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...Will post 3 more images Is this a Dinosaur footprint? Looks like Theropod maybe? Found on Nova Scotia Beach Any insight is appreciated for this amateur. Thanks in advance.

Found on Cape Jack Beach Nova Scotia. I have 3 more like this. Stigmaria Root? I have one I know is an imprint.. but is this one a fossilized piece of root or an imprint? Would love any insight! Thanks in advance. I have more pictures but they are 3mb each.. Can I post more?

I found a few of these at Joggins fossil cliffs on Nova Scotia. I wonder if it's a nut from the Coal Age tree in the forest fossilized within the cliffs?

Hello!!!! Not sure what this is but I have had it kicking around for years (20 to be exact). It was found on a beach in Nova Scotia. It appears to be bone, is about 2 inches high by 1.5 inches across but doesn't look to be a complete segment. Any ideas?

These are a few of the pdf files (and a few Microsoft Word documents) that I've accumulated in my web browsing. MOST of these are hyperlinked to their source. If you want one that is not hyperlinked or if the link isn't working, e-mail me at joegallo1954@gmail.com and I'll be happy to send it to you. Please note that this list will be updated continuously as I find more available resources. All of these files are freely available on the Internet so there should be no copyright issues. Articles with author names in RED are new additions since June 24, 2017. Canada Faunas and Localities Alberta Barendregt, R.W., C.S. Churcher and A. MacS. Stalker (1988). Stratigraphy, paleomagnetism, and vertebrate paleontology of Quaternary preglacial sediments at the Maser-Frisch Site, southeastern Alberta. Geological Society of America Bulletin. Vol.100. Brinkman, D.B. and A.G. Neuman (2002). Teleost Centra from Uppermost Judith River Group (Dinosaur Park Formation, Campanian) of Alberta, Canada. J.Paleont., 76(1). Brinkman, D.B., et al. (2004). Vertebrate palaeocommunities of the lower Judith River Group (Campanian) of southeastern Alberta, Canada, as interpreted from vertebrate microfossil assemblages. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 213. Burns, J.A. and R.R. Young (1994). Pleistocene mammals of the Edmonton area, Alberta. Part I. The Carnivores. Can.J. Earth Sci., 31. Cullen, T.M., et al. (2016). A vertebrate microsite from a marine-terrestrial transition in the Foremost Formation (Campanian) of Alberta, Canada, and the use of faunal assemblage data as a paleoenvironmental indicator. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 444. Dalzell, M.T.J. (2007). Correlated Biostratigraphy and Palaeoecology of Microplankton from the Bearpaw Formation (Campanian-Maastrichtian) of Alberta, Canada. Masters Thesis - University of Saskatchewan. Eberth, D.A. (2010). A Revised Stratigraphic Architecture and History for the Horseshoe Canyon Formation (Upper Cretaceous) , Southern Alberta Plains. GeoCanada 2010 - Working with the Earth. Fanti, F. and T. Miyashita (2009). A high latitude vertebrate fossil assemblage from the Late Cretaceous of west-central Alberta, Canada: evidence for dinosaur nesting and vertebrate latitudinal gradient. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 275. Frebold, H. (1966). Upper Pliensbachian Beds in the Fernie Group of Alberta. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 66-27. Lavigne, J.M. (1999). Aspects of Marginal Marine Sedimentology, Stratigraphy and Ichnology of the Upper Cretaceous Horseshoe Canyon Formation, Drumheller, Alberta. Masters Thesis - University of Alberta. (158 pages) Lillegraven, J.A. (1969). Latest Cretaceous Mammals of Upper Part of Edmonton Formation of Alberta, Canada, and Review of Marsupial-Placental Dichotomy in Mammalian Evolution. The University of Kansas Paleontological Contributions, Article 50 (Vertebrata 12). Martindale, R.C., et al. (2017). A new Early Jurassic (ca. 183 Ma) fossil Lagerstätte from Ya Ha Tinda, Alberta, Canada. The Geological Society of America, open access. (Thanks to Oxytropidoceras for finding this one!) Martindale, R.C., et al. (2017). Supplementary Data to "A new Early Jurassic fossil Lagerstätte from Ya Ha Tinda, Canada (~183 Ma)" - GSA Data Repository 2017066. Meijer Drees, N.C., et al. (2002). Lithostratigraphy, Sedimentology, Paleontology, Organic Petrology, and Organic Geochemistry of the Middle Devonian Ashern, Winnipegosis, and Eyot Formations in East-Central Alberta and West-Central Saskatchewan. Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 572. Mellon, G.B. (1967). Stratigraphy and Petrology of the Lower Cretaceous Blairmore and Manville Groups, Alberta Foothills and Plains. Research Council of Alberta, Bulletin 21. Mychaluk, K.A., A.A. Levinson and R.L. Hall (2001). Ammolite: Iridescent Fossilized Ammonite from Southern Alberta, Canada. Gems and Gemology, Vol.37, Number 1. Nielsen, K.S., et al. (2008). Turonian to Santonian paleoenvironmental changes in the Cretaceous Western Interior Sea: The Carlile and Niobrara formations in southern Alberta and southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 270. (Author's personal copy) Peng, J. (1997). Palaeoecology of Vertebrate Assemblages from the Upper Cretaceous Judith River Group (Campanian) of Southeastern Alberta, Canada. Ph.D. Dissertation - The University of Calgary. (330 pages) Quinney, A. (2011). The Upper Cretaceous Horseshoe Canyon Formation: using paleosols to reconstruct ancient environments, climates, and record of sea level change in a dinosaur-dominated terrestrial ecosystem. Masters Thesis - University of Calgary. (156 pages) Scott, C.S. (2001). Middle Paleocene Mammals from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Masters Thesis - University of Alberta. Scott, C.S., R.C. Fox and G.P. Youzwyshyn (2002). New earliest Tiffanian (late Paleocene) mammals from Cochrane 2, southwestern Alberta, Canada. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 47(4). Simpson, G.G. (1927). Mammalian Fauna and Correlation of the Paskapoo Formation of Alberta. American Museum Novitates, Number 268. Wood, J.M., R.G. Thomas and J. Visser (1988). Fluvial Processes and Vertebrate Taphonomy: The Upper Cretaceous Judith River Formation, South-Central Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 66. British Columbia Archibald, S.B., et al. (2011). Great Canadian Lagerstätten 1. Early Eocene Lagerstätten of the Okanagan Highlands (British Columbia and Washington State). Geoscience Canada, Vol.38, Number 4. Archibald, S.B., et al. (2010). Lagerstätten of the Okanagan Highlands (British Columbia and Washington): emergent communities in Early Eocene climates. GeoCanada 2010 - Working with the Earth. Caron, J.-B. and D.A. Jackson (2008). Paleoecology of the Greater Phyllopod Bed community, Burgess Shale. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 258. Caron, J.-B. and D. Rudkin (eds.)(2009). A Burgess Shale Primer. History, Geology and Research Highlights. International Conference on the Cambrian Explosion, Field Trip Companion Volume. Caron, J.-B., et al. (2014). A new phyllopod bed-like assemblage from the Burgess Shale of the Canadian Rockies. Nature Communications, 5:3210. Costenius, K.N., et al. (1989). Reconnaissance Paleontologic Study of the Kishenehn Formation, Northwestern Montana and Southeastern British Columbia. 1989 MGS Field Conference, Montana Centennial. Dillhoff, R.M., E.B. Leopold and S.R. Manchester (2005). The McAbee flora of British Columbia and its relation to the Early-Middle Eocene Okanagan Highlands flora of the Pacific Northwest. Can.J. Earth Sci., Vol.42. Driver, J.C. (1988). Late Pleistocene and Holocene vertebrates and palaeoenvironments from Charlie Lake Cave, northeast British Columbia. Can.J. Earth Sci., 25. Greenwood, D.R., et al. (2005). Fossil biotas from the Okanagan Highlands, southern British Columbia and northeastern Washington State: climates and ecosystems across an Eocene landscape. Can.J. Earth Sci., 42. Haggart, J.W., et al. (2009). Molluscan biostratigraphy and paleomagnetism of Campanian strata, Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia: implications for Pacific coast North America biochronology. Cretaceous Research, 30. Hofmann, H.J., E.W. Mountjoy and M.W. Teitz (1985). Ediacaran fossils from the Miette Group, Rocky Mountains, British Columbia, Canada. Geology, Vol.13 Johns, M.J., C.R. Barnes and Y.R. Narayan (2005). Cenozoic and Cretaceous Ichtyoliths from the Tofino Basin and Western Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. Palaeontologia Electronica, Vol.8, Issue 2. Johnston, K.J., P.A. Johnston and W.G. Powell (2009). A new, Middle Cambrian, Burgess Shale-type biota, Bolaspidella Zone, Chancellor Basin, southeastern British Columbia. