Earth Science Club of Northern Illinois - ESCONI

New Herbivorous Dinosaur Species Identified in Canada #fossils #paleontology #dinosaur #dinosaurs #canada #fossil

Gremlin slobodorum. Image credit: Ddinodan / Sci.News.

SciNews has a post about a new dinosaur from Canada. Gremlin slobodorum lived about 77 million years ago during the late Cretaceous Period.  It's a leptoceratopsid, which is a hornless dinosaur related to Triceratops.  The animal lived what is now southern Alberta, Canada.  The dinosaur was described in "A new Late Cretaceous leptoceratopsid (Dinosauria: Ceratopsia) from the Oldman Formation (Campanian) of Alberta, Canada", which was published in "Windows into Sauropsid and Synapsid Evolution".

These dinosaurs differed from Triceratops and other ceratopsids in lacking horns on its face and only having a small frill extending from behind its head.

“Unlike the better known ceratopsid ceratopsians, leptoceratopsids were relatively small — mostly around sheep-sized — and lacked horns,” said Carleton University dinosaur paleontologist Michael Ryan and his colleagues.

“Although it is very incompletely known, Gremlin slobodorum can be distinguished from other leptoceratopsids by the presence of a ridge running across the top of each frontal.”

1.1 Billion Objects and Counting: Inside the Effort to Tally Natural History Specimens Around the Globe #museum #naturalhistory #smithsonian #collections

A small fraction of the more than 50 million specimens housed in the museum’s invertebrate zoology collection. Chip Clark, NMNH

Smithsonian Magazine has an interesting article about the effort to count the world's museum collections.

With more than 148 million specimens and objects ranging from pocket-sized shrews and glimmering crystals to petrified tree trunks and giant squid, the National Museum of Natural History holds a sprawling account of how Earth has changed over the past 4.5 billion years.

According to Kirk Johnson, the museum’s Sant Director, many of these specimens help researchers forecast the planet’s uncertain future. “We're seeing rapid change in the natural world and these collections are the only place to see certain aspects of nature,” Johnson said. Because the collections contain ecological relics like extinct species, they reveal how life responded to past environmental changes and how it may fare in the future.

Johnson champions the crucial role natural history collections play in charting our planet’s future in this precarious epoch. But even a collection as large as the museum’s only reveals snippets of the planet’s ongoing story. The gaps in knowledge prevent scientists and policy makers from making the most informed decisions possible.

Fossil Friday #193: Dunbarella sp. From Danville #fossils #paleontology #MazonCreek #Danville #herrincoal #pennsylvanian #danville #FossilFriday #scallop #mollusk #fossil

This is the "Fossil Friday" post #193.  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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I'm not sure how tasty scallops from the Pennsylvanian were....  but this plate of Dunbarella sp. from the Danville spoil pile is absolutely stunning. The Danville spoil pile exposes the Herrin No. 6 coal, which is about 2.5 million years younger (~305 million years ago) than the Colchester No. 2 coal of Mazon Creek.  The Energy shale holds the concretions in the same way the Francis Creek shale does for Mazon Creek fossils.  There is a fossil guide and more information in Mazon Monday #86.

ESCONI member Connor Puritz collected this beauty during the Fall 2023 trip to Danville.  Thanks for sharing this tasty specimen, Connor!

Throwback Thursday #194: Rockhound Terms #TBT #ThrowbackThursday #history #pebblepup #rockhound

This is Throwback Thursday #194.  In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general.  If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc ...), please sent them to [email protected].  Thanks!

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This "Glossary of Rockhound Terms" appeared in the September 1993 newsletter.  The Rocket City Rocks & Gems refers to the Huntsville Gem & Mineral Society (HGMS).  The club hails from Huntsville, Alabama and is alive and well in 2023.  They were founded in 1961 with 15 members. The 2023 Fall Gem, Jewelry, and Mineral show was held on October 6th-8th, 2023.  Their moto is “We’ll go to the Moon for a Rock”.

And, I'm pleased to say they still call their junior members...

GLOSSARY OF ROCKHOUND TERMS

Geologist - Person who learned about rocks in school.

Rockhound - Person who learned about rocks the hard way.

