Category Archives: Uncategorized

Ordovician bioclaustration project begins

Mark Wilson March 10, 2014 9:36 pm

FLORENCE, KENTUCKY–Today it was William Harrison’s turn to collect specimens for his Independent Study project. He’ll be working a full year on what he’s putting in these bags before he turns in his thesis. William’s project is an interpretation of … Continue reading →

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Ordovician bioerosion and encrustation project begins

Mark Wilson March 9, 2014 6:37 pm

RICHMOND, INDIANA–Meet Coleman Fitch (’15) standing on the iconic outcrop of the Whitewater Formation (Upper Ordovician) on Route 27 about a mile south of Richmond (C/W-148; N 39.78722°, W 84.90166° — which has a nice Google Maps street view). This … Continue reading →

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Wooster’s Fossil of the Week: A whale ear bone (Neogene)

Mark Wilson March 9, 2014 1:48 am

This is another fossil that has sat in a display case for decades in Scovel before I really examined it. Unlike last week’s specimen, though, it has no identifying label on its reverse. This is always a serious disappointment for … Continue reading →

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Wooster paleontologists begin a new field season

Mark Wilson March 8, 2014 8:30 pm

RICHMOND, INDIANA–This is the first day of what upper midwesterners hilariously call “spring break”, so it is time to get some students in the field. I can’t say this is the first Wooster geology fieldwork of the year because that … Continue reading →

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Wooster’s Fossil of the Week: An agate-replaced coral from the Oligocene-Miocene of Florida

Mark Wilson March 2, 2014 1:42 am

I long thought of this beautiful specimen as more rock than fossil. It is a scleractinian coral that has had its outer skeleton replaced by the silicate material agate and its interior skeleton completely hollowed out. The result is a … Continue reading →

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Wooster’s Fossil of the Week: An interlocking rugose and tabulate coral (Devonian of Michigan)

Mark Wilson February 23, 2014 1:21 am

This beautifully polished fossil looks like half of an antique bowling ball. Normally I hate polished fossils because the external details have been erased, but in this case the smooth surface reveals details about the organisms and their relationship. We … Continue reading →

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A visit to the Florida Museum of Natural History

Mark Wilson February 17, 2014 8:44 pm

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA — The 10th North American Paleontological Convention here is sponsored by the Florida Museum of Natural History. (The meeting is excellent, by the way, and very well organized. Congratulations to the paleontological team that put it together.) Since … Continue reading →

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Wooster Geologists at the North American Paleontological Convention in Florida

Mark Wilson February 16, 2014 5:49 pm

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA–Steph Bosch (’14), Lizzie Reinthal (’14) and I flew out of icy Ohio this weekend to attend the 10th North American Paleontological Convention in warm, sunny northern Florida. The students jointly presented the beautiful poster above on their Independent … Continue reading →

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Wooster’s Fossil of the Week: A tubeworm-encrusted parasitic gastropod (Silurian of Indiana)

Mark Wilson February 16, 2014 1:26 am

Last week three Wooster geology students and I visited Ken Karns, an enthusiastic citizen scientist who has developed an extraordinary fossil collection in his home in Lancaster, Ohio. Ken is a man of prodigious energies and skills as he not … Continue reading →

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Wooster’s Fossils of the Week: Bioclaustration-boring structures in bryozoans from the Upper Ordovician of the Cincinnati region

Mark Wilson February 9, 2014 1:36 am

Another bioerosion mystery from those fascinating Upper Ordovician rocks around Cincinnati. Above you see a flat, bifoliate trepostome bryozoan (probably Peronopora) with pock holes scattered across its surface. At first you may think, after reading so many blog posts here, … Continue reading →

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