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, xxx. (Article in press) Johnston, P.A., et al. (2009). Palaeontology and depositional environments of ancient brine seeps in the Middle Cambrian Burgess Shale at The Monarch, British Columbia, Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 277. Ludvigsen, R. (2001). The fossils at Driftwood Canyon Provincial Park: A management plan for BC parks. Ludvigsen, R. (1999). Deep Time and Ancient Life in the Columbia Basin. Living Landscapes, Royal British Columbia Museum. Mathewes, R.W., D.R. Greenwood and S.B. Archibald (2016). Paleoenvironments of the Quilchena flora, British Columbia during the Early Eocene Climatic Optimum. Can.J. Earth Sci., 53. Morris, S.C. and R.A. Robison (1988). More Soft-Bodied Animals and Algae from the Middle Cambrian of Utah and British Columbia. The University of Kansas Paleontological Contributions, Paper 122. Plint, A.G. (1996). Marine and non-marine systems tracts in fourth-order sequences in the Early-Middle Cenomanian, Dunvegan Alloformation, northeastern British Columbia, Canada. In: High Resolution Sequence Stratigraphy: Innovations and Applications. Howell, J.A. and J.F Aitken (eds.), Geological Society Special Publication Number 104. Poinar, G., B. Archibald and A. Brown (1999). New Amber Deposit Provides Evidence of Early Paleogene Extinctions, Paleoclimates and Past Distributions. The Canadian Entomologist, 131. Schaeffer, B. and M. Mangus (1976). An Early Triassic Fish Assemblage from British Columbia. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, Vol.156, Article 5. Stanley, G.D. and B. Senowbari-Daryan (1999). Upper Triassic Reef Fauna from the Quesnel Terrane, Central British Columbia, Canada. J.Paleont., 23(5). Villeneuve, M. and R. Mathewes (2005). An Early Eocene age for the Quilchena fossil locality, southern British Columbia. Geological Survey of Canada, Current Research, 2005-A4. Wilson, M.V.H. (1977). Paleoecology of Eocene lacustrine varves at Horsefly, British Columbia. Can.J. Earth Sci., 14. Zonneveld, J.-P., M.K. Gingras and S.G. Pemberton (2001). Trace fossil assemblages in a Middle Triassic mixed siliciclastic carbonate marginal marine depositional system, British Columbia. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 166. Manitoba Bamburak, J.D., J. Hatcher and M.P.B. Nicholas (2012). Chemostratigraphy, paleontology and mineral potential of the Gammon Ferruginous Member of the Cretaceous Pierre Shale in southwestern Manitoba (parts of NTS 62F, G, H, J, K, N, O, 63C, F). In: Report of Activities 2012. Manitoba Innovation, Energy and Mines, Manitoba Geological Survey. Elias, R.J., et al. (2013). Ordovician-Silurian boundary interval in the Williston Basin outcrop belt of Manitoba: a record of global and regional environmental and biotic change. Field Trip Guidebook FT-C5/ Open File OF2013-1. Kilmury, A. (2016). Deposition and Fauna of the Chasm Creek Formation (Upper Ordovician): Core M-3-03 (Airport Cove West) near Churchill, Manitoba. Bachelors Thesis (Honours) - The University of Manitoba. McGregor, D.C., et al. (1971). Fossils of the Red River Formation (Cat Head Member), Manitoba. Contributions to Canadian Paleontology, Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 202. Nelson, S.J. and M.E. Johnson (2002). Jens Munk Archipelago: Ordovician-Silurian Islands in the Churchill Area of the Hudson Bay Lowlands, Northern Manitoba. The Journal of Geology, Vol.110. Stewart, L.A. (2012). Paleoenvironment, Paleoecology, and Stratigraphy of the Uppermost Ordovician Section, North of Grand Rapids, Manitoba. Masters Thesis - The University of Manitoba. (266 pages) Young, G.A., et al. (2012). Great Canadian Lagerstätten 3. Late Ordovician Konservat-Lagerstätten in Manitoba. Geoscience Canada, Vol.39. Young, G.A., et al. Late Ordovician Lagerstatten in Manitoba, Canada: Glimpses of Soft-Bodied Diversity. Young, H.R., R. Li and M.Kuroda (2012). Silicification in Mississippian Lodgepole Formation, Northeastern Flank of Williston Basin, Manitoba, Canada. Journal of Earth Sciences, Vol.23, Number 1. New Brunswick Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (2010). Fundy's Fascinating Fossils: The Unique Palaeontology of the Bay of Fundy. Fundy Issues, Issue 31. Falcon-Lang, H.J. and R.F. Miller (2007). Palaeoenvironments and palaeoecology of the Early Pennsylvanian Lancaster Formation ('Fern Ledges') of Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. Journal of the Geological Society, London, Vol.164. Gilpin, J.B. (1874). Observations on some Fossil Bones found in New Brunswick, Dominion of Canada. Nova Scotian Institute of Natural Science, 3(4). Jutras, P., J. Utting and S.R. McCutcheon (2005). Basin inversion at the Mississippian-Pennsylvanian boundary in northern New Brunswick, Canada. Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, Vol.53, Number 4. Kennedy, K. (2011). The Campbellton Formation, New Brunswick, Canada: A Sedimentological and Paleoenvironmental Description of an Early Devonian (Emsian) Vegetated Landscape. Masters Thesis - Dalhousie University. Landing, E. (1980). Late Cambrian-Early Ordovician Macrofaunas and Phosphatic Microfaunas, St. John Group, New Brunswick. Journal of Paleontology, Vol.54, Number 4. Landing, E. and S.R. Westrop (1996). Upper Lower Cambrian depositional sequence in Avalonian New Brunswick. Can.J. Earth Sci., 33. Landing, E., S.C. Johnson and G. Geyer (2008). Faunas and Cambrian Volcanism on the Avalonian Marginal Platform, Southern New Brunswick. J.Paleont., 82(5). Palacios, T., et al. (2011). New biostratigraphical constraints on the lower Cambrian Ratcliffe Brook Formation, southern New Brunswick, from organic-walled microfossils. Stratigraphy, Vol.8, Number 1. Tanoli, S.K. and R.K. Pickerill (1990). Lithofacies and basinal development of the type 'Etcheminian Series' (Lower Cambrian Ratcliffe Brook Formation), Saint John area, southern New Brunswick. Atlantic Geology, 26. Newfoundland and Labrador Boyce, W.D. and W.L. Dickson (2006). Recent Fossil Finds in the Indian Islands Group, Central Newfoundland. Current Research, Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources Geological Survey, Report 06-1. Boyce, W.D., L.M.E. McCobb and I. Knight (2011). Stratigraphic Studies of the Watts Bight Formation (St. George Group), Port Au Port Peninsula, Western Newfoundland. Current Research (2011), Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources, Geological Survey, Report 11-1 Boyce, W.D., I. Knight and J.S. Ash (1992). The Weasel Group, Goose Arm Area, Western Newfoundland: Lithostratigraphy, Biostratigraphy, Correlation, and Implications. Current Research (1992), Newfoundland Department of Mines and Energy, Geological Survey Branch, Report 92-1. Boyce, W.D., J.S. Ash and B.H. O'Brien (1991). A New Fossil Locality in the Bay of Exploits, Central Newfoundland. Current Research, Newfoundland Department of Mines and Energy, Geological Survey Branch, Report 91-1. Boyce, W.D., et al. (2000). The Upper St. George Group, Western Port Au Port Peninsula: Lithostratigraphy, Biostratigraphy, Depositional Environments and Regional Implications. Current Research (2000) Newfoundland Department of Mines and Energy, Geological Survey, Report 2000-1. Bullock, R.J., J.R. Morris and D. Selby (2011). New Findings of Body and Trace Fossils in the St. Bride's Area, Cape St. Mary's Peninsula, Newfoundland. Current Research (2011) Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources, Geological Survey Report 11-1. Clapham, M.E., G.M. Narbonne and J.G. Gehling (2003). Paleoecology of the oldest known animal communities: Ediacaran assemblages at Mistaken Point, Newfoundland. Paleobiology, 29(4). Darroch, S.A.F., M. Laflamme and M.E. Clapham (2013). Population structure of the oldest known macroscopic communities from Mistaken Point, Newfoundland. Paleobiology, 39(4). Droser, M.L., et al. (2002). Lowermost Cambrian Ichnofabrics from the Chapel Island Formation, Newfoundland: Implications for Cambrian Substrates. Palaios, Vol.17. Gehling, J.G., et al. (2001). Burrowing below the basal Cambrian GSSP, Fortune Head, Newfoundland. Geol.Mag., 138(2). Gillespie, H. (1998). Acritarch Biostratigraphy and Taxonomy of the Waterhouse Formation (Upper Ordovician, Port Au Port Peninsula, Newfoundland). Masters Thesis - Memorial University of Newfoundland. Landing, E. (1993). In Situ Earliest Cambrian Tube Worms and the Oldest Metazoan-Constructed Biostrome (Placentian Series, Southeastern Newfoundland). J.Paleont., 67(3). Landing, E., et al. (1989). The Placentian Series: Appearance of the Oldest Skeletalized Faunas in Southeastern Newfoundland. J.Paleont., 63(6). Liu, A.G., et al. (2012). A new assemblage of juvenile Ediacaran fronds from the Drook Formation, Newfoundland. Journal of the Geological Society, London, Vol.169. O'Brien, S.J. and A.F. King (2004). Ediacaran Fossils from the Bonavista Peninsula (Avalon Zone), Newfoundland: Preliminary Descriptions and Implications for Regional Correlation. Current Research (2004) Newfoundland Department of Mines and Energy Geological Survey, Report 04-1. O'Brien, S.J., et al. (2006). Lithostratigraphic and Biostratigraphic Studies on the Eastern Bonavista Peninsula: An Update. Current Research (2006) Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Natural Resources Geological Survey, Report 06-1. Pratt, B.R. and N.P. James (1982). Cryptalgal-metazoan bioherms of early Ordovician age in the St. George Group, western Newfoundland. International Association of Sedimentologists. Quinn, L., et al. (1999). Late Ordovician foreland basin fill: Long Point Group of onshore western Newfoundland. Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, Vol.47, Number 1. Retallack, G.J. (2014). Volcanosedimentary paleoenvironments of Ediacaran fossils in Newfoundland. GSA Bulletin, Vol.126, Numbers 5/6. Skovsted, C.B. and J.S. Peel (2007). Small shelly fossils from the argillaceous facies of the Lower Cambrian Forteau Formation of western Newfoundland. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica, 52(4). Williams, S.H., et al. (1994). A proposed global stratotype for the second series of the Ordovician System: Cow Head Peninsula, western Newfoundland. Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, Vol.42, Number 2. Northwest Territories Campbell, M. (2003). A Guide to Fossils in the Norman Wells Area, Northwest Territories. Northwest Territories Resources, Wildlife, and Economic Development - Oil and Gas Division. Kimmig, J.K.F. (2014). Taxonomy, Taphonomy and Paleoecology of a New Burgess Shale-Type Lagerstătte from the MacKenzie Mountains, Northwest Territories, Canada. Ph.D. Thesis - University of Saskatchewan. Kimmig, J.K.F. and B.R. Pratt (2016). Taphonomy of the middle Cambrian (Drumian) Ravens Throat River Lagerstätte, Rockslide Formation, Mackenzie Mountains, Northwest Territories, Canada. Lethaia, Vol.49. Kimmig, J.K.F. and B.R. Pratt (2015). Soft-bodied biota from the middle Cambrian (Drumian) Rockslide Formation, Mackenzie Mountains, northwestern Canada. Journal of Paleontology, 89(1). MacNaughton, R.B., B.R. Pratt and K.M. Fallas (2013). Observations on Cambrian stratigraphy in the eastern Mackenzie Mountains, Northwest Territories. Geological Survey of Canada, Current Research 2013-10. Poulton, T.P. (1991). Hettangian through Aalenian (Jurassic) Guide Fossils and Biostratigraphy, Northern Yukon and Adjacent Northwest Territories. Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 410. Thomson, D., et al. (2011). Albian to Turonian stratigraphy and palaeoenvironmental history of the northern Western Interior Sea in the Peel Plateau Region, Northwest Territories, Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 302. Weston, T.C. (1892). Notes on the Miocene Tertiary Rocks of the Cypress Hills, North-West Territory of Canada. Transactions of the Nova Scotian Institute of Science, Session of 1892-'93. Nova Scotia Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (2010). Fundy's Fascinating Fossils: The Unique Palaeontology of the Bay of Fundy. Fundy Issues, Issue 31. Calder, J.H. (1998). The Carboniferous evolution of Nova Scotia. In: Lyell: the Past is the Key to the Present. Blundell, D.J. and A.C. Scott (eds.), Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 143. Carpenter, D.K., et al. (2015). Early Pennsylvanian (Langsettian) Fish Assemblages from the Joggins Formation, Canada, and Their Implications for Palaeoecology and Palaeogeography. Palaeontology, Vol.58, Part 4. Denison, R.H. (1955). Early Devonian Vertebrates from the Knoydart Formation of Nova Scotia. Fieldiana Geology, Vol.37. Falcon-Lang, H.J. (2003). Late Carboniferous Tropical Dryland Vegetation in an Alluvial-plain Setting, Joggins, Nova Scotia, Canada. Palaios, Vol.18. Falcon-Lang, H.J., et al. (2004). An early Pennsylvanian waterhole deposit and its fossil biota in a dryland alluvial plain setting, Joggins, Nova Scotia. Journal of the Geological Society, London, Vol.161. Landing, E., G.S. Nowlan and T.P. Fletcher (1980). A microfauna associated with Early Cambrian trilobites of the Callavia Zone, northern Antigonish Highlands, Nova Scotia. Can.J. Earth Sci., 17. Olsen, P., J. Whiteside and T. Fedak (2005). Field Trip A7. The Triassic-Jurassic faunal and floral transition in the Fundy Basin, Nova Scotia. GAC-MAC-CSPG-CSSS Joint Meeting, Halifax, May 2005. Stacy, M.C. (1952). Stratigraphy and Paleontology of the Windsor Group (Upper Mississippian) in Parts of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Ph.D. Thesis - Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (20.4MB download) Zodrow, E.L. and M. Mastalerz (2009). A proposed origin for fossilized Pennsylvanian plant cuticles by pyrite oxidation (Sydney Coalfield, Nova Scotia, Canada). Bulletin of Geosciences, 84(2). Nunavut Eberle, J.J., et al. (2014). First Record of Eocene Bony Fishes and Crocodyliforms from Canada's Western Arctic. PLoS ONE, 9(5). Francis, J.E. (1988). A Fifty-Million-Year-Old Fossil Forest from Strathcona Fiord, Ellesmere Island, Arctic Canada: Evidence for a Warm Polar Climate. Arctic, Vol.41, Number 4. Lee, C.C., O. Lehnert and G.S. Nowlan (2008). Sedimentology, stratigraphy and clast biostratigraphy of Cretaceous and Tertiary strata, northeastern Ellesmere Island, Nunavut. In: Geology of Northeast Ellesmere Island Adjacent to Kane Basin and Kennedy Channel, Nunavut. Mayr, U. (ed.), Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 592. Mitchell, W.T., et al. (2016). Stratigraphic and Paleoenvironmental Reconstruction of a Mid-Pliocene Fossil Site in the High Arctic (Ellesmere Island, Nunavut): Evidence of an Ancient Peatland with Beaver Activity. Arctic, Vol.69, Number 2. Ontario Armstrong, D.K. and J.E.P. Dodge (2007). Paleozoic Geology of Southern Ontario. Sedimentary Geoscience Section, Ontario Geological Survey, Miscellaneous Release - Data 219. Brookfield, M.E., and C.E. Brett (1988). Paleoenvironments of the Mid-Ordovician (Upper Caradocian) Trenton limestones of southern Ontario, Canada: Storm sedimentation on a shoal-basin shelf model. Sedimentary Geology, 57. Fuentes, S.R. (2003). Faunal Distribution Across the Ordovician-Silurian Boundary in Ohio and Ontario. Masters Thesis - University of Cincinnati. Lehtola, K.A. (1973). Ordovician Vertebrates from Ontario. Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology - The University of Michigan, Vol.24, Number 4. Stumm, E.C. and J.D. Wright (1958). Check List of Fossil Invertebrates Described from the Middle Devonian Rocks of the Thedford-Arkona Region of Southwestern Ontario. Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology - The University of Michigan, Vol.XIV, Number 7. Verma, H.M. (1979). Geology and Fossils. Craigleith Area, Ontario. Ontario Geological Survey, Guidebook Number 7. von Bitter, P.H., et al. (2007). Eremosa Lagerstatte - Exceptionally preserved soft-bodied biotas with shallow-marine shelly and bioturbating organisms (Silurian, Ontario, Canada). Geology, Vol.35, Number 10. Wright, J.D. and E.P. Wright (1963). The Middle Devonian Ipperwash Limestone of Southwestern Ontario and Two New Brachiopods Therefrom. Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology - The University of Michigan, Vol.XVIII, Number 7. Wright, J.D. and E.P. Wright (1961). A Study of the Middle Devonian Widder Formation of Southwestern Ontario. Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology - The University of Michigan, Vol.XVI, Number 5. Quebec Bernstein, L., N.P. James and D. Lavoie (1992). Cambro-Ordovician stratigraphy in the Quebec Reentrant, Grosses-Roches-Les Mechins area, Gaspesie, Quebec. In: Current Research, Part E. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 92-1E. Cloutier, R., et al. (1996). Biostratigraphy of the Upper Devonian Escuminac Formation, eastern Quebec, Canada: a comparative study based on miospores and fishes. Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology, 93. Collette, J.H. and J.W. Hagadorn (2010). Three-Dimensionally Preserved Arthropods from Cambrian Lagerstätten of Quebec and Wisconsin. J.Paleont., 84(4). Copper, P. and J. Jin (2012). Early Silurian (Aeronian) East Point Coral Patch Reefs of Anticosti Island, Eastern Canada: First Reef Discovery from the Ordovician/Silurian Mass Extinction in Eastern Laurentia. Geosciences, 2. Cournoyer, M. (2002). Fossils in the vicinity of Montreal. Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections, 17th Annual Meeting, Redpath Museum/McGill University. (Thanks to Oxytropidoceras for finding this one.) Harington, C.R. (2003). Quaternary Vertebrates of Quebec: A Summary. Geographie physique et Quaternaire, Vol.57, Number 1. Hesse, R. and H. Sawh (1992). Geology and sedimentology of the Upper Devonian Escuminac Formation, Quebec, and evaluation of its palaeoenvironment: lacustrine versus estuarine turbidite sequence. Atlantic Geology, 28. la Société de Paléontologie du Québec. Twenty Fossil Sites Near Montreal. (Thanks to Oxytropidoceras for finding this one.) Landing, E., G. Geyer and K.E. Bartowski (2002). Latest Early Cambrian Small Shelly Fossils, Trilobites, and Hatch Hill Dysaerobic Interval on the Quebec Continental Slope. J.Paleont., 76(2). Maletz, J. (1997). Arenig biostratigraphy of the Pointe-de-Levy slice, Quebec Appalachians, Canada. Can.J. Earth Sci., 34. Russell, L.S. (1947). A New Locality for Fossil Fishes and Eurypterids in the Middle Devonian of Gaspe, Quebec. Contributions of the Royal Ontario Museum of Palaeontology, Number 12. Saskatchewan Collom, C.J. (2000). High-resolution Stratigraphy, Regional Correlation, and Report of Molluscan Faunas: Colorado Group (Cenomanian-Coniacian Interval, Late Cretaceous), East-central Saskatchewan. In: Summary of Investigations 2000, Vol.1. Saskatchewan Geological Survey, Sask. Energy Mines, Misc. Rep. 2000-4.1. Cumbaa, S.L., C.J. Underwood and C.J. Schroder-Adams (2013). Paleoenvironments and Paleoecology of the Vertebrate Fauna from a Late Cretaceous Marine Bonebed, Canada. In: Mesozoic Fishes 5 - Global Diversity and Evolution. Arratia, C., H.-P. Schultze and M.V.H. Wilson (eds.), Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Munich, Germany. Eberth, D.A., D.R. Braman and T.T. Tokaryk (1990). Stratigraphy, sedimentology and vertebrate paleontology of the Judith River Formation (Campanian) near Muddy Lake, west-central Saskatchewan. Bulletin of Canadian Petroleum Geology, Vol.38, Number 4. Johnston, P.A. (1980). First record of Mesozoic mammals from Saskatchewan. Can.J. Earth Sci., 17. Meijer Drees, N.C., et al. (2002). Lithostratigraphy, Sedimentology, Paleontology, Organic Petrology, and Organic Geochemistry of the Middle Devonian Ashern, Winnipegosis, and Eyot Formations in East-Central Alberta and West-Central Saskatchewan. Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 572. Nielsen, K.S., et al. (2008). Turonian to Santonian paleoenvironmental changes in the Cretaceous Western Interior Sea: The Carlile and Niobrara formations in southern Alberta and southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 270. (Author's personal copy) Rankin, B.D. (2009). Early late Paleocene mammals from the Roche Percee local fauna, southeastern Saskatchewan, Canada. Masters Thesis - University of Alberta[/b]. Tokaryk, T.T. and H.N. Bryant (2004). The Fauna from the Tyrannosaurus rex Excavation, Frenchman Formation (Maastrichtian), Saskatchewan. Summary of Investigations 2004, Vol.1, Saskatchewan Geological Survey. Wall, J.H., P. Johnston and T.P. Poulton (2002). Jurassic Microfossils and Bivalves from the Lower Member of the Gravelbourg Formation, Southern Saskatchewan. In: Summary of Investigations 2002, Volume 1. Saskatchewan Geological Survey, Sask. Industry and Resources Misc. Report 2002-4.1. Yukon Matthews, J.V., C.E. Schweger and O.L. Hughes (1990). Plant and Insect Fossils from the Mayo Indian Village Section (Central Yukon): New Data on Middle Wisconsinan Environments and Glaciation. Geographie physique et Quaternaire, Vol.44, Number 1. Palfy, J. and C.J.R. Hart (1995). Biostratigraphy of the Lower to Middle Jurassic Laberge Group, Whitehorse Map Area (105D), Southern Yukon. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology 1994. Exploration and Geological Services Division, Yukon, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Poulton, T.P. (1991). Hettangian through Aalenian (Jurassic) Guide Fossils and Biostratigraphy, Northern Yukon and Adjacent Northwest Territories. Geological Survey of Canada, Bulletin 410. Turner, D.G., et al. (2013). Middle to Late Pleistocene ice extents, tephrochronology and paleoenvironments of the White River area, southwest Yukon. Quaternary Science Reviews, 75. Yarnell, J.M. (2000). Paleontology of Two North American Triassic Reef Faunas: Implications for Terrane Paleogeography. Masters Thesis - The University of Montana. Yarnell, J.M., G. Stanley and C.J.R. Hart (1999). New paleontological investigations of Upper Triassic shallow-water reef carbonates (Lewes River Group) in the Whitehorse area, Yukon. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology 1998. Roots, C.F. and D.S. Emond (eds.), Exploration and Geological Services Division, Yukon, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Zazula, G.D., et al. (2003). Plants, bugs, and a giant mammoth tusk: Paleoecology of Last Chance Creek, Yukon Territory. In: Yukon Exploration and Geology 2002. Edmond, D.S. and L.L. Lewis (eds.), Exploration and Geological Services Division, Yukon, Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. Canada - General Allison, C.W. and S.M. Awramik (1989). Organic-Walled Microfossils from Earliest Cambrian or Latest Proterozoic Tindir Group Rocks, Northwest Canada. Precambrian Research, 43. Caldwell, W.G.E. and B.R. North (1984). Cretaceous stage boundaries in the southern Interior Plains of Canada. Bull.geol.Soc. Denmark, Vol.33. Cumbaa, S.L., et al. (2006). Cenomanian Bonebed Faunas from the Northeastern Margin, Western Interior Seaway, Canada. In: Late Cretaceous vertebrates from the Western Interior. (Lucas, S,G. and R.M.Sullivan, eds.), New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin 35. Fuentes, S.R.(1990). Vertebrates of the Last Interglaciation in Canada: A Review, With New Data. Geographie physique et Quaternaire, Vol. 44, Number 3. Holden, R. (1913). Some Fossil Plants from Eastern Canada. 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Harvard team fossil hunting at Blue Beach, Nova Scotia Heather Desveaux, Chronicle Herald, June 22, 2017 http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1480307-video-harvard-team-fossil-hunting-at-blue-beach The Blue Beach Fossil Museum http://www.novascotia.com/see-do/attractions/blue-beach-fossil-museum/1611 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Beach Mansky, C.F. and Lucas, S.G., 2013. Romer’s Gap revisited: continental assemblages and ichno-assemblages from the basal Carboniferous of Blue Beach, Nova Scotia, Canada. The Carboniferous-Permian Transition. New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science, 60, pp. 244-273. http://www.academia.edu/12658498/Romers_Gap_revisited_continental_assemblages_and_ichnoassemblages_from_the_basal_Carboniferous.. Yours, Paul H.