Pebble Pup - Smart mouthed kid who know more about rocks than you.

Field Trip - Impossible trek to inaccessible places for non-existent specimens.

Geologists Pick - Handy gadget that you always have with you when you don't need it and always leave at home when you do.

Field Polish - Spit

Field Kit - Paper bag to put specimens in.

Rock Show - Bunch of people displaying their best specimens and another bunch selling their worst.

Swap - Mutual swindle.

Station Wagon - Vehicle designed to accommodate colossal greed of rockhounds.

Dop Stick - Tinkertoy stick to mount gemstones on for cutting when your fingers are reduced to bloody stumps.

Tumbler - Piece of equipment costing at least $25 which makes $250 worth of stones sale-able at 25 cents.

-- from Rocket City Rocks & Gems via Pioneer 8/93 --

 

Could dinosaurs be the reason humans can’t live for 200 years? #evolution #mammals #dinosaurs #cretaceous

The Tuatara lives for over a hundred years. BeautifulBlossoms/Shutterstock

The Conversation has an interesting post about the evolution of mammals.  Did being small during the time of dinosaurs lead to limitations on how long mammals live? Mollusks, reptiles, and Greenland Sharks have been found to live 100's of years.  Actually, many animals don't age and continue to grow throughout their lifetimes.

All human beings age. It is part of our biology and limits our lifespan to slightly over 120 years.

Not all animals experience ageing during their lives. Some animals’ bodies do not gradually degenerate as they get older the way our bodies do.

But for humans once they reach about age 30 their chance of dying doubles roughly every eight years. So even if you are fortunate enough to become a centenarian, your chance of dying each year will be high.

This high mortality reflects numerous other health problems, such as loss of muscle mass and general frailty, cognitive decline, loss of vision and hearing and many other degenerative changes that characterise the human ageing process.

Trilobite Tuesday #48: Rare museum specimen reveals new insights into how trilobites curled themselves into a ball #trilobites #fossils #paleontology #TrilobiteTuesday #fossil #trilobite

Sternite organization during enrollment in terrestrial isopods and glomerid millipedes. (a–c) Micro-CT scan of terrestrial isopod MCZ:IZ:90105. (a) Tomographic model of 90% enrolled specimen. (b) Micro-CT scan of full specimen with three segmented sternites (blue highlight). (c) Micro-CT segmented sternites from three trunk segments. (d–f) Micro-CT scan of glomerid millipede MCZ:IZ:165554-2. (d) Tomographic model of completely enrolled specimen. (e) Reconstruction of full specimen with three segmented sternites (blue highlight) and pleurites (yellow highlight). (f) Micro-CT segmented sternites from three trunk segments. ai, anterior imbrication; ant, antenna; col, collum; ple, pleurite; ps, posterior shield; st, sternites; te, telson; ter, tergite. Credit: Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences (2023). DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2212

Phys.org has a story that shed light how trilobites evolved the ability to enroll their bodies for protection against predators.  A team of researchers from Harvard examined a museum specimen that had preserved sternites, where were plates that lined the stomach of trilobites.  Using micro-CT scans, the researchers could see how the plates slid past one another a then lock into place.  The locking mechanism provided a tight and save rollup.  The whole procedure is similar to modern day animals, such as armadillos and pill bugs,  that can enroll their bodies.  Details can be found in the paper "Convergent evolution of ventral adaptations for enrolment in trilobites and extant euarthropods" published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

Prior research has shown that many creatures have independently evolved the ability to curl themselves into a ball as a means of protection from predators—most such creatures, such as armadillos and pill bugs, have a protective shell as the outside of the ball. Prior research has also shown that trilobites (a long extinct type of tiny marine arthropod) also curled themselves into balls to avoid being eaten, but to date, very little evidence has been found regarding their internal organs due to their soft nature—non-biomineralized tissue was rarely preserved.

In this new effort, the research team found a way around this problem when one of the team members discovered an enrolled sample with preserved sternites—plates that line the stomach of trilobites—in the museum's collection.

