Photo of the Week

The photo of the week is another great example of Pleistocene giantism in mammals. In the photo you see a recent (very) leg bone from a kangaroo held next to the fossilized leg bone of a Pleistocene kangaroo, known as Procoptodon. HUGE DIFFERENCE! The bone from the ancient kangaroo is at least 10-15cm longer and much, much thicker.  Procoptodon, stood around 2m tall and weighed in at a massive 230kg! Compare this to a modern kangaroo which, while similar in height, only weighs about 90kg. You can see the difference in the bones….

(Photo: Matt Herod)

I took this photo in 2009 during my trip to Australia at a friends sheep station near Port Augusta. You may have seen other photos of the week from this same place such as stromatolites, or the mystery fossil (seriously, what is it?). It was, without a doubt, the most diverse geological place I have ever been. These Pleistocene remnants were found there, along with others from giant wombats. The owners have also found ancient emu egg shell, and arrowheads from early aboriginal people. Gold exploration has taken place nearby as well as an oil well was drilled and produced a few barrels…don’t ask me how gold and oil can be found on the same property…it blows my mind.

Anyway, enjoy the pic.

Cheers,

Matt

The photo for this week is something a bit different. It is a piece from my personal collection that was self collected. Ok, full disclosure, my dad actually found it, but I was over on another rock pile in the quarry and finding jack at the time…so it is self collected….I did help extract it after he found it. I should also mention that they were repaired and enhanced by a professional to make them really “pop” out of the rock. However, no parts were added. They were found as complete specimens.

I don’t want to steal any paleontological thunder from Jon, but I have a fair amount of experience in paleo, particularly invertebrate paleo. In fact, the part of southern Ontario that I grew up in is stuffed with Ordovician fossils such as the trilobites pictured below. These particular trilobites, known to my family and others as “Bert and Ernie”, can be classified as Isotelus gigas, which is a common species in the region. However, complete trilobites of this size are exceptionally rare and to find them as a pair is simply ridiculous. Bert and Ernie were found in Colborne Quarry, a limestone aggregate quarry, famed among local collectors for its fantastic fossils. I used to go  to the quarry on a regular basis and found all sorts of great stuff over the years from complete crinoids to 1.5m cephalopods. Unfortunately  the company that owns the quarry has closed it to collecting and access is no longer possible. However, there are still lots of other places in the area where it is possible to collect in the same rocks. Stay-tuned for more personal collection highlights in the future. I have nice cephalopod that is hiding an unusual secret…

(Source)

Cheers,

Matt

The incredibly colourful photo of the week is a picture that I took at the Canadian Museum of Nature. It shows what has to be one of the most spectacular pieces of ammolite that I have ever seen. Ammolite is a bit of a mysterious substance and it is found in only a few places on Earth, notably in the Canadian Rockies.

An incredibly bright piece of ammolite at the Canadian Museum of Nature. Click for a larger image. (Photo: Matt Herod)

Ammolite is actually considered a gemstone and it is one of the few official gems that has a biological origin. Ammolite, unsurprisingly, is found mostly on ammonites, which are extinct relatives of today’s squid and octopuses. It is actually formed of the original aragonite shell material. During the Cretaceous, when most of western North America was covered by a large tropical ocean the ammonites, and dinosaurs thrived in the area. The ammonites eventually died and their shells were covered by very fine clay/ash. Burial continued and this ash, which contained lots of iron, potassium and other metals, prevented the aragonite shells of the ammonites from altering to calcite, which is how most fossils are preserved. This is what gives ammolite the spectacular colours we see now.

Today ammolite is found only in a few units of the Bearpaw formation, which reaches from Alberta to Montana. This makes ammolite an extremely rare gemstone, albeit a somewhat fragile one, since it is quite soft. Despite the rarity of ammolite it is also relatively inexpensive. Indeed, a quick search on Ebay showed loads of pieces for under $10.

Cheers,

Matt