While going through some older stuff, I came across a fossil I collected several years ago in Nova Scotia, Joggins area (I was given permission to keep it). There may not be enough detail here for an ID, but I thought I'd ask the tribe if they could zero in on what species of plant this might have been. From what I was told, it is fairly common and of little scientific value.

I am new to fossil hunting and new to the forums, I found these "fossils" in a field in front of my house. I was wondering if these are really fossils, or just natural geological formations. Hope you can help me ID what these are. Thanks B.A.Wagner

I was back out in the field today on the hunt for more fossils. Gathered a bunch of rock to split and examine. What I did find were fragile fossils of vegetation. The picture shows what looks to be a fossilized chunk of wood. Hope to get back out there! B.A.Wagner

I was back in the field this morning and was on the hunt for shale and other sedimentary rocks that may contain fossils. I found this one and cracked it open and found what looks to be a fossil. It is Kane of hard to see so I outlined the areas of interest in red. I found fossils on this field before but I just don't know what this is. Would love some help. B. A. Wagner

I have a box of some freebie fossil plant publications to give away. Mostly Maritimes. And a few others on western USA and the Arctic. Includes paleobotany textbook. Free to anyone in the Nova Scotia or New Brunswick in the Maritimes who has a current interest in the subject or studying the local stratigraphy. Decent condition but used. Please, personal message only. If you dont hear back, box is taken.

First time posting on here. Seems like there is a lot of knowledgeable members so I'm hoping there is someone who is familiar with Tournasian age vertebrate fauna and can help me to properly identify this jawbone. I have a few candidates, however, I would like to hear thoughts from members. There is also an ulna bone situated directly above the jaw.

October of 2014 saw a few storms that rocked the coast of Joggins pretty good. In sites like these, the day(s) after a storm is the best day to see if nature revealed more of its secrets. I invited my friend Ray to come down South to Nova Scotia with me for a little trip and boom, on the road with good company! For people that don't know what or where Joggins is by now (look up my previous posts or just search for it on the 'InTeRnEtS' via a search engine), you'll find out that this UNESCO site plays a crucial part in trying to understand our past, before the domination of giant diapsids, aka dinosaurs. This place touts having discovered some of the (if not the) oldest reptile ever found, which most remains are lodged inside fossil trees which Joggins is reknowned for. The area that we usually like to walk to is a section along the Joggins Formation, located between Lower Cove and Shulie. The formations North/North East of the targeted section, Boss Point/Lower Cove, are older. The cliffs are set as classic layer position, although tilted for a few kilometers, where the older rock is at the bottom, and topped with younger strata. There is a nice spot to park near the small bridge in Lower Cove. From there, you make your way down and start heading South. It only takes a few hundred feet before you start encountering the exposed cliff strata. Calamite within another plant fossil(square on scale=1cm) Walking a few meters more we noticed this while looking up... As we saw some of the sandstone slabs and boulders slide down the cliff, or just hang there precariously, we came up upon this slab. These had wonderful tetrapod tracks running on one side of the slab of sandstone, running from the bottom, and running off on the left side. These prints are not bad, well preserved, and can easily make out the manus and pes (hands and feet) of the track-making animal. The average height of these prints are between 3 to 4.5 CM, with a width of 4 to 4.5 CM. I have many more photos that offer different angles and exact scale measurements, which I didn't post. And yes I realize that the scale on these 3 pics obscure an actual print. My bad. Ray playing the role of the human scale Trying to figure out from which layer this dropped from Being observers without a permit, we had to leave the tracks untouched where we found them. Unfortunate as these are most probably shattered in pieces, carried by the strong tides. We that, we moved on. The remainder of our walk is what is considered a typical Joggins walk, seeing trees, roots, plants, and the occasional fern. Tree cast with coal Close up Stigmaria Mass of ferns Tree cast Calamite There might be changes coming and the chance to save these type of fossils could be made a little easier with positive collaboration with invested entities such as the Joggins Fossil Center. In the future, I and others will have to be more careful in capturing relevant data, flagging the specimen(s), record the coordinates, and try to flag someone who has the power to extract said so fossil(s). This way the chances to save something like the trackways found that day from the ravages of time and nature would be more favorable. Time will tell. Till the next adventure! - Keenan

Taken from one of my latest posts: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2014/01/blue-beach-hantsport-nova-scotia-fall.html I had meant to make a post on my blog on my last trip from last year to Blue Beach, in Nova Scotia but it had slipped my mind. I had brought my new Olympus SLR camera with me to capture snapshots and compare the quality with what I used to take photos with. A bit bulkier than the old gal, but I must admit that I won't miss her much. I can't recall when I went down there, and the data on the camera isn't accurate as I didn't bother setting the right time/date format. On this trek you will notice there's a little of everything spread all over along the beach. South of the Jurassic and Triassic rocks that make up most of the Blomidon Peninsula lies the Carboniferous Horton Formation. These fossil bearing sedimentary rocks stretch from a little South of Hantsport to about Boot Island, North East of the city of Wolfville. The further one ventures South, the more you'll encounter rocks containing evaporites. These would be mostly part of the Carboniferous Windsor group, full of limestones and gypsum, such as in Cheverie (click to see other post on location). Before heading down the path you get to see this The walk through the woods is nice The view as soon as you turn left walking down the path. These stratum have marine animals such as bivalves, brachiopods, and fragments of other animals. I've found some shale with arthropod traces in this area. I've mostly found them further North though. Some nice traces Rusophycus and cruziana from what I can tell There is also a good amount of plant material found along the beach. Fish scales Tree section Mechanical or actual tracks? Diplichnites Section of the cliffs where some of the bigger traces were found, further North. Tracks? Rusophycus (largest I've seen here so far) Last year was a great season and Blue Beach didn't disappoint. It's one of these places where it keeps attracting you. It will be one of my first beaches to hit when the ice starts to melt. The cliffs keep working out new material, so every time is a new adventure. Till next time... - Keenan