Mazon Monday #196: 1939 Season's Greetings from the Langfords! #fossils #paleontology #MazonMonday #MazonCreek #braidwood #illinois #pennsylvanian

This is Mazon Monday post #196.  What's your favorite Mazon Creek fossil?  Tell us at email:[email protected].

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George Langford, Sr. (1876-1964) was a prolific collector of Mazon Creek fossils.  He collected and then sold or donated multiple collections of Mazon Creek fossils.  The fossils he collected in various museums around the country including Illinois State Museum and the Denver Museum of Natural History.  In 1947, he donated his bulk of his collection to the Field Museum of Natural History, then called the Chicago Natural History Museum, and joined it as curator of fossil plants.

His grandson, George III, created a website that has quite a bit of information about both his grandfather and his father, George Langford Jr.  The image and page below, come from that informative and useful resource.

In 1939, their Christmas card included a photo of the "Fossil Gardens of Northern Illinois".  The picture is a view of the strip mines about 1 mile south of Wilmington, IL, at a place that was not far from where Cinder Ridge Golf Course is today.   

George included this card in his first book with short descriptions of the fossils on each side.  The fossil on the left was identified as Sphenophyllum emarginatum. It was originally named in 1829 by Adolphe-Theodore Brongniart, known as the Father of Paleobotany.  It's a relative of modern day horsetails.  While the one on the right, was identified as Diplothmema zobelli, now known as Sphenopteris spinosa.  Sphenopteris was part of the forest understory.  It was first described in 1841 by Heinrich Goppert.

 

 

Mysterious fruit found to be the oldest known fossils of the Frankincense and Myrrh family #fossils #paleontology #paleobotany #seeds #india #frankincense #myrrh

Prior to the widespread use of CT scanning in paleontology, small fossils like these, which are less than 10 mm in diameter, were especially difficult to study and identify. Credit: Steven Manchester

Phys.org has a story about the identification of some Indian plant fossils as ancestors of the Frankincense and Myrrh family.  The fossils were discovered in an Indian village in the early 1970's. Recently. researchers at the Florida Museum of Natural History performed CT scans on these fossils.  The scans revealed pyrenes.  Pyrenes are woody dispersal pods that proved protection to seeds... modern day examples include the hard stones at the cores of cherries, peaches, dates, and pistachios.  Only a few plant families produce pyrenes and even less arrange groups of five in the shape of a pentagram.  By process of elimination, the family w, as determined to be Burseraceae, the Frankincense family.  The details can be found in the paper "Burseraceae in Cretaceous of India", which was published in the International Journal of Plant Sciences.

Most fossils from the Frankincense family have, up until now, been recovered from rocks that postdate the asteroid impact. The original fruits discovered in the 1970s were fossilized before that event. This makes them the oldest Burseraceae fossils discovered to date, which has important implications for the family's origin. Scientists have a good idea of when plants in the group initially evolved, but it's still unclear where they came from.

Ancient species of Burseraceae are a common component of fossil beds in southern England, the Czech Republic and parts of North America. Beginning roughly 50 million years ago, however, Earth's climate began a long cooling process that ultimately resulted in the most recent Ice Ages. As temperatures fell, species in the Frankincense family seemed to reverse their preference for hemispheres. Today, there are more than 700 Burseraceae species, and most of them grow south of the equator.

The ancestors of modern Burseraceae species are thought to have first appeared somewhere in the north. Alternatively, a few early species may have had a global distribution but became isolated as continents drifted apart.

The fossils from India suggest the southern hemisphere may have been the real birthplace of the family.

PBS Eons: Why Only Earth Has Fire #history #fire #earth #paleontology #plants #photosynthesis #oxygen

PBS Eons has a new episode.  This one is about the evolution of our planet's atmosphere and how life makes fire possible.

To get fire, which exists only on Earth, it took billions of years of photosynthesis – which means fire can’t exist without life. And fire and life have been shaping each other ever since.

Fossil Friday #192: Palaeoxyris lewisi #fossils #paleontology #MazonCreek #FossilFriday #shark #eggcase #sharkeggcase #pennsylvanian

This is the "Fossil Friday" post #192.  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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Shark egg cases are back on the menu for this week's Fossil Friday.  You might remember from earlier this week, that Mazon Monday #195 featured at a rare species of egg case - Vetacapsula cooperi.  A year ago in Fossil Friday #140, we looked at some very large and detailed Palaeoxyris multiplicatum specimens from the Field Museum.  I mean... what says Christmas more than a fossilized shark egg case from Mazon Creek?  Do you have any finial Christmas ornaments on your tree?

