The wondrous Burgess Shale
Mark Wilson August 7th, 2009
FIELD, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA–I stepped on Paleontological Holy Ground when I visited the Burgess Shale earlier this week. It is often cited as the most important fossil locality ever. I felt the historical as well as the scientific vibrations in the Walcott Quarry, the site where the extraordinary Charles Walcott began his explorations of the unit in 1909.
The Walcott Quarry of the Burgess Shale.
There are numerous websites illustrating the famous Burgess Shale Fauna. I’ll just share some of the favorite fossils I found. (We could pick up and examine any fossil, but collecting, of course, is strictly forbidden.)
The humble sponge Vauxia. I like the less charismatic taxa in the Burgess Shale. The fancy arthropods get plenty of love!
The primitive mollusc Scenella on the left and a trilobite on the right. The Burgess Shale fauna has plenty of skeletonized fauna along with the soft-bodied forms.
This is an odd breccia at the base of the Burgess Shale. The white parts are limestone fragments and the black is calcite. This may be an indication of carbonate hardgrounds -- features I study.
It is a tradition among paleontologists to formally pose with Charles Walcott at his famous quarry. I lack the knickers, though, and that certain set of jaw.