From my blog post http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/04/joggins-march-2013.html I had been cooped up for a few months and the last few weeks of winter had been brutal health wise. I thought at one point I was having cabin fever symptoms. A few weekends ago I had taken a nice little drive in the Cape Enraged (New Brunswick) at the end of my bout with a nasty flu. The weather had been a little bit better and the Sun was actually gonna make an apparition for much of the weekend, so there was no way I would stay at home and not partake in a little road trip! I drove South to Joggins for a short road trip. By the time I would get there, low tide would have already started to turn. I hit the beach at about 8:30am and it was a little bit nippy, especially in the shadow of the cliffs. Big chunks of ice were hanging high and melting, causing sediment to fall in big heaps at the foot of the cliffs. I had a few hours of wandering on the beach before it became too dangerous with the Sun bearing down on the ice. The trees that were familiar to me from last year were practically all gone, either buried in sediment, or carried away by the force of the tides. There was a few that had escaped destruction, for the time being anyways. But with all this weathering and grinding of the rocks by Mother Nature, lots of new material surfaced on the beach. New plants, animals, and trackways littered the beach. I didn't stick around too long, but I did take a few pics here and there. Joggins was a little trip to get me going. I'll probably hit the Blomidon area next to see what secrets the beaches have dug up. Cross bedding Calamite Water channel One of the few remaining trees

Taken from my blogpost http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/08/cape-breton-sydney-mines-donkin-july.html I had planned to head back to Cape Breton in the Summer of 2013. I set aside a few days during my first week of vacation in July to head back over there. I decided to go during the week, leaving on a Tuesday to avoid the weekend touristic rush. My plans were to spend some time looking at rock, but to also do the touristy thing and visit some of the local interests, such as the French Fortress of Louisbourg. From Moncton to Sydney is a bit over 5 hours of driving by car. After a few stops along the way, I arrived at the hotel at about mid afternoon. I booked my room that I had reserved in advance, dropped my stuff, and jetted out to the beach for a little afternoon stroll to check out some rocks before turning in for the night. Point Aconi, Cape Breton I headed out to a spot I had already gone last year to check for rocks. Point Aconi is well known for its Carboniferous fossils, having coal seams cross that area, leading to economy based on that product, with several mines tapping throughout an extensive period of time. Going down the beach was tricky as you had to walk over thick layers of smelly, rotting seaweed. Once on the sand, the rest of the walk was practically easy. When I reached the point, the beach was littered with shale fragments all over the place. There weren't many fragments larger than the size of my hand. Fossil bearing shale The shale that comes out of these cliffs are rich in fossils. There's barely any piece of rock that you would grab that didn't have something on it. The tides surely did some good work, grinding these rocks to tiny bits. Still, there was some pretty ones, albeit not numerous. Annularia After spending some time picking at rocks, I headed back to town for supper and to relax a bit. The city of Sydney is nice, especially with all the beaches and rocks surrounding it. I called it the day and turned in early. The next morning I took a drive to Sydney Mines, north of Sydney, to check out the Cape Breton Fossil Museum where I met Stuart and Jim, the gentlemen responsible for this beautiful interpretation center. We had a good chat on everything related to rocks and Cape Breton, and happily went about checking their fossils on display. The quality of their collection is quite good and a must for anybody visiting Cape Breton. After my stroll in the center, I said my goodbyes and proceeded south towards Louisbourg. ** If you want to see the Louisbourg visit, go check my post where I post a few pics of my walk down history here: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/08/cape-breton-sydney-mines-donkin-july.html When I was done with my stroll in the park, I decided to do some more rock hunting before heading back for a long drive home. From Louisbourg I drove up north towards Donkin to check out the rocks. It was hard not to walk over rock that didn't have any fossils on it. The cliff erodes at a pretty good rate, and thick slabs of rock dropped on the beach have nice plants on it. The fossils in this area are very nice and numerous. I ended up staying a bit later then I expected and managed to twist my ankle by stepping in a stupid gopher hole. Limping back to the car, I left a little bit after 7pm and got back home at around 1am. Quite a drive, but it is one of the things I enjoy the most when I'm out there. It was a good trip and another item to scratch off my list of the year. I'd say it ended up being a good kickstart to my Summer. Cheers! - Keenan

The 10 day dig at Wasson Bluff, where the oldest dinosaurs found in Canada can be found, wrapped up last Sunday. Many interesting finds were made and lots of people contributed to make this dig a successful one. Dr. Tim Fedak posted on the Earthquake Dinosaurs's blog a very good summary of the successful project. Click on the link to check it out! http://earthquake-dinosaurs.ca/volunteers-and-science/ I was very proud to have participated in this project! Cheers! - Keenan

http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1147369-digging-for-dinosaur-clues Article on the work going on at Wasson's Bluff, site of where Canada's oldest dinos were found. I just posted on the forums a blog post I just did, as I went down there myself to lend a hand. http://www.thefossilforum.com/index.php?/topic/39864-dig-going-on-at-wassons-bluff-where-oldest-dinosaurs-in-canada-have-been-found/

Taken from blog post http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/07/joggins-nova-scotia-june-2013.html Being on vacation meant being on the road, looking for rocks. That also meant that during that week, I had to make at least one stop at Joggins, in the wet province of Nova Scotia, where the bees shoot flames, and.. ok, lets move on. Here's a few photos of my trek down the beach. Like always, be mindful of the tides. Not knowing when high tide comes in could spell trouble as exit routes are not easily found. So you'd end up stranded for a few hours, so really not recommended to stick around when high time comes around. Sand nodule containing plants The sand nodules that I found on the beach are extremely hard and those I came across contained mostly plants, like the one I found already cracked on the photo above. Some of them were covered with pyrite (fool's gold). Trackways or sediment deformation? Lots of new plants, especially calamites (some whole) A lonely fern Found the other print of the lonely fern Got to the coal mine shaft and was surprised of how much had eroded away in a matter of weeks. Parts of the top of the shaft had collapsed then washed away, leaving a bigger gap. You could smell sulfur, and it smelled like heck! Mine shaft pic taken last year (left) and this Summer (right) View of inside the shaft Stigmaria ('tree' root) Calamites in situ Sigillaria imprint I was surprised that this time around there were not many trees. I've found one partly buried in scree, and another (mostly flame scarred) loose on the beach. There was a lot of material that had come loose, but the tide had managed to carry and spread these all over. This spot is usually hard to resist when talking rock trip. Every time I come down here, I end up seeing an ever changing scenery. If you're ever in the area of Joggins, Nova Scotia, stop by. Its worth it. Cheers! - Keenan

