Whereabouts to find fish fossils

By Steve Sharp


The Green River Formation is a collection of lake beds in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah that is known for its fish fossils. This prime fossil discovering site is famous for its well preserved fish, plants, and the odd amphibian or mammal revealed by pro and amateur fossil hunters. Fishing for fish fossils is the favourite entertainment of those who attempt to dig up answers to the past from this collection of 50 million year old lake beds.

Multiple sorts of fish fossils have been discovered in the Green River Formation. Roughly 60 vertebrate taxa have been revealed in the Green River Formation, and at least 95% of the fish fossils that archaeologists unearth are Knightia fish. These fish are so usually discovered at Green River the Knightia has been named Wyoming's state fossil. Other sorts of fish fossils that could be discovered at the Green River Formation are Priscacara liops, Priscacara hypsacantha, Mioplosus labracoides, and Phareodus testis.

Almost all of the fish fossils uncovered at Green River are removed from 2 main sedimentary layers; one layer is referred to as the 18 in. layer and the second is called the split fish layer. Fish fossils from the Green River Formation are sometimes collected in 2 ways. The primary way involves removing an entire slab of limestone or oil shale from Green River and fastidiously removing sediment from half the fossil. The second way involves carefully extracting the whole fossil from the sediment for showing.

Other sorts of fossils are often found at the Green Brook Formation; fish could be the primary attraction, but other types of life forms are unearthed there all the time. Sycamore leaves, stream reeds, and wood samples have been discovered there, as have stromalites, reptiles, mammals, and primates. The oldest recovered flying mammal fossil was unearthed at Green River; the Icaronycteris index was a bat that was recovered in full , complete with wing membranes and cartilage. Crocodiles can be found at the Green River Formation , as well as the odd pony.

Fish fossils might be the primary draw for fossil hunters who dig in the Green River Formation, but an extraordinary horse fossil was recently unearthed at Green River by a fossil quarry master. This Protorohippus venticolum fossil is among the oldest and most complete fossil specimens of its type; its finder claims the fossil contains 95 to 97% of all parts. The fossil has been nick-named "Dawn" and is said to be over 50 million years in age. The current price is approximately $2.25 million; this fossil has been verified by pros and is already prepared for display as a wall sculpture. Four fossilized fish have also been captured in this formation, making this rare Protorohippus venticolum a must have for serious fossil collectors.




About the Author:



Posted byBertie at 4:19 AM

0 comments:

Post a Comment