Jack Wittry created a nice document (posted on the Field Museum website) which helps nicely with identification of the various species of Mazon Creek shark eggs.  Palaeoxyris lewisi is included.  It's the third most common species.

Palaeoxyris lewisi: The number of bands is 10. They are in a repeating pattern of broad-broadsmall. Bands cross the body mid-section at a 30° angle. The third most commonly found  egg case at Mazon Creek.

This specimen of P. lewisi was contributed by Phil Anderson.  Phil has sent us quite a few photos in the past - including a scorpion (!) and a spider.  Apparently, the rarer Mazon Creek animals are a thing with Phil...

This is a nicely detailed specimen.  Unfortunately, he could only find the one half when he found back in November 2023.   Thanks for sharing, Phil!

 

Throwback Thursday #193: Poem "Coal Age" #history #TBT #ThrowbackThursday #poem #coal #coalage #fossils #plantfossils #ginkgo

This is Throwback Thursday #193.  In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general.  If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc ...), please sent them to [email protected].  Thanks!

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Today, we step back to a little poem called "Coal Age", which appeared in the February 1950 edition of the newsletter.  The poem is attributed to Anon., so unfortunately we don't know who wrote it. 

The subject of the poem is the ginkgo tree... a truly ancient line.  Ginkgo biloba is a gymnosperm.  They are the last living species of the order Ginkgoales.  The earliest of the order date back to around 290 million years ago.  That is the early Permian Period, just after the crash of the Pennsylvanian rain forests.   The genus Ginkgo extends back to the middle Jurassic about 170 million years ago.  Interestingly, they haven't changed much since, as fossils from the Jurassic look very similar to modern day examples.

By Joe Schneid, Louisville, Kentucky - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9488972

COAL AGE

Where, 0, Where, 0, where is the ginkgo leaf?
The pressed little, flat little ginkgo leaf.
It was always in my way
So I moved it, day by day:
It was everywhere around
But right now it can't be found!

I would find it in a book
I was reading, so I took
The little leaf from there
And gave it berth elsewhere.

Then I'd find it in another -
Someone felt it needed cover:
Or I'd see it on the floor!
Goodness knows it's there no more!

So I spent pre-Christmas days
Figuring out the various ways.
That the little Chinese leaf
May have, somehow, come to grief;
All because a rapt Zoologist
Wants it for a Paleontologist

Anon.

Morning Person? You Might Have Neanderthal Genes to Thank #fossils #paleontology #biology #human #origins #evolution #humans #neanderthal #genetics

Javier Trueba/MSF, via Science Source

Carl Zimmer has an interesting article about genetics over on his Origins column at the New York Times.  A recent paper in the journal Genome Biology and Evolution derails generic research that suggests some of our circadian traits might come from Neanderthal genes.  Modern humans and the ancient humans that became Neanderthals diverged about 700,000 years ago, when a group of humans migrated north into Europe.  Those humans later split into two groups with the Neanderthals in the west and the Denisovans in the east.

About 400,000 years ago, the population split in two. The hominins who spread west became Neanderthals. Their cousins to the east evolved into a group known as Denisovans.

The two groups lived for hundreds of thousands of years, hunting game and gathering plants, before disappearing from the fossil record about 40,000 years ago. By then, modern humans had expanded out of Africa, sometimes interbreeding with Neanderthals and Denisovans.

And today, fragments of their DNA can be found in most living humans.

Research carried out over the past few years by John Capra, a geneticist at the University of California, San Francisco, and other scientists suggested that some of those genes passed on a survival advantage. Immune genes inherited from Neanderthals and Denisovans, for example, might have protected them from new pathogens they had not encountered in Africa.

The Top Ten Dinosaur Discoveries of 2023 #fossils #paleontology #dinosaurs #dinosaur #2023

Ten big dinosaur discoveries stood out in 2023.

