Season 3, Episode 1 (click here for the previous season)
Aaaand... we're back. The second season was cut short for obvious personal reasons so I actually did not get out once for any fossil hunting during the autumn - a time that is generally the best for doing that.
It has been a long and cold winter, and amidst a busy workload, thoughts inevitably turn to spring and getting back out into the field. In this episode, join me in welcoming Deb to the fossil hunt as she pokes at the rocks and snaps a few pics of our journey. Today's episode sees us in such a hurry to go to Hungry Hollow that we can't even wait for all the snow to melt, or the muck to dry up.
Aaaand... we're back. The second season was cut short for obvious personal reasons so I actually did not get out once for any fossil hunting during the autumn - a time that is generally the best for doing that.
It has been a long and cold winter, and amidst a busy workload, thoughts inevitably turn to spring and getting back out into the field. In this episode, join me in welcoming Deb to the fossil hunt as she pokes at the rocks and snaps a few pics of our journey. Today's episode sees us in such a hurry to go to Hungry Hollow that we can't even wait for all the snow to melt, or the muck to dry up.
Here we are at the north pit of Hungry Hollow. As you can see, the pit is still partially frozen over, and it is muddy and mucky. Still, it is 12 degrees and we are determined. This will be Deb's first full visit to Hungry Hollow (we tried a month earlier, but the snows were too deep still), and it is my hope that she will find a trilobite.
Deb doesn't have to go far to see the usual assortment of loose fossils littered on the ground. With large bucket and a few tools, she is engrossed for quite some time while poring over corals, bryozoa, and crinoid bits that she calls "nuts and bolts."
While Deb is sorting through the fossil debris on one side of the pit, I'm at the other end poking about in the blue-grey clay-shale of the Arkona Formation. Here you can see a few broken brachiopods, crinoid bits, and the odd tentaculite. These are pretty standard fauna in the Arkona Fm. Preservation is poor on account of weathering, but one can also find very small cephalopods in the mix, and most likely some interesting micro-fossils.
And here is my intrepid fossil-sleuthing companion. The pit is virtually devoid of anyone but us. Later on, as we were moving from the north to the south pit, we met a nice fellow who was coming down to fish. The river was definitely swollen, so a word of caution to those coming down to HH this season to keep safely away from those swift currents.
Below: in the mucky clay of the south pit, I'm going shopping for trilos. As you can see, there's still some snow patches and ice about, as well as clay-slides that make trekking a bit of a messy challenge. |
I didn't make out so well in this trip. Of course, I was purposely leaving behind the millions of specimens I already have so many of, focusing more on interesting crinoid bits and in search of trilobites. I had the best "luck" finding trilos in the south pit, but nothing anywhere near a full specimen. Deb came away with a lot of interesting specimens of rugose coral, crinoids, and bryozoans. Pictured above is a very busy hash plate where almost every millimetre is occupied by crinoid pieces, shells, and miscellanea. Pretty encrinal!
Here are some of the smaller specimens I tucked into my breast pocket along the way. On the upper left are a few trilobite fragments, including a trilo pygidium lodged in the calyx of a coral. Also pictured (third column) are some interesting crinoid buttons, brassy nautiloid shells (lower fourth column), and assorted bryozoa and shells. The trilobite fragments are most likely phacopid, so also likely to be the most common species, Eldredgeops (too fragmentary to determine if it would be E. rana or E. milleri, but most likely the former).
Ok, so not the most prosperous of visits to HH, but fairly good given the conditions of the place at this time of year, and a really good outing for Deb who will be joining me for future expeditions. We hope to get back to HH later this spring before we head to Iceland. I should say that Iceland will prove geologically fascinating, but paleontologically lacklustre unless one is into Holocene shells and seal bones. Also, it is illegal to remove fossils from their natural resting place, so if we encounter any while there, we'll collect their photographs instead!
Ok, so not the most prosperous of visits to HH, but fairly good given the conditions of the place at this time of year, and a really good outing for Deb who will be joining me for future expeditions. We hope to get back to HH later this spring before we head to Iceland. I should say that Iceland will prove geologically fascinating, but paleontologically lacklustre unless one is into Holocene shells and seal bones. Also, it is illegal to remove fossils from their natural resting place, so if we encounter any while there, we'll collect their photographs instead!