Digging Bones and Loving It

Thursday 12 July, 2012

 

Ron, of Tinker fame, offered to take us to a different ranch with the intent of changing our location and our luck. He had seen some fossil material on a quick walk through and thought we might find something of interest. We set out in the morning with Brian who had been helping on the T. rex site and is also a prospector. He welcomed the opportunity to get out into the field after days of swinging a pick axe and wielding a shovel.

The ranch is located near the ranch we are staying, so it is closer to town. Ron gave us the specific boundaries for the collecting area and then showed us some of the exposure he had seen fossil material. He was expected back at the T. rex, site, so he wished us luck and took off with his friend Mitch. A later start time was scheduled because the rainstorm had wrecked havoc with it. The tent blew away (it was retrieved), and the site was too muddy to work until mid day.

Laurel and I found very weathered bones straight away. Now this is the action we were hoping to find. Even though the bone quality was poor on the surface, and the partial rib section was pretty much just on the surface, working on something is a lot more fun than not, and we had had two days of that. Tools in hand: bayonets, small knives, brushes, penetrant stabilizer, foil and plastic bags; we set to work.

I was working on a piece that might have been a vertebra, but once the overburden was removed, it was clearly a toe bone of a hadrosaur. These were very large animals (duh), and this toe bone is the size of one half of a loaf of bread. So my friends, when you stop by to see this year's fossils, for this specimen you will not need magnifying glasses. Pretty exciting for me.

A magnifying glass will enhance the viewing of a tiny treasure that presented itself in the process of cleaning the matrix away from the phalanx. As I was moving the dirt away from the bone, my eye saw a flash of shiny surface. I looked more closely, and sitting in the cast off pile was a small tooth. Oh boy was that a moment to remember. I gently picked it up and found a small plastic container to place it in. I suspected it was from a Dromeosaur, and the three experts I have asked, put forward somewhat different species. Ask three experts get- three different answers. I love this science. And I love playing with fossils.

The toe bone is in relatively good condition. The exposed proximal end is missing a few pieces and is very weathered and stoney. The proximal end is a bit crumbly and cleaning must be done carefully. The remainder of the bone is brown, though not really "chocolate" condition. It has lost that lovely sheen and is a bit rough. However, it is mostly complete and one of the largest fossils in my growing collection. I am pleased.

Laurel made quick work of stabilizing and wrapping the rib fragment and set to work on another fossil that was just peeking out of the surface. It took more time to extract and appears to be a fragment of a long bone of some sort. There were four turtle shell pieces adjacent to it, so she glued those together before taking them out of the matrix. Part of the story when we find the fossils, is to also look at the surrounding matrix for additional material. Sometimes it is botanic, or micro fossils in addition to the main fossil.

We were well into the noon hour when we realized we needed a break. The work is compelling and I find it hard to pull myself away. Unfortunately, given the high temperatures this week, we find it essential to get out of the sun when we can, and walking our wrapped fossils back to the car for lunch was the break we needed. Just as we were leaving the site, I happened to look down and there I saw a large Triceratops shed tooth. Wow. What a great morning.

Brian joined us for lunch. He spent the morning walking different exposures but had not found the micro sites he had hoped to explore. He said there was some iron siderite and occasional bone spills, but nothing fruitful. We encouraged him to come over to our site and try his luck.

We all returned to our site and Brian gave it a quick look, but wanted to move on to find his own. Laurel and I spent a little more time looking for micro fossils, but the heat was building, and since we had no large fossils to distract us, we decided to leave it for another year and walk on. We walked a few of the exposures and found where Brian was having some luck. We found some bone spills, but no source material. I finally decided to walk the washes that weave through this area, since sometimes rogue bones or artifacts are washed into them in a heavy rain storm.

I checked exposures on my trip away from Brian and Laurel and the wash on my return. The exposures were devoid of anything and since it was about time to return to the car, I headed back to Laurel and Brian to see what they had found. Once again, my eyes were fixed on the ground scanning from left to right (also paying attention to any movement that might indicate a snake). My luck held, and I found an artifact that is brown with a white base. It is a skinning knife and quite beautiful.

Brian had some luck finding crocodile, and Myledaphus bipartitus teeth, and fish vertebrae. Laurel found only spill. Given our successful morning, we walked back to the car a happy group.

We saw Rob at the Motel when we returned. He had much to share about his adventures and artistic efforts this past year. It is great to see him and catch up. He showed us a print of a beautiful painting he did for a lapidary museum, and a children's book about dinosaurs, in which he co-stars. He always finds amazing fossils when he is here, so we look forward to viewing this year's collection.

Dinner was once again a joint effort. I made the entree and side dish and Laurel made another fabulous salad. We are eating well which we believe contributes to our ability to survive the hottest days we have ever spent in the Hell Creek. This was a very fun and successful day. We hope there are more coming our way.

Cheers,

Momasaurus