Smithsonian Magazine has a list of 10 of the most intriguing dinosaur discoveries in 2023.  Check out the link for the details.

Ever since the word “dinosaur” was coined in 1842, paleontologists have been revealing a wealth of primordial detail about the “terrible lizards.” New species are being named at a rapid pace from fossil sites around the planet, and paleontologists are constantly unearthing new clues about what the magnificent reptiles ate, how they socialized, what colors they wore and more. This past year has been full of tantalizing dinosaur discoveries, so we’ve compiled a short list of the most amazing and influential finds of 2023.

1. Mammals bit back at dinosaurs
2. Some dinosaurs laid amazing eggs
3. A sharp-clawed dinosaur munched plants
4. Dinosaur giants evolved again and again
5. A tyrannosaur ate other dinos for its last meal
6. This lawyer destroyed dinosaur replicas
7. Researchers discovered a new southern dino
8. Dust from the asteroid impact drifted for years
9. This species sported a very long neck
10. Dinosaurs had lips to lick

 

Mazon Monday #195: Vetacapsula cooperi #fossils #paleotology #MazonCreek #MazonMonday #shark #eggcase #pennsylvanian

This is Mazon Monday post #195.  What's your favorite Mazon Creek fossil?  Tell us at email:[email protected].

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Figure 20.4. Vetacapsula cooperi, modified from McGhee and Richardson (1982). Scale bar 10 mm.

Vetacapsula cooperi is a very rare shark egg case from the Pennsylvanian Period.  It was originally described by Robert Crookall (1890-1981) in 1928.  In the late 1920's, Crookall took a deep look at Carboniferous shark egg cases, then classified as enigmatic flower-buds or seed-vessels, and provided a comprehensive overview of all the species of Palaeoxyris, Fayolia, and Vetacapsula known at the time.  See page 80 of "Elasmobranch egg capsules Palaeoxyris, Fayolia, and Vetacapsula as subject of paleontological research - and annotated bibliography".

Between 1928 and 1932 R. Crookall provided a complete and comprehensive overview of all species of Palaeoxyris, Fayolia and Vetacapsula known at the time (Crookall, 1928a, 1928b, 1930, 1932). Furthermore, at the same time he revised and erected several new species (P. warei, P. pringlei, P. edwardsi, P. duni, P. bohemica, F. cambriensis, F. eltringhami, F. besti, F. warei, F. interstrialis, V. kidstoni, V. moyseyi, and V. hemingwayi). In Crookall (1932) the nature and affinities of these fossils were discussed in detail. First he listed 12 different groups to which Palaeoxyris and related genera Fayolia and Vetacapsula had been referred or with which they had been compared. He demonstrated that all  remains invariably occur in fresh- or brackish water deposits; the capsules were attached to plants by their pointed beaks, and never showed cellular issue, which precludes them from being plant remains. Crookall came to the conclusion that they were of animal origin and had to be accepted as egg capsules of elasmobranchs. Furthermore, Crookall cited D. Watson’s remark about the shark family Hybodontidae, whose stratigraphical range covers exactly that of Palaeoxyris. With regard to Fayolia and Vetacapsula, other possible forms (Ichthyotomi, Petalodonttidae, Cochliodontidae, Cladontidae) were mentioned; their geological range, however, provided no assistance.

It was unknown from Mazon Creek until it was discovered in the back of a drawer at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.  The discovery prompted George McGhee and Eugene Richardson to write "First occurrence of the problematic fossil Vetacapsula in North America".  The paper was published in 1982 in the Journal of Paleontology.

V. cooperi can be found on page 163 of Jack Wittry's "The Fossil Fauna of Mazon Creek".

Vetacapsula cooperi (Mackie) Crookall, 1928

Vetacapsula was unknown in North America until 1982 when an example was found hidden in a drawer of The Field Museum. As with Palaeoxyris (see page 159), it too was a problematic fossil, but now its affinities are agreed upon. They are considered to be the egg capsules for an unknown type of chondrichthyan shark.

V. cooperi has a heavily inflated, spindle-shaped body. Its surface is marked by straight, pleat-like ribs spaced about 1 mm apart that run from the pedicle to the distal end. A strong median ridge running more or less the length of the body has been reported, but is not always seen.

