The Annual Fossils of the Black Belt, Hands-On Field Workshop.

BPS participated in the National Fossil Day exhibit on the campus of the University of Alabama, in Tuscaloosa.

On Saturday, Sept. 22, a nice-sized group of BPS members and guests gathered in anticipation of a gully and creek exploration and discovery.  The day was predictably hot but spirits were high – fossils out there, waiting to be found!!  After a brief orientation and explanation of potential finds, the group moved into the gullies and began searching.  Finds from this site included shark and enchodus teeth, shark and fish vertebrae, shell fragments, worm tubes, shrimp burrows, and ubiquitous, sparkly pyritized organic material (still hard for me to resist).  While talking to another member, James spotted a string of shark vertebrae (5-6) on an adjacent gully which he carefully collected and wrapped for transport.  Still really spectacular and incredible to me that an animal used those vertebrae to swim around and live his life and here we find them 80 million years later.  And, they are still in pretty good shape (considering)!

After a lunch break, we moved to the second site (my personal favorite) which is the very productive creek in the next county.  After the hot gullies, a cool wade through a very fossiliferous creek is just what the group likes!  Before we made it to the creek, I had the opportunity to meet the owner and express gratitude for his hospitality and generosity in allowing us access to this treasure on his property.  He told me he was glad we were enjoying it and that he was also glad that so many fossils were being found and appreciated.  Me, too!!

In the creek, my first screen yielded 5 shark teeth!  How can this not be a favorite location?!?!  James and several others went upstream to find gravel bars and while some stayed at the downstream spot that seemed to be yielding nice and plentiful teeth and bone fragments.  Also found were 3 ptychodus teeth of unknown species, 1 Ptychodus polygyrus tooth (way to go LEISA!!!) a piece of Native American pottery (also Leisa) and other interesting fossil, geofact and late hominid artifacts (vintage glass, metal, pottery mostly).  If someone leaves this site empty-handed, it’s because he or she chooses to do so!  There’s something here for everyone!  So, a little before daylight started dimming, the group called a halt to the searching, changed into dry clothes and shoes and bid the lovely creek site good-bye until next time.             

On Saturday, Aug 11, 2018, a small group of BPS members and guests traveled to Smith County, Mississippi where we were joined by our enthusiastic, knowledgeable host.  We were led to a small working lime quarry that featured, from the Oligocene, outcrops of Bucatunna clay, Glendon formation limestone and Marianna limestone.  The quarry process yielded specimens from the Mint Spring unit but the unit itself was underwater. 

Participants were given some geological facts and some collecting hints and then were free to roam around the quarry.  There were large mined limestone boulders all around the quarry that were fossiliferous and a paddock area where the initial crushing of mined slabs took place that contained fossils.  There was lots of material that was rinsed by rain run-off from collecting shed’s roof, making some fossils in that area easier to spot.

As collectors spread out and began searching, some of the things collected were:  echinoids, scallop shells, tusk shells, forams (coin-sized, single-celled organisms that are still around today), shark and ray teeth, a broken shark vertebra, delicately branching bryozoans, pyritized cone shells, echinoids, pyritized burrows, ghost shrimp claws and lignite.  Lots of treasures at this site!

And, if things were exciting enough, James stepped on a shifting boulder which caused him to lose his balance and grip on his pick.  Who knew those things would bounce??  And, bounce it did – right into James’s head.  Paleontologists are tough and prepared, though.  George retrieved his first-aid kit from his truck and applied a nice field dressing which enabled James to make his way back to his truck.  We couldn’t pass the up the opportunity to record the event for posterity so group photos were taken with Bloody James front and center.  I’d like to nominate that as his new pirate/field name!!  After the photos, James was chauffeured to the hospital where his hard head was declared uncracked and the wound sutured, then he was escorted safely home.  Unfortunate as it was, I’m glad that he’s okay. 

Many thanks to our wonderful host for a great day at a great site!  I hope we’ll be invited to Mississippi again!!       

I want to start this trip report with a huge thank you to Tim for escorting the group on the first half of the trip and for patiently answering all of the questions.  We couldn’t have done it without you!!! 