Taken from my blog post: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/06/cheverie-hantsport-nova-scotia.html I had planned to go back to Blue Beach in the Avonpart area for a while now. The site and other neighboring lcoations have always yielded wonderful specimens and I was itching to get back on the beaches and under the warm Nova Scotia Sun. I hadn't had the chance to hit the road for weeks due to some illness, but seeing the opportunity to go on a day trip, I took it. 1st stop Cheverie (red), 2nd stop Hantsport (red) 3rd and final stop Parrsboro (blue) (red path - from Moncton to stop #2 in Nova Scotia ) (blue path - from stop #2 to #3 in Parrsboro, then back to New Brunswick) I had planned to make a few stops in the Windsor area along the coast. I'd decided to check the white beaches of Cheverie and its gypsum cliffs. These evaporites were left from an ancient body of water, the Windor Sea. Gypsum makes up big sections the area, and is intermixed with very fossiliferous limestones and shales, from Cheverie to across the bay at Blue Beach, which would be my second stop. Stop #1 Cheverie is a few hours from Moncton, about 3 hours drive one way. I took the scenic route via Walton to drive along the coast. The drive itself was excellent as the weather couldn't have been better. Sunny with +30 degrees Celcius along the coast, what more can one ask? I left Moncton at around 7:30am and arrived at my first destination at about 11am. There was some road construction so that added a few more minutes to the trip. Parking on the side of the road, I grabbed my camera and proceeded down the beach. These cliffs are mostly composed of gypsum, with some limestone outcrops jutting out from time to time in some areas. Gypsum outcrop Horsetail White beaches of Cheverie After a short walk on the beach, I packed my gear and headed on the other side of Avon River, to Hantsport. My second stop that afternoon was Blue Beach down Bluff Road. I've been here a few times before and there is so much to see. The outcrops at Blue Beach are abundant with fossils from the Carboniferous Period, with layers transitioning between land- and water-type paleoenvironments. Stop #2 The shale and mudstone are rich in fossils, with numerous brachiopods and bivalves, fish scales, bones, and arthropod trackways. Some of the other sediment type such as some of the sandstones contain various well preserved plants and tetrapod tracks. Scales Shells Bone Arthropod and worm feeding and resting traces Outcrop where loose material contained many fossils Molluscs in groups Bones Possible trackways? Tree segment with bark impression Diplichnites (arthropod tracks) Trackways (?) - fossil plant part of the sandstone block I spent a couple of hours on the beach and kept coming up on a lot of material to look at. When it was time for me to leave, I noticed that I had only walk a tiny fraction of the beach that I had initially intended to. This site deserves another visit really soon from yours truly to check the rest of the beach. Having spent most of the day on the other side of Cumberland, I thought that it would be nice to have a bite in Parrsboro, across the Minas Basin. It was 4pm and I realized that it would be a 2 hour drive, or detour, but the Sun was out in full and the drive would be nice, especially driving along the coast. I packed up my stuff, and made my way towards Parrsboro, which would end up being stop #3. I drove into town and went down Two Island road to finally end up at the Harborview Restaurant, which had opened a few weeks earlier for the season. The food's great and you just can't beat the view. View from outside the restaurant Even though I wasn't able to hit all the spots I wanted, it was a very nice and productive day. Being cooped up in the house with the flu for two weeks, it was nice to catch some vitamin D from the good fiery globe in the sky. I arrived back in Moncton at about 8:30pm, but I could have kept on going. I will definitely have to swing back by that area very soon. Till then, cheers! - Keenan

Taken from my blog: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/04/birch-cove-west-beach.html One of the curatorial walks organized by the Fundy Geological Museum (FGM) took us to Birch Cove/Raven Head (Candidate Wilderness Area), North of Cape Chignecto Provincial Park. Here's a description posted by the FGM about the area: The province wants to designate the area as a Candidate Wilderness Area. But when we got to the site, we encountered something that could jeopardize the efforts to make it happen. I'll elaborate a little later. The other location that we visited after Birch Cove was West Beach, not too far West from the first location. Our first trek didn't take long and we had time a plenty before the tides came back, so we took the opportunity to head over West Beach. Here's the description posted by the FGM on their website for Apple River / West Beach: Both sites are part of the Carboniferous Cumberland Group (Late Carboniferous). This area doesn't show the same type of disturbance experienced further South near Cape Chignecto Provincial Park, which shows signs of faulting and folding. Birch Cove (1), West Beach (2) To get to Birch Cove is to drive West of Parrsboro (easiest way to get there) via Apple River Road or by driving South from Joggins on Shulie Road. Getting there is tricky if you don't have a guide that is already familiar with the area. The roads are dominated by dirt roads used by tractor trailers hauling wood. The roads are extremely bumpy and dusty, making the drive a bit of a drag. We parked the cars in a safe area and started down some semi-wooded trail. When I say semi-wooded, it means that the foliage is only a few feet in thickness on each side. The rest has been clear cut, and the landscape is just a poor sight to see. The province wants to make this area some kind of protected nature reserve, but there's not a whole lot remaining. Sorry sight indeed After a little pause to contemplate the area, we proceeded further down the trail where we got into a wooded area. Walking down the trail to the beach Raccoon tracks We made our way to the beach and it was nice, compared to the sight we saw up the trail just before. Water environments are the dominated feature when looking at the sediments that compose the cliffs in this area. The traces of past ice activity on a major scale is also apparent on the topography of Birch Cove. Sand stone cliffs mixed in with layers of conglomerate, marine sediments, topped by glacial till and raised beaches. Ken Adams (left), Kerr Canning (center), Matt Stimson (right) Warm enough for a swim =P Birch Cove is a nice site. Not a lot of fossils around but nice to see the diverse topography of the locality, which was a major factor in the region's local economy for many years. Several locals within the past two centuries had settled in the area and erected mills, using the water flowing down the Apple River. Kerr, which was part of the expedition, had found several artifacts from the previous century of settlers that had since abandoned the area a long time ago. He showed us remains of some of the settlement in the nearby forest. What remains are several sandstone blocks from various foundations. One of the old foundation After wandering in the forest for a little while, we came out the trails and hopped in our cars to head over to our second destination. West Beach is a few kilometers South-West of Birch Cove. The cliffs in this site have strata that are more familiar of the other sites such as Joggins. Also similar are some of the fossils that we found in this area, especially in the coal-bearing sections. Tree in situ The tree in the picture above shows the base of the tree with two of its 'surface' roots radiating out. Tree roots with root hairs Tetrapod footprint Overall it was a good trip. I had already been in the area before but further South at Spicer's Cove (which I suggest everybody go check!). The drive up and down the rolling hills by itself is worth the trip. One can spend the whole day in that area and come across a very diverse topography. Cheers!

Here's the link to the original blog post: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/04/somewhere-in-parrsboro-there-are.html A few days ago I drew a map of the West Bay/Cape Sharp area South-West of the town of Parrsboro, Nova Scotia. I had wanted to check the Jurassic age basalt cliffs of Cape Sharp and poke around a bit to see if I could come out with anything. On the cliffs on each side of Cape Sharp are Carboniferous sandstone cliffs which displays a fascinating record of trackways, especially those of tetrapods. I had marked on my makeshift map where the location of a possible access point to the beach would be. If that wasn't the case, I had a plan B, set by driving back towards Parrsboro and finding an access point via Partridge Island. I woke up Sunday (April 14th) morning and it was snowing. I said to myself: "Rain, Snow, or Shine, I'm heading down!". I hit the road at 7am that same morning. The temperature kept at about 0oC Celcius so the road conditions were pretty decent. The snow was melting as soon as it hit the pavement. I had checked the forecast the night before and they had called for higher temperature and a break in late morning. That was good enough for me. I got to the road leading to the supposed beach access by driving a red, muddy, slippery road with my Rabbit. My car is usually gray, but not this morning after my trip down here. I parked the car, got my gear, and headed down the path. Getting down the trail was somewhat annoying. Big trees had fallen at numerous spots and sometimes that meant I had to crawl in the mud or hop on the logs. I'm barely 5'2", so yeah it wasn't a pretty picture. Cape Sharp behind the snowy haze I got to the ledge of the cliff and there was somewhat of a 'trail' going down. It zigzagged a bit but the last 15 feet were just muck and loose sediment. I don't think that if I went down I could get myself back up. I tested the trail halfway and tried going back up. The face of the cliff was so loose and slippery that it took every ounce of strength in me to make it back up. There was no other spots to go down so, defeated, I made my way back up the steep trail. I exerted myself trying to go up that I had to lie down for a few minutes, fighting waves of nausea. During that episode I somehow managed to gash my hand pretty good. Wet, muddy, and bloodied, I sat my sorry in the car and drove to Plan B. West tip of Partridge Island There was no way that this rock trip was gonna be in vain, so I found myself taking the beach road behind the Ottawa House down West Bay Road. Last time I was here was in 2011 so my memory was a little bit hazy. I drove down the sandy road and after dodging or ramming through some major olympic sized pools of water, I managed to park in a safe area. Dirty rabbit! The tides were coming back slowly so I had lots of time to stroll on the beach. Everything was wet so I was curious to see if I could still spot trackways with all the glare. Turns out after a few minutes that I could, and I managed to spot some old tracks and some new ones. The cliffs are put at about Late Carboniferous, and are part of the Cumberland Group - Parrsboro Formation. The layers show an environment alternating between wet and arid, indicated by layers rich in river biota with surrounding vegetation, and the next indicating dryer conditions. Mud crack features The next few photos show a series of trackways and close ups of the ones I managed to spot. Multiple sets of tracks Tracks running horizontal Set of tracks, evenly spaced, with drag mark running along the center Close up of one of the indentation (from the previous photo) No clue at the present of what this is In a section that was protected from the elements, I took the time to take a closer look at some of the rippled surface and found some nice tiny tracks skipping on the surface. Each mes/pes are about ~1cm, running in several directions. Folding where two major faults intersect. The rock is strained and the strate disappears under a thick mix of glacial till, only to reappear a few hundred feet further West. Some trackways to be found, but mostly deformed and barely identifiable. This trip ended up being a very good one. I was able to get to see a few things I haven't seen before, and new data to incorporate in my ever evolving map of the area. Shows that its nice to prepare a litte in advance so that you're not left in a lurch. To finish a good trip in Parrsboro, I had to stop at my friends place, Doug and Jackie's of course! Stayed a while and talked rock. I managed to get out of town with two gorgeous pieces to add to my ever increasing mineral collection. Here's their site: http://www.amethystboutique.com/ On this note, I leave you to your musings. Cheers!