Specimens

From "The Fossil Fauna of Mazon Creek"

From ESCONI member Bob Masek

Vetacapsula sp. from Crock Hey.  Similar species.

Fossil Hunter Pulls Massive Mammoth Jawbone Out of Florida River #fossils #paleontology #mammoth #florida

The jawbone likely belonged to a Columbian mammoth. Fossil Junkies via Facebook

Smithsonian Magazine has a story about the discovery of a Mammoth jawbone in Florida.  The bone was found in the Peace River near Arcadia, Florida.  The Peace River is known for producing fossils from the Pleistocene.  The bone is probably 10,000 years old and likely belonged to a Columbian mammoth.

A Florida fossil hunter made the discovery of a lifetime earlier this month when he pulled a mammoth jawbone from the bottom of a river.

John Kreatsoulas is no stranger to finding very old bones and teeth: He runs Fossil Junkies Dig and Dive Charters, a tour company that takes guests on fossil-hunting excursions in southwest Florida. But even he was surprised to find such a rare, well-preserved mandible under the water.

“You can hunt your whole life and not find anything like this,” Kreatsoulas tells NBC2 News’ Rachel Whelan.

Kreatsoulas was diving in the Peace River near Arcadia, Florida, in early November when he touched something he initially thought was a log. But it wasn’t a log—it was an ancient, 60-pound jawbone. He also discovered a pair of mammoth molars.

Netflix "Life on Our Planet": Watch ancient, giant millipede the size of a car brought back to life in remarkable reconstruction #fossils #paleontology #evolution #history #geology #life

LiveScience has a post about Netflix's "Life on Our Planet".  It's a nature show narrated by Morgan Freeman.  They take a look at the history of life on planet Earth with clips of current animals and plants.  The show became available in late October 2023.  It has stunning graphics and special effects.  There's a great clip of Arthropleura over on Youtube.

A remarkable reconstruction shows a 300 million-year-old millipede the length of a small car crawling around a forest floor looking for love.

 

The footage was created for Netflix's "Life on Our Planet" — a series that brings extinct creatures back to virtual life in video footage. The clip shows Arthropleura, which at 8.5 feet (2.6 meters) long and 1.6 feet (0.5 m) wide was the biggest millipede to ever live. It likely weighed about 110 pounds (50 kilograms).

Scientists first discovered Arthropleura fossils 170 years ago. They lived in what is now the U.K., continental Europe and North America during the Carboniferous Period (359 million to 299 million years ago). In 2018, a chance discovery of an enormous, near-complete specimen provided a new, detailed look at the creature's anatomy — which the team behind "Life on Our Planet" used to help them reconstruct this ancient creature.

Arthropleura

Official teaser video

 

Fossil Friday #191: Acanthodes beecheri #fossils #paleontology #fish #FossilFriday #MazonCreek #pennsylvanian #fossilfish

This is the "Fossil Friday" post #191.  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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For this week's Fossil Friday, we have a sweet little Acanthodes beecheri from Mazon Creek. It was described by Charles Eastman in 1902.  See "The Carboniferous Fish-Fauna of Mazon Creek, Illinois".  We took a look at Acanthodes beecheri back in Mazon Monday #9.

This little beauty was collected from Pit 11 by Alan Keith.  There's good detail.  They eye is well preserved along with the lateral line and both the anal and dorsal fin spines.  Nice one, Alan!  Thanks for sharing.

Throwback Thursday #192: December 1953 Mazon Creek Facet #history #TBT #ThrowbackThursday #braidwood #MazonCreek #fossils

This is Throwback Thursday #192.  In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general.  If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc ...), please sent them to [email protected].  Thanks!

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In the 1950's, the newsletter had a regular feature called "Facets".  The entries were small bits of generally self-reported news sent in by ESCONI members.  The December 1953 newsletter had one that caught my eye while looking for "Looking Back at ESCONI" items.  The weather in the Fall of 1953 was unusually warm.  There were 6 days in the 70's, 9 days in the 80's, and 1 in the 90's (!) for October 1953.  November was nearly as warm... with November 15th - 19th having highs in the 70's.  December 1953 continued the warmth, with a bunch of days in the 50's.