A baker’s dozen of BPS members and guests, all eager for a field trip, met  in Dallas county to collect in chalk gullies.  It was suggested that we go to a gully that hasn’t been surveyed in over a year so we were all very eager to get to it.  Tim mentioned a few collecting techniques as well as some collecting etiquette, showed an aerial photo of the area to be collected and, after a short hike, we were in the gullies!  Almost immediately, Tim found a mosasaur vertebra and a jaw fragment – a very positive sign!  As groups do, we spread out to explore and mark interesting finds.  There were copious shrimp burrows and strangely hard to resist pyritized organic material (sparkly fish poops), barnacles, some enchodus and shark teeth, a large fragment of a rudist clam, a section of lignite, a previously flagged and recovered fish jaw, and a group of turtle vertebra.  It was, of course, blazing hot so, even though the exploration was exciting, no one complained when the lunch break was called.  We went to a shady place to pause, refresh, and recharge biological batteries.

For the second site, we went to another privately owned, very productive creek  where James joined us.   The recent rains had scoured some areas and deposited about 2 vertical feet of sand onto what used to be lovely gravel bars.  While some of us tried sifting material in old familiar spots, James scouted upstream and alerted the group that there was a gravel bar that would support all of our attention and exploration.  So, after a short hike, we all settled on to the new spot where we were delighted to find large and small, mostly well preserved, shark teeth, gastropod casts, ptychodus teeth, bone bits, a pectoral spine, baculite and ammonite segments and many other fossil and non-fossil finds.

The weather, which is always a gamble this time of year, cooperated all day.  It was hot in the gullies but there was a breeze and the bright sun really helps with fossil spotting.  Clouds started moving in at noon and thunder was heard in the distance (rained on us as we drove to second site) but it never rained on us in the creek and we never had to leave the creek because of lightning.   Based on the smiles and shared finds at the end of the day, I think a great time was had by all!     

On March 31, thirteen BPS members and guests had the pleasure of visiting a working limestone quarry in Morgan County.  The weather was superb, the attendees were enthusiastic and the fossils were everywhere!  The fossils found were primarily Mississippian (Paleozoiz era).  Many crinoid stems and whole crinoids were found as well as blastoids, bryzoans, brachiopods and corals.  There were many nice examples of these fossils and even a "museum quality" slab of whole crinoids that was just too heavy to carry out.  Maybe someone will remember to bring the helicopter next time!

The quarry employees who accompanied us were very helpful and even managed to maintain a positive attitude while giving up a part of their Saturday to be with those of us who love to look for fossils.  One of the employees was lucky enough to find an elusive shark tooth, as did one of the BPS members.  Though we could have stayed much longer, the group ended their searching at 2:00 (as promised) to give the employees the rest of their Saturday afternoon.  After the quarry, the group headed to a nearby Mexican restaurant for good food and conversation.  It was another very enjoyable field trip on a nearly perfect day!  

Dr. George Phillips of the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science in Jackson, Mississippi, held the 15th Annual Fossil Road Show, where various groups from around the south were invited to set up exhibits and help identify fossils.  The BPS exhibit showcased Alabama fossils, and photos of various BPS fossil digs in Alabama.

The mid-day presentation "An Introduction to the World of Tiny Fossils" was by Dr. Mark Puckett of The University of Southern Mississippi.

There were several professional paleontologists assisting with fossil identification.  Dr. David Dockery was quite interested in the collection of tiny shells collected by Vicki on the February 2017 trip to Blue Springs, MS.  He is considered the expert on these shells.  James Lamb of UWA set up a working 3D printer to show how they are used in replicating fossils.  Dr. George Phillips and several other experts were scattered around the venue, helping the public, and enjoying the exhibits.
 

For the February field trip, six stalwart fossil hunters ignored the gloomy forecast and journeyed through a storm front to a lovely Franklin County lake site.  As it turned out, the weather was perfectly suited to fossil hunting with partly sunny skies, comfortable temperatures and a fresh breeze - no rain the entire day!  Accompanied by the sound of waves lapping the shoreline, the amiable group had no trouble finding many different Mississippian fossils:  Crinoid stems and several whole crinoids with calyx and arms, bryzoans (Archimedes), blastoids, horn corals, bivalves, unresistable (sizable!) hash slabs and even coral heads at a second site.  For a day with a marginal forecast, a good time was had by all.