Monthly Archives: May 2010

New Member of the Cretaceous-Tertiary Southern USA Team

Mark Wilson May 25, 2010 9:02 pm

STARKVILLE, MISSISSIPPI — We simply could not do this work without the guidance of local geologists who know the stratigraphy and the locations which are likely to yield the best results.  This is especially true in eastern Mississippi where most … Continue reading →

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Our first vertebrate fossil

Mark Wilson May 24, 2010 5:06 pm
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From Alabama to Mississippi

Mark Wilson May 24, 2010 5:01 pm

STARKVILLE, MISSISSIPPI — Early this morning we left Demopolis, Alabama, and drove to Livingston, home of the University of West Alabama.  Our first localities, in fact, were very close to campus as we again explored the Upper Cretaceous Prairie Bluff … Continue reading →

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Sweet Home Alabama

Mark Wilson May 23, 2010 4:55 pm

DEMOPOLIS, ALABAMA — We practically had the state to ourselves on this steamy Sunday as we drove around western Alabama looking for outcrops of the latest Cretaceous and earliest Paleogene.  As is often the case, localities described in the literature … Continue reading →

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Mud, Sun and Fossils

Mark Wilson May 22, 2010 4:44 pm

GREENVILLE, ALABAMA — Reconnaissance is over for this part of the state, and our work commenced this morning.  We want to find good sclerobiont communities above and below the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary, so here that means we want specimens from the … Continue reading →

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Post-Cretaceous Weirdness

Mark Wilson May 22, 2010 4:16 pm

GREENVILLE, ALABAMA — The Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary at Mussel Creek, Lowndes County, Alabama, has some unusual complexity.   At the southern end of the section it is simple enough, as shown in a previous blog post.  Just a few meters north, though, … Continue reading →

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Another beautiful fossil hard substrate

Mark Wilson May 21, 2010 8:03 pm

GREENVILLE, ALABAMA — I have a soft spot for hard places.  (Always wanted to say that!)  Much of my career has been spent studying marine hard substrates and the communities that have evolved on and in them.  These include rocks, … Continue reading →

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Geological fieldwork in the Deep South

Mark Wilson May 21, 2010 7:40 pm

GREENVILLE, ALABAMA — This is the first time I’ve done fieldwork in the southern USA.  The outcrops are of course very different from my favorite desert locations and oddly similar to those I visited in western Russia last summer.  I’m … Continue reading →

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An intimate visit to the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary

Mark Wilson May 21, 2010 4:08 pm

GREENVILLE, ALABAMA — It is one of the most famous geological horizons.  It marks the end of the Mesozoic Era and the beginning of the Cenozoic.  The “K/T boundary” is dated at 65.5 million years ago (±0.3 my) and is … Continue reading →

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A Short Update from the Diabase Quarries

mpollock May 20, 2010 10:52 pm

We have an early morning tomorrow, since we’re running our NE-SE GSA field trip for the Pennsylvania Geological Survey. So, this post will be short and sweet. Here are a few of the highlights from today’s diabase escapades:

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