monster discovered the first weekend of March, 2022 by Valerie Anderson, who serves as ESCONI's recording secretary. You might recall that Pit 11 collecting opens each March 1st. Congratulations, Valerie! Awesome find! Hopefully, you have the claw under the enclosed end! Now, I need to follow both you and your husband around on field trips!
