trilobyter Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 As an avid trilobite hunter, I have always been fascinated by the trilobites from Morocco. One of my first trilobites was one of the ubiquitous Calymenes from Morocco, and I have always wondered what collecting there would be like. Having a bit of a break before starting my new job, I found a (relatively) cheap last minute ticket to Marrakesh from San Francisco, and set off for a weeklong collecting trip to the Anti-Atlas Mountains near the trilobite capitol of Alnif, Morocco. I found a local trilobite digger who was able to guide me around the many remote dig sites, with a focus on the beautifully preserved Devonian trilobites. After nearly 24 hours of travel to get to Marrakesh, I took an 8 hour bus ride to the town of Tinghir, where my guide picked me up and drove me another hour to the small town of Alnif. We went to many of the classic Devonian localities, including Jbel Issoumour, Mrakib, Oufaten, Atchana, Timerzite, and ended off the trip to find some of the common Ordovician Calymenes at Jbel Tiskaouine near town. The collecting was hard - I anticipated it being difficult but underestimated the level of effort required to find these bugs. Having spent a considerable amount of time digging in Utah, working the hard limestones of Pierson Cove, this was on a whole another level. Unlike the nice shales/limestones of Utah, the rocks do not split into nice sheets, but fractured randomly with no discernable bedding planes. This required digging out large blocks of limestone, and then using 3 lb hand sledges, these blocks were broken into progressively smaller pieces, looking for cross sections of the trilobites, which oftentimes only looked like a random squiggly line if that. These pieces were then pieced back together like a jigsaw puzzle, and carefully wrapped to ensure all the pieces were preserved. My guide was able to tell what type of trilobite it was and its completeness based on the cross section alone - something I would have never been able to do. After 6 days of digging, we ended up with close to 100 complete trilobites - including several Phacops, Cyphaspis, Gerastos, Hollardops, Leonaspis, Cornuproetus, Crotocephalus, Odontochile, Scuttelum, and Walliserops, and of course several nice Calymenes. I now have a world class collection of (unprepared) Moroccan trilobites. I have my work ahead of me - it will likely take me years before I have the time to prepare them all. It was an amazing adventure, but not one that I will likely repeat in the near future, given the distance from the West Coast. And overall, the collecting was less enjoyable than I had hoped - swinging a 3 lb hand sledge for hours on end to look for a faint trace of a trilobite just wasn't nearly as rewarding as my experiences in collecting in Utah, where complete trilobites would pop out with the swing of a small brick hammer. I now have a much greater appreciation for the work and effort that goes into securing one of these amazing Moroccan bugs. I'm happy to share information with anyone who is interested in a similar trip - feel free to PM me. I may also consider a trade for some of this unprepped material - but given how much blood sweat and tears it took to get this stuff, it might take a lot of convincing. Here are a few pics: Jbel Issoumour near Bou Dib - you can see the light grey Psychopyge couche layer running for miles Jbel Mrakib - found many Cyphaspis here A typical trilobite found in cross section from the hard limestones - I believe these are two Phacops Working the hard limestones at Jbel Oufaten A nice Scuttelum from Oufaten Atchana - where backhoes have been brought in to expose the trilobite layer several feet below the surface Phacops from Atchana - you can see the detailed schizochroal eye popping out The workings at upper Atchana A nice Paralejurus from upper Atchana The scenery reminded me a lot of the House Range in Utah - except you see these guys Working the Harpes Couche of Jbel Issoumour Another view of the Psychopyge couche of Issoumour - it has been trenched for miles and miles I found these two nice complete Hollardops as float while walking around the trenches of the Psychopyge couche - pretty rare to find them exposed to this extent just lying around Jbel Timerzite - found several nice Walliserops and Leonaspis here that will take a lot of preparation. The town of Timerzite can be seen in the background. Jbel Tiskaouine - where the Moroccan Calymene trilobites found in shops all over the world are from Sorting all of our finds at the end of the trip - I was barely able to fit it all into my one checked bag and carryon bags. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilized6s Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Wow! That is a life long dream trip for me. Awesome finds! I can't wait to see them prepped. ~Charlie~ "There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask why.....i dream of things that never were, and ask why not?" ~RFK ->Get your Mosasaur print ->How to spot a fake Trilobite ->How to identify a CONCRETION from a DINOSAUR EGG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Wow! Fantastic trip report. Thank you! Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darktooth Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Sounds like a wonderful trip. I can only imagine what it must of felt like to collect there. I like Trilo-butts and I cannot lie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joel77520 Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 I wanna do this one day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lcordova Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 WOW. You had no problems with the security??? My understanding is that sometimes is not very safe for tourists, specially Americans Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wrangellian Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Nice report! Great (large) pics and description of your experience. I hope the photobucket-hosted pics don't disappear from the Forum anytime soon... I think anyone who gets to collect at Utah is spoiled, but then so is anyone who gets to collect in Morocco despite the work involved. You took home quite a haul. I only have a couple prepped Moroccan bugs because I can't go there and can't prep anything. I would go there to collect the Fezouata if I could. Oddities such as Discophyllum... (and less prepping needed there) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDudeCO Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 wow, what an amazing adventure! Thanks for sharing! A trip of a lifetime for many of us im sure! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpc Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Excellent report... Morocco for trilobites and shark teeth has been on my bucket list for a while. PM sent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carcharodontosaurus Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Awesome trip. I'd love to go to Morocco for dinosaurs and reptiles, but I don't have the money or resources. Maybe something for the bucket list? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fossildude19 Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Great report and pictures! Thanks for posting them. Regards, Tim - VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER VFOTM --- APRIL - 2015 __________________________________________________ "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." John Muir ~ ~ ~ ~ ><))))( *> About Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 That's just cooler than cool. Nice fossils. RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolmt Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Trip of a lifetime, I am in awe of anyone who actually does it, especially from the West Coast...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prem Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 I am curious -- say you are not a prepper at all...can you deposit the unprepped trilos with a local, skilled prepper and pay X dollars to have them finish it out for you and ship? Would it be less expensive than, say, a completed bug that has been found, prepped and shipped by a local distributor? ---Prem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustPlainPetrified Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Great trip! I find it amazing that your were able to organize all that and it paid off so amazingly. Thanks for all the photos and a great report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Wow....what an exotic adventure. You have to love a fossil trip that involves camels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Thanks for a great report. It's a good reminder about the real value of these Moroccan trilobites and how much hard work and knowledge goes into finding, extracting and preparing them. I think I recognize the young fellow in the middle of the last photo where the finds are being sorted. I believe he was at our recent fossil show in Stuttgart offering his raw material to our trilobite enthusiasts. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fossilselachian Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 All the pics were great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trilobyter Posted April 1, 2016 Author Share Posted April 1, 2016 lcordova - I had no real problems with security. Morocco is relatively tourist friendly, and I did not feel in danger at any point, although while in Marrakesh, there were many people out to try to scam you out of your money (fake tour guides, snake charmers, etc.). Once outside of the big city, I did not feel any less secure than being in any small town in the US. Ludwigia - You have a good eye, yes he had just returned from a show at Stuttgart following my trip. His father was the one who guided me and they sell their finds at shows in Europe and Tucson. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ludwigia Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 Good to hear you were moving in the right circles. I'd recommend this guy any time. Greetings from the Lake of Constance. Roger http://www.steinkern.de/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taj Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 Nice report ! Thanks ! Brings back fond memories . As for security , I would feel a lot more comfortable down there than say, in Casa or Marakkech ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted April 7, 2016 Share Posted April 7, 2016 I am very grateful to 'see how it's done' in Morocco; thank you for your fine report "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TNGray Posted April 10, 2016 Share Posted April 10, 2016 We are headed to Morocco on Friday. I have a guide in Alnif for 3 days the following week. Any tips would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taj Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 That's a nice trip ahead of you . As a tip , I would just advise you to think over what you really seek and be carefull to express it clearly . From Alnif you can have access to all the paleozoic , plus the cretaceous around Taouz /Erfoud if you're willing to drive some extra miles . Also don't forget all these nice trilobites you see inthe reports come out as hints of bits of shells which have to be glued back and prepped for a long time before turning out into these exquisite pieces . There are places where you will be able to find trilos already exposed and already prepped by weather ( like the pics above ) , but the quantity and quality will be something different ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Pocock Posted April 11, 2016 Share Posted April 11, 2016 Wow thanks for the report something to aim for in life. Regards Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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