Trilobite Trip Recap
Our trilobite collecting trip went very well. We arrived in the Marble Mountains of California on April 5th after fighting rain, wind and snow on our drive through Utah. As we attempted to set camp up we had to fight very strong wind in order to get our tents up.
Two of the tents were blowing so hard in the wind that they were nearly bent over at times!
We had a successful day of collecting trilobites on April 6th in the Cadiz Formation (Cambrian). Some of the trilobites we collected included Glossopleura and Amecephalus.
Digging for Trilobites in the Cadiz Formation
Zeb and Ray collecting trilobites in the Marble Mountains
The pygidium (or 'tail') of a Glossopleura? trilobite, collected in the Cadiz Formation (Cambrian) of the Marble Mountains.
On April 7th we moved on to the Carrara Formation of Emigrant Pass, California. We spent a few hours here collecting various species of Olenellus.
Collecting at Emigrant Pass
The head, or cephalon, of a Olenellus trilobite collected in the Carrara Formation of Emigrant Pass, California.
From here we headed on to our camp for the next two nights at the Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada. This is a really beautiful park that boasts a wide variety of scenery, geology, fossil and petroglyphs, and is one of our favorite places to camp.
Petrified log at Valley of Fire State Park
Sunrise lighting up the Aztec Formation, Valley of Fire State Park
Rock art at Atlatl Rock, Valley of Fire State Park
On April 8th we headed back toward Las Vegas to collect in the Cambrian Bright Angle Shale of the Frenchman Mountains. We were happy to see a local group out collecting trash, as the area has sadly been used as a unauthorized dump for many years. We had a successful, and warm, day collecting and found many Olenellus and Biceratops and a couple of hyoliths.
Looking for trilobites at Frenchman Mountain outside of Las Vegas
We returned to camp, enjoyed the sunset as it lit up the red rocks of the Aztec Formation and enjoyed a round of Mad Libs around the campfire. We traveled back home on April 9th, with a nice collection of Cambrian trilobites that will help further Dr. John Foster’s research.
Group Photo: (l-r) ReBecca Hunt, Zeb Miracle, Tikka the dog, John Foster & Ray Bley
Remember: While trilobites are invertebrates and are legally collectible from BLM land (reasonable amounts for personal use, no permit required), when collecting large amounts for research you do need a permit (which the Museum had). But what is a “reasonable amount?” According to the Utah BLM website, which has a nice descriptive paleontology section, “You may collect common invertebrate and plant fossils for NONCOMMERCIAL purposes only. A reasonable amount is what you may keep for a personal hobby collection or display in your home. Collecting common invertebrate or plant fossils for landscaping (even if it’s just around your house) is not a hobby activity and must be done as a mineral materials sale.” [link] If you are wondering if you need a permit, check out this link.
Any material in our collections are covered under a permit though the appropriate agency and curated at the Museum of Western Colorado, unless otherwise noted.