You can imagine that ESCONI members took advantage of the warm weather and headed down to the Braidwood area to collect fossils.  Two members - Hazel Bonow and Olive Knight went out one week day.  At the time, both women held ESCONI board positions.  Hazel was Circulation Manager and Olive was Art Director.  While they were out, they didn't find much until they ran some special people in the history of Mazon Creek collecting.... John and Lucy McLuckie.  The photo below comes from the 1958 Combined Club Field Trip to Braidwood.   These field trips were sponsored by the McLuckies for many years.

Hazel Bonow at the 10th Anniversary Party in 1959.

Olive and Howard Knight are on the right.  This photo is from the 1959 Combined Clubs trip to Braidwood.  Notice the old cars in the background.

Here is the facet news item.  Oh... what would you give to visit the McLuckie's favorite spot today?

Many rockhounds have been taking advantage of this beautiful weather. Among those who have been hunting fossils in the Braidwood area are Walter and Hazel Bonow, Howard and Olive Knight, and Harry Nelson. They report good fossils are scarcer and harder to find.

One Indian Summer week day when Hazel and Olive were hunting alone without much success, along came Mr. and Mrs. McLuckie and invited them to their favorite collecting area where they were able to fill their knapsacks.

 

BBC: Pliosaur discovery: Huge sea monster emerges from Dorset cliffs #fossils #paleontology #jurassic #england #jurassiccoast #UK #pliosaur

The excavation site. Photo: BBC Studios

The BBC has the fascinating story of the discovery of a truly massive pliosaur.  A fossil collector, searching the cliffs of Dorset, England, found the tip of the snout of huge pliosaur skull last year.  The animal, a pliosaur, lived anount 150 million years ago during the Jurassic Period.  The full skull, recovered from the eroding cliff, measures two meters long and contains 130 razor sharp teeth.  The full story will be presented in an upcoming David Attenborough documentary on New Years Day.  See the BBC video for a preview.

The skull is longer than most humans are tall, which gives you a sense of how big the creature must have been overall.

You can't help but focus on its 130 teeth, especially those at the front.

Long and razor sharp, they could kill with a single bite. But look a little closer - if you dare - and the back of each tooth is marked with fine ridges. These would have helped the beast to pierce the flesh and then quickly extract its dagger-like fangs, ready for a rapid second attack.

The pliosaur was the ultimate killing machine and at 10-12m long, with four powerful flipper-like limbs to propel itself at high speed, it was the apex predator in the ocean.

"The animal would have been so massive that I think it would have been able to prey effectively on anything that was unfortunate enough to be in its space," says Dr Andre Rowe from Bristol University.

"I have no doubt that this was sort of like an underwater T. rex." 

 

CBC Quirks & Quarks: A young carnivorous dinosaur's last meal #fossils #paleontology #dinosaurs #tyrannosaur #CBCRadio #CBCQuirksandQuarks

A fossil has revealed that a juvenile Gorgosaurus fed on smaller bird-like dinosaurs, a diet that's different from their adult counterparts, Alberta scientists say. (Julius Csotonyi/Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology)

CBC Radio's Quicks & Quarks podcast has a piece about tyrannosaurs.  A juvenile Gorgosaurus, Gorgosaurus libratus, from Alberta, who lived about 75 million years ago, has the remains of its last meal preserved in its abdomen.  The research by Royal Tyrrell Museum researchers François Therrien and Darla Zelenitsky was published in the journal Science Advances.

Researchers in Alberta uncovered a rare 75 million-year-old fossil of a young dinosaur with bony remains of its last meal preserved inside its abdomen. Royal Tyrrell Museum researchers François Therrien and Darla Zelenitsky say the fossil belongs to the species Gorgosaurus libratus, a relative of the famous apex predator Tyrannosaurus rex. The prey the young dinosaur consumed was much smaller than what the adult Gorgosaurus ate, which suggests that grown-ups and juveniles didn't compete for the same resources. These findings, published in Science Advances, help explain the success of tyrannosaurids during the Late Cretaceous era.