Taken from my recent blog post: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/04/five-islands-provincial-park-2012.html Here's another of my belated posts on one of my trips last year. Me and my buddy Craig went for one of many trips to the beautiful town of Parrsboro, Nova Scotia. From town, we headed East towards the small village of Five Islands, which has a Provincial park of the same name: Five Islands Provincial Park. Islands from right to left: Moose i., Diamond i., Long i., Pinnacle i., Egg i., Pinnacle rock Five Islands Provincial Park is a location that has witnessed several events, including a major extinction. Most of the rocks South of the park, towards Red Head and continuing on to Lower Economy, are of a red sandstone from the Triassic Period. These red sandstones from around Red Head are indicative of an arid, desertic climate. On top of the Triassic rock is a layer that corresponds to the Triassic-Jurassic boundary, sandwiched between Triassic sandstone and Jurassic basalts right on top of it. This Triassic-Jurassic layer is identified by its white sandstone and mudstone. The importance of this layer is that it represents one of the major extinction events that had occurred at the boundary. It is still being studied today. The basalts that top these sandstone layers South of the park and protrude West and created the islands, are of the same found at Blomidon and Cape d'Or. These Jurassic age ancient lava flows and dykes could have been part of an active volcanic network seen all over the Minas Basin. The Old Wife is a result of this contorted, violent past. The islands which dot the landscape are also mostly composed of this Jurassic basalt, and some sections of Jurassic sandstones. "Old Wife", with Moose Island in the background The red cliffs just North of the basalt and separated by faults is of Jurassic age. Dinosaur tracks and other fossils have been found occasionally from either the cliff face, or from loose rocks on the beach. A local by the name of Eldon George had found, among many other wonderful fossils, the smallest dinosaur tracks ever found back in the 1980s at Wasson's Bluff, sandstones of the same age and formation not too far from here. See Jon Tattrie's article. Organic layers within water channel Jurassic McCoy Brook Frm. (left), Jurassic North Mountain Frm. (right) But I digress, as I keep rambling on the technical and less on the practical. We arrived at the park when the tide was going down. We walked down the beach and was met with a thick band of fog that was going out the bay. Lava flows Heading South after searching the beach for agate and fossil fragments, the fog lifted and the Sun came out. We went around the Old Wife and headed towards Red Head. Fault running through columnar basalt Beach made up of basalt and minerals "Red Head", seperating the Triassic-Jurassic Blomidon Frm. (West) and Triassic Wolfville Frm. (East) Triassic Wolfville Frm. red sandstone cliffs Modern day trackways (crab) This area is only accessible at extreme low tide, so the window of opportunity is very small. Getting trapped or stranded is a very highly probable so good planning and looking up the tide charts before heading down this way is an ABSOLUTE MUST! This is one of the places in Nova Scotia that I highly recommend visiting, among other sites of course. =)

Taken from my blog: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/04/red-rocks-mcgahey-brook-cape-chignecto.html I've been catching up on a lot of past trips I made in the Maritimes that I didn't have time to post on my blog. One such trip was a rockhunting trek in Nova Scotia in the Advocate Harbour area, West of Parrsboro. Site (circled in red), Isle Haute (bottom left) The topography of the southern Chignecto region is very faulted, showcasing the collision of this part of the continent with North Africa some 400 million years ago, forming the ancient Supercontinent Pangaea. The Carboniferous strata of this regions has been folded and faulted in spectacular fashion, neighboring Jurassic (Early) age basalts from North Mountain, which you can see at Cape d'Or and other locations along the Minas Basin, and rhyolites in the West (ie. Spicer's Cove). Cape d'Or is especially known for its natural copper deposits, once mined in the early 1900s. 1- Actual Location (C-H Carboniferous, Early - Horton Group) CC - Carboniferous, Late - Cumberland Group (ie. Joggins) 2- Cape d'Or, Copper deposits, basalt lava flows, major fault 3- Jurassic, Early - North Mountain basalts (various overlapping lava flows) Isle Haute, composed mainly of basalt (Jurassic) Since the last ice age about 11,000 years ago, the area was uplifted. The land rebounded, leaving raised beaches on top of the cliffs with layers of glacial till. Because the region was involved in this tectonic tug of war, whatever fossils found in the rock has been worked mostly beyond recognition. There are some rare fossils that escaped this calamity, but they are very scarce indeed. Sandstone and other types of sedimentary rock had been metamorphosed, pulled apart and pressed, warped, and molded. Beading, sandstone under tectonic stress Tremendous pressure applied to these rocks introduced minerals such as quartz (quartzite). The shales and mudstone are practically pulverized, ground into a very fine material, resulting in this dark sand all over this beach. Glacial striation for fault scarring? Horsetail (related to ancient club mosses, lycopsids) Nice folding! Folding and faulting Sedimentary strata changed under incredible stress Morphology drastically being modified in several episodes This area is very fascinating and exciting. Here is a place where you can witness the continent being pushed around and shaped over and over during a very long period of time, in various ways, due to harsh and extreme forces exerted by the tectonic activity at the time of continental push and separation over 400 million years. The scale of it is amazing on the grandiose scale to the micro level of change. This shows that rocks can be very malleable under great stress. What doesn't bend, eventually breaks. Cheers!

From my blog: http://redleafz.blogspot.ca/2013/04/economy-point-copequid-bay.html Back in August of 2012, I took part of a walk organized by the Fundy Geological Museum (FGM). It was in the middle of the week (Thursday August 9th, I think), so there wasn't any tourist or non-employee beside myself. The gang consisted of geology students and staff, led by Ken Adams, the curator of the FGM. Looking out towards Cobequid Bay Economy is located in Nova Scotia, East of Parrsboro in Cumberland County. From Parrsboro, you take the 2 road and head East, past Five Islands Provincial Park. Economy Point has many trails that are beach accessible, but the getting there can be messy with the muddy silt snaking within the bay. View of Five Islands (background) The rocks of this area are part of the Wolfville Formation, Triassic aged red siltstone and desert sandstones, a lot of it apparently sculpted by wind. The bottom part of the cliffs along the bay are of this red sandstone, and upon it rests several feet of glacial till from the last ice age that helped sculpt the area. Moving around entailed hiking up and down huge slabs of sandstone that displayed odd physical features. There are all sorts of trackways and burrows, but there are also structures that none of us could readily identify. Burrows? Plant traces? Toolmarks? Triassic sandstone (bottom), glacial till (top) Diplichnites (such as of a myriapod)? Natural caves Water channel Bird nests in the cliffs The further East we walked, the stranger the physical features would get. Even Ken was baffled by some of the structures we'd come across. Here's a few photos taken by my Blackberry and you be the judge. Can you identify any of the following? Bottom of a tree (?) Tree roots (?) Many of the structures are found on this red sandstone Worm burrows? These holes are so odd. At first I thought they were cavities left behind by plants, but some of these exhibit strange patterns around, looking bizarrely like projectile of some sort. Some of these 'projectile' show patterns and/or direction. Am I imagining things? After a long and hot afternoon, we turned back and made it back to our cars, pondering on what we saw. We were intrigued by what we had found. Was this unique? If not, where else could we find these? Any feedback would be much appreciated! =)