Preparations for my 3rd Møns Klint Fossil Excavation

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Hey everyone - It's Christian.

For the past few months, I was inactive on TFF as I had a lot of schoolwork.. 

But now, I've got a lot more time on my hands - which means that I can get back to all things fossil related  This of course includes making preparations for my 3rd Møns Klint Fossil Excavation (MKFE - the fieldwork aspect of my Møns Klint Fossil Research Program). I'll be going for 2 weeks, in mid-August - I'm really excited!

As I said in a post from a few months ago, the collection policy of this MKFE is essentially the same as last time's (cephalopod, crustacean, echinoderm and vertebrate material). This time, though, there'll be a bigger focus on articulated and/or associated material - eroded sea urchin spines and belemnite fragments are getting too numerous... 

On the first days of the field trip, I'll have to do quite a bit of prospecting for new sites to work at, because there's a chance that the landslide spoil heap from last year has most likely been washed away by the waves.

I'm already having some ideas of particular projects for this field trip, which include a comprehensive collection of washout microfossils - to determine relative abundances of various faunal groups. Another project is the in-depth analysis of fossil material from different layers of chalk - which I hope will yield some zone fossils. Of course, I'm still hoping to find a lil' mosasaur tooth   

I'll also use this field trip as an opportunity to donate to the GeoCenter Møns Klint some of the fossils I found during the 2nd MKFE.

I'll keep you guys posted! Stay tuned

 

 

 

I'm so excited to getting back there!

 

-Christian

 

[caldigger]

So I am gathering the fossils are located somewhere mid cliff and you work in the tallus piles that have fallen to the base.

Is this correct?

[Tidgy's Dad]

Welcome back, Christian. 

I look forward to your reports. 

 

Don't forget to keep your eye out for those brachiopods. 

[Phevo]

The slip from 17' still has some material left to go through

 

Best Regards

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

@Tidgy's Dad Thanks a lot! And brachiopods aren't very rare at Møns Klint - I'm sure I might find one or two... I'll be sure to post them here  

 

@caldigger You're right - the fossils are everywhere in the cliffs, and I usually look through material that has fallen down the cliffs. The majority of fossils that I collected during last field trip was from the remains of a landslide.

 

@Phevo You mean the one close to the lighthouse? Thanks for letting me know  

 

-Christian

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Little update - Fieldwork has been planned for the 2nd and 3rd weeks of August. 

 

Also, I've almost finished preparation of an echinoid (sea urchin) assemblage from Møns Klint - see picture below. The specimen's almost ready for donation to the GeoCenter museum, I just need to write up a descriptive note for it  

Approx. 10 cm across, contains remains of 2 distinct sea urchin species - including spines, mouth parts, and plates from their 'exoskeleton'

 

I've also started going through a second batch of microfossil material collected during last year's field trip - I'll soon post pictures of the fossils I found  

 

Stay tuned for more updates!

 

-Christian

[ynot]

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Currently reworking one of the sections of my paper describing a partial crocodylian jaw from Møns Klint - I'm hoping to have the whole paper finished by the time the 3rd MKFE begins

 

Also, here are as promised some of the fossils I collected from the 2nd batch of washout material:

 

-Christian

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

I know I haven't posted in this thread in a few weeks, I've been working on reviewing and revising my collection strategies for this MKFE. This included compiling a list of "yes or no" questions to determine easily whether something collected is worth donation. 

• Is it cephalopod, arthropod, echinoderm or vertebrate?
  • If cephalopod, is it an ammonite or coleoid?
  • If arthropod, is it brachyuran or decapod?
  • If echinoderm, is it an ophiuroid, asteroid, crinoid or regular echinoid?
  • If vertebrate, is it reptile?
• Is it complete?
  • If not, is it somewhat complete?
• Is it well-preserved?
• Does it show unusual taphonomy?
• Is it articulated?
• Is it associated with different fauna?
  • Specifically, is it associated with non-epifaunal elements?
  • Otherwise, does it show evidence of any interspecific interactions? (e.g. symbiosis or predation)
• Does it show evidence of ontogenetic development?
• Does it show evidence of pathology?
• Is it very differently sized? (when compared to other members of same taxon)
• Does it have any unusual features?
• Is it somewhere it usually/always isn’t? (in terms of stratigraphy)
  • In similar terms, is it very frequent in one layer but then absent in the layers above? (indication of possible extinction)
• Is it rare at Møns Klint?
  • If so, is it rare elsewhere in the world? (in similar deposits)
• Has it been mentioned in paleontological literature as a taxon present at Møns Klint?
• Has it been found at Møns Klint before? 

If the answer is "yes" to one or more of these questions, then the fossil would be deemed as worthy of donation.

 

What do you guys think of these criteria? Do they seem specific enough?

 

-Christian 

[Al Tahan]

One thing you can do is come up with a list of reasons to not donate a specimen. I wonder which will be smaller! Still a good comprehensible list of criteria 

[The Amateur Paleontologist]

Small update after a month-long radio silence on my Møns Klint project...

I've gathered (and purchased) most of the materials and equipment I'll be needing for fieldwork - including a new small bottle of cyanoacrylate superglue.

Preparation has been finished for all fossils which will be donated to the on-site GeoCenter Møns Klint museum.

Also, I have finished developing my fieldwork protocol documents, so I now have a clear idea of how the fieldwork will be set - this includes details about which parts of the cliffs I will work at, the collection priorities etc... I really hope that this year's field session is gonna be even more productive than the last  

I'll post more updates as the field session gets closer... And of course I'll have loads to post here once I'm back!

-Christian