Birmingham Paleontological Society

The teacher workshop was held at the University of West Alabama in Livingston this year due to weather issues.  It was taught by professors from the University of West Alabama and geologists from the Geological Survey of Alabama.  There was a full classroom of students, including several BPS members who attended as students.  Other BPS members provided assistance in the workshop and behind the scenes with food preparation and clean-up, and also set up the BPS traveling fossil display. 

On Saturday, September 28, a sizable group of BPS members and guests got together to take advantage of the unseasonably hot weather to visit a favorite creek in Perry County.  After a stop at a local burger restaurant that served very tasty biscuits, we caravanned to the site – off-roading a little bit at the end.  The dry weather was definitely in our favor there! 

This is the 10th Anniversary of National Fossil Day at the National Park Service.  There will be activities around the

Our speaker for October is Dr. Kevin Kocot, Assistant Professor in Biological Sciences at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and Curator of Invertebrate Zoology at the Alabama Museum of Natural History. Hoover Public Library, Downstairs, Fitzgerald Room. Business meeting starts at 7:00, program at 7:30pm. Free and open to the public.

Designed for teachers of all age groups.

Our speakers for September are Gabe Ward and James Lamb who will present a talk titled “Everything but the Fossils: Methods and Materials”
Hoover Public Library, Fitzgerald Room. Business meeting from 7:00-7:30. Free public program starts at 7:30 p.m.

Our speaker for August is James Lamb, Director of the Black Belt Museum at the University of West Alabama. He will be speaking on “Domestication as a Type of Evolutionary Selection.”

Hoover Public Library, Downstairs, Fitzgerald Room. Free and open to the public. Business meeting at 7pm, Program starts at 7:30pm.

On Saturday, July 27, 2019, a much-anticipated field trip took place.  A good sized group of BPS members and guests met at a pre-determined spot in Sumter County and then caravanned to a lovely Cretaceous chalk gully site that has not been surveyed for several years.  Because of a tightly-strung barb wire fence, James made a lovely pair of steps (stiles) for getting the group up and over.  There was reference made to accessing the gullies “in STYLE”.  Funny but not quite time to give up your day job. 

Our speaker for July is Dr. George Phillips, Curator of Paleontology at the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science. He will be speaking on "Fossil Crustaceans from Mississippi & Alabama".

Hoover Public Library, Downstairs, Fitzgerald Room. Business meeting starts at 7:00, program at 7:30pm. Free and open to the public.

On Saturday, June 15, 2019, a group of BPS members and guests met at a pre-determined meeting spot for a visit/pit stop/supply gather before heading to the field trip destination.  The weather was warm but with slightly lower humidity which was much appreciated.  After a short drive to the site and a short hike to the gullies, James gathered everyone for an informative talk about the age, formation and fossils in the gullies, as well as some collecting etiquette.