Anza-Borrego Desert State Park
Paleontology            Photo by Ernie Cowan - Anza Borrego Photography Institute
                                               
                                                                                
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NATHAN'S BLOG                                   Presented by the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park Paleontology Society
 
Nathan received his Junior Certification in 2009.
He occasionally writes about his experiences with the Paleontology Society.		  

Nathan’s Blog for January 2010

In May of 2009, I got my Junior Certification for Paleontology  Volunteer and I was very excited.  But, later that year I broke my wrist so I couldn’t go to volunteer in the fall.  Once my wrist healed,  I went back to paleontology was Friday, January 29th 2010.  That morning we learned some new lab techniques from Curtis White that are used at the Utah Natural History Museum.  We learned how to clean fossil bones with scalpels.  We also learned from James Jacobs from the Natural History Museum in San Diego, techniques to clean invertebrate fossils and he showed us a tool kit that was really cool.  I got to pass around my modern shells when he talked about the different kinds of invertebrates.   In the afternoon I also got to share my shells when Sandy Keeley talked about fossil shells.  At the end Sandy Keeley showed us some of the shells that were brought back to Anza Borrego Desert State Park Collection from Chicago. 

                             
 

Feb. 2010 Field Trip

On February 15th 2010, some paleontology
volunteers and I went on a field trip. When we were in the car, on the way there, it was a bumpy ride so it made it difficult to get to where we were going but it made it was fun for me.  When we arrived, it was a long hike to get where we were going to look for fossils.  We passed the first ridge and saw some water foam formations on the rocks.  Then, I realized that we were in marine sediment.  We accidently went the wrong direction where I found a large rock with shell fossils in it.  We also saw some plant fossils in an extra large rock that fell from the cliff next to us. I found my first fossil on the way back to the cars and it was an oyster shell fossils.  I had fun and finding a fossil was exciting.   
         
          Feb. 2010 Second Field Trip 

On February 23rd, 2010, I went to look for fossils for our Paleontology Camp. When we got to the area that I and other paleontology volunteers were going to survey and when we looked at the map and saw that we were only going to do a triangle that day. We did not see any fossils until my mom, dad and I got to a ridge where another volunteer found a bone. I found part of a turtle shell in the same area shortly after they found theirs. On the second part of the trip Sandra Keeley I and went to go find a coyote skull and a fossil. When we were looking for the fossil my mom and dad caught up with us because we needed my dads help with finding the fossil according to the GPS. My dad helped us by backtracking and readjusting the GPS unit. I found the fossil once my dad found the GPS spot. It was a fun trip and I learned how important it is to learn how to use a GPS unit.
 
              April 2010 Field Trip 

On April 13th, 2010, our Paleontology Volunteers and I went to help with a tortoise shell that was found on the last day of Paleontology Camp. On the way there, Linda Gilbert, another Paleontology Volunteer, and I saw a Southwestern Willow Flycatcher and a Jackrabbit. My first job at the site of the tortoise was to sift for any fragments below the big shell and then I moved up to help dig out more sand to uncover more of the tortoise itself. My mom and I found many fragments of the tortoise in the sand below. After lunch, I did both sifting and digging to look for more fossil parts and I found more. It was a great day and really neat to see a tortoise fossil.		  
           
            January 2011 Field Trip 

I went to Anza Borrego Desert State Park on Friday, January 7th, 2011. My mom and I went to survey for fossils. We went with a group of seven other volunteers. We studied the geology of the area as we were surveying. We hiked around up and down the steep hillsides and loose ground. We discovered some different kinds of stones and formations that were new to me and Arnie helped me identify them. He showed me the fault lines and all the different kinds of cracks in the cliffs. I really liked learning about the geology with Arnie in this area. I found a fossil on the trip and I found it by looking at the base of the mudstone and rock formations. I collected it by documenting and logging everything in the field data book. It was a turtle scapula or hip bone. At the end of the day, my mom and I went to the lab and filled out the paperwork needed to start the process for cataloging. I did not know for sure what the fossil was so I did some research. I looked in book and looked at the comparative collection. I also talked to George Jefferson, the District Paleontologist, and Lyndon Murray, another Paleontologist, to see what they thought it might be. After my research, we stocked up on supplies for our next field day and future adventure.
 

         January 2011 Second Field Trip
 

I went to the Anza Borrego Desert State Park on Monday, January 10th 2011. My mom and I went to find fossils. We went with five other paleontology volunteers and we hiked around the area for quite some time. We found a piece of Native American pottery right before we took a break for lunch. After we saw the artifact, we hiked into a green valley with some sandstone formations. We found a really big rock and decided to take a break there to eat lunch. I loved the rock because it had a spot on the side and top that I could hide and play in.		  
 
               April 2011 Field Trip

On Friday, February 4th 2011, I went to volunteer in the Anza Borrego Desert State Park. We went to visit the tortoise fossil site at the south end of the park and see what else the volunteers had uncovered since my last trip. They told us about the different parts of the body and new spots that they had exposed. It is a great fossil find and will still need a lot more work before it can be brought to the lab. Then, I was able to look around for fossils and I found a Giant Camel bone. It was really cool and I was very happy to have located it to take back to the lab. I also found a modern bone that day in the same area.		  

           April 2011 Second Field Trip

 Some Paleontology Volunteers went in the field of the Anza Borrego Desert State Park today, April 18, 2011, to look for fossils. It took forever to get to the spot where we were going to look for fossils. We started hiking and found what looked like fossils but it turned out that it was calcium carbonate. We did find some petrified wood and my mom found a really nice piece that we collected. Some of it was really nice and even had burn marks, bark, woodpecker holes and branch knots. It was a really hot day, I got a headache, and we had to take a lot of water breaks. I went up a ridge and found a turtle shell along with wood. At the end of the day we collected four fossils. I was glad to get out of the heat on the way home.		  
   
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