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Field Paleontology is a
two-week experience that is designed to introduce students to
the procedures of preserving and documenting fossil
discoveries. We emphasize the fact that fossils are information
so the geologic context of fossils as well as the distribution
of fossils at a given site is meticulously recorded. Topics
covered include field stabilization and excavation of fossil
material, recording stratigraphic data, quarry mapping
techniques, reading and interpreting topographic maps, proper
documentation, and fossil systematics of each site. Students
taking the course for undergraduate credit will be graded based
on their field notes, daily observations, and participation in
field activities. Graduate students will be required to conduct
a follow-up research project the following fall semester.
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SUMMER 2013 CAMPS
Badlands, South Dakota; May 13 -24, 2013
Register
for this camp
Cost: $1900 for
undergraduates, $2000 for graduates. Price includes
transportation from Rapid City, lodging
and meals.
Join us in
beautiful Badlands National Park to explore the highly
fossiliferous sediments of the White River Group. This course
will be centered in the Bloom Basin region of the Park and will
concentrate on documenting a newly discovered transitional
Chadronian-Orellan age locality. Taxa currently identified at
this locality include oreodonts, creodonts, nimravids, rhinos,
the “giant pig” Archaeotherium, and a diverse assemblage
of small-bodied mammals. Participants will learn proper site
documentation, field collection, and reporting methods for
working on federal lands. Field activities will include the
documentation (using both gps and a total station) and
collection of vertebrate fossils, surveys of the surrounding
area, and stratigraphic work, all aimed at deciphering the
stratigraphic position of this locality and the biostratigraphic
age of the vertebrate fauna. Led by Dr. Clint A. Boyd (SDSMT).
Lodging and meals are included in the course costs, as
well as transportation while in the field. We will be camping at
the Badlands Motel and Campground in Interior, South Dakota. Hot
showers and restrooms are available at the campsite.
Participants are expected to supply their own camping equipment
and to bring clothing appropriate for the climate. During the
month of May in the badlands average high temperatures are in
the mid-70’s with lows into the mid-40’s. Rain is also a
possibility this time of year.
For more information, contact Dr. Clint Boyd by email (clint.boyd@sdsmt.edu) or by phone (605-394-5222).
Little Houston Quarry, Sundance,
Wyoming; July 22 -august 2, 2013
Register
for this camp
CAMP FULL
For over twenty years
the Little Houston Quarry west of Sundance, Wyoming, has
provided a detailed picture of late Jurassic life in eastern
Wyoming. Dinosaurs are found in extreme abundance at this
site. Help us document and excavate all of your Morrison
Formation favorites, including Apatosaurus, Diplodocus,Stegosaurus,
Allosaurus, and all kinds of small reptiles and mammals.
Led by D r. Darrin Pagnac.
Cost: $1100 for
undergraduates, $1200 for graduates. Price DOES NOT include
meals or lodging.
Sundance is a town of
about 1000 occupants and has all the necessary amenities
including hotels, campgrounds,
groceries, restaurants, laundry
facilities, hospital services, etc. Acquiring lodging is the
responsibility of the student.
Hotels include:
The Bear Lodge Motel:
(307) 283-1611, http://www.rangeweb.net/~bearlodge/
The Budget Host
Arrowhead: (800) BUD-HOST, http://www.budgethost.com/myhotel.aspx?id=157
Deanne’s Motel: (307)
283-2262
The town also includes
a comfortable campground with RV and tent facilities:
Mountain View
Campground: (800) 792-8439, http://www.mtnviewcampground.com/default.aspx
NO PETS are allowed
to accompany the participants.
Our climate is continental in character which means that it
can be quite hot (>40 Celsius) and sometimes cool (even in
July). Rain is possible but seldom interferes with the work for
very long. The best advice on clothing is to bring layers of
clothing so that you can be comfortable from 5 to 40 degree C.
A hat to keep sun off, sunglasses, and sunscreen are helpful.
Other necessary materials include glasses that protect your eyes
while chipping rocks, a rock hammer, a 2-inch wide natural
bristle paintbrush, gloves, a small chisel, and a sharp awl.
Canteen for water on hot days, a camera to record your
experience, a notebook and pen to record observations, and
a
sense of humor make this a very rewarding experience.
For more information Contact:
Darrin Pagnac, Ph.D.
Museum of Geology
501 East Saint Joseph Street
Rapid City, SD 57701
Phone (Office): (605) 394-2469
e-mail: Darrin.Pagnac@sdsmt.edu
Red Lodge, Montana;
July 15 - 28,
2013
Cost: $2,700
for undergraduates, $2,900 for graduates.
Fees include tuition, all meals, and lodging.
The New
Jersey State Museum’s 2013 Paleontology Field School
experience will focus on collecting
and documenting vertebrate fossils, such as dinosaurs,
crocodiles, turtles, fish, and mammals in the continental
rocks of both Late Cretaceous and Paleogene age in the
northern portions of the Bighorn Basin in northern Wyoming
and southern Montana. Other opportunities may arise, such
as collecting at Devonian, marginal marine fish and plant
fossils from Beartooth
 Butte or Eocene mammals at Tatman
Mountain. The course is lead by David C. Parris (Curator of
Natural History, NJSM) and Jason P. Schein (Assistant
Curator of Natural History, NJSM).
For more information or to register, please contact Jason
Schein
Jason.Schein@sos.state.nj.us |
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