Kansas Days

Our long trip out west stretches behind us with every mile marker. Conversations of ancient animals like Mosasaurus, Xiphactinus, and Ichthaelurus fill the van as we made our way through Kansas to meet Mike Everhart and Pete Bussen. Mike Everhart, the Adjunct Curator at the Sternburg Museum, was gracious enough to take us to see some wonderful sights in Kansas near Wallace. On July 1st we went to Carter Place and on the 2nd to Coal Oil Canyon. Both places produced many fish vertabrae as well as Mosasaurus bits and pieces. At Carter Place Sara Oser found a lovely Mosasaurus tooth which earned her the first "Golden Bronto" award. Our trip to Coal Oil Canyon produced much of the same types of specimens however, the highlight of the day was meetingPete Bussen, a seasoned Kansas Fossil Hunter. He told us many great stories about his years of collecting and showed us his fossil barn. Over the years, Pete has given us wonderful fossil specimens such as, a Xiphactinus fish and a Mosasaurus skull which can be found in the Cincinnati Museum of Natural History. Kansas is one of those places where you need to get out of your car and poke around the chalk to truly appreciate it.

Dan***