All settled

We are all settled in and everyone has caught up with emails and work. Most of the field jackets are on the shelves waiting for the volunteers to come and prepare and clean them.

I would like to thank the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for all their help and for watching over the site for us during the off season and the Yellow Stone Bighorn Association (YBRA) for all of the years of great food and great scenery.

The Animals from 2011

Here is a list of the wild animals that we were able to identify this year between Cincinnati and Bridger:

Bald Eagle, Barn Swallow, Beaver, Black Bear, Black/Grey Wolf, Bison, Brown Bat, Bullock’s Oriole, Bull Snake, Calliope Hummingbird, Canada Goose, Cardinal, Caterpillar, Chipmunk, Cicada (Chip), Coyote, Crow, Eastern Kingbird, Elk, Golden Eagle, Great Blue Heron, Great Horned Owl, Grey Catbird, Grizzly Bear, Ground Squirrel, Grouse, Hairy Woodpecker (female), Horned Toad, House Wren, Jack-a-lope, Jack Rabbit (Bunneh), Jerusalem Cricket, Loggerhead Shrike, Marmot, Meadowlark, Moose, Mouse, Mule Deer, Night Hawk, Osprey, Pine Siskin, Pinyon Jay, Prairie Dog, Prairie Falcon (with trout), Pronghorn, Rattlesnake, Red Breasted Woodpecker, Red Fox, Red Winged Blackbird, Rock Wren, Rufous Hummingbird, Savannah Sparrow, Skunk, “Speedy” Lizard, Trout (being eaten by Prairie Falcon), Turkey Vulture, White Crowned Sparrow, White Tailed Deer, Wild Turkey

Home at last

After three days of driving, we arrived back in Cincinnati last night around 10 pm. We visited Don Esker (a multi year volunteer and former Graduate Student of Dr. Storrs) at the Mammoth Site in Hot Springs, SD. The only problem along the way home was a single flat tire on the trailer that was quickly changed and we were back on our way. It was a successful dig season with over 150 specimens brought home. This includes several large limb bones, teeth, and many vertebra. I would like to thank the crew (Lamont, Dale, and Mike) and Dr. Storrs' children (William and Olivia) who all took time out of their summer to help at the site. Today, we unloaded the gear and fossils; ending the 12th field season.

End of Week 3

The end of the week marks two things; The Youth are off to the pig races and the dig season is almost over. This also means that we will be trying to get everything out of the quarry in the next week as possible without uncovering anything else. We are working on removing several large bones; the scapula that I have been working on is ready to flip, Glenn is working on removing a humorous and helping Olivia with a possible illium and ischium, and William is working on two femra that are crossed. We ended the day with a Dinowheel run and brought down several fossils. Fortunately, we had a visitor show up last night; she is a longtime volunteer at the Cincinnati Museum Center and has been out at the site for five years in the past. Sara Oser has agreed to stay for a couple days to help us with digging out the fossils that taught her most of what she knows.

Dr. Storrs and Olivia plastering a fossil

William using the Mighty Jack and air compressor to remove the hard rock from tight places.

Ben and Sara working on removing some limb bones.

The end of day Dinowheel run.

The before and after plastering for the scapula that I have been working on.

Prospecting

Today we decided to go prospecting in the morning to see if the rain from the beginning of the season uncovered any new finds. Lamont found a tooth from a tenontosaurus and Dr. Storrs found a juvenile ankylosaur tooth. The morning’s activities made most people tired, so around noon we decided to make our way back to the Mother’s Day Site.

Week Three

With a new week comes new people. This week the Museum has sent out five youth, who are also part of the Cincinnati Museum Centers Youth Program. They have been helping us this week with getting some of the larger bones out of the site.

Emily and Amanda (Youth Leader)

Kyle

Taylor

Richard and Aron

End of week 2

With week two over, the participants are sad to leave. They removed many bones from the ground and found a couple large ones that the youth will have to get out next week. Two ulnas (forearm/elbow), several more vertebra, a couple of ribs, and more toes were removed. What could turn out to be a good sized humerus was exposed right before we had to leave the quarry yesterday. I am currently working on a scapula (shoulder blade) that is going to be rather large (it keeps going into the ground) and I will post pictures and update on its progress. The finally of the week was going to the pig races again, where Sophie got a real taste of the American West.

Breaking News!!!

Dale Gnidovec is currently giving a talk about dinosaurs to the participants. He is starting with the history of how dinosaurs were first found and will end with talking about some of the largest dinosaurs and dinosaur like animals.

Week Two Participants

Kevin and Grace (www.thecurestartsnow.org)

Sophie (She's from the UK)

Crystal and Zander (the computer and dino nerds)

Paul (The Paleolab Volunteer)

Week Two

With week two half way over, the participants have continued to work on what lasts weeks participants could not get out and also on many new bones. Some of these include 11 caudal vertebra from the end of the tail, an ungual (toe claw), pubis (pubic bone/ very small), chevrons (on the bottom of caudal vertebra to protect the Haemel Artery and add muscle support to the tail), and many other bones.

Yesterday we had some rain, which led to the bailing out of the quarry. The crew and participants created a bucket brigade and we emptied the quarry.

The Crew

Goldstar Chili and The Cure Starts Now

The Cincinnati Dinosaur Field School would like to thank Charlie Howard and Goldstar Chili for their support of The Cure Starts Now (www.thecurestartsnow.org) and for giving participants the ability to come to the site. The Cure Starts Now is a great cause for fighting pediatric brain cancer and I recommend everyone to help out.

We would personally like to thank Charlie

Howard and Goldstar Chili for sending us many cans (48, I counted) of Goldstar chili; we will be well fed.

The Crew