Paleolandscape

In this paleolandscape, artist John Francis depicts the river delta created by the Colorado River.

The Setting

Lush, watery floodplain

Dense hardwood forest

20+ inches of rain annually

Vast deltaic depositional apron spread across the Salton Trough at the northern end of the Gulf of California
​

The Current Environment

Borrego's Colorado River Delta, as it appears today.​  

​Photograph by Richard Ingwall, Anza-Borrego Desert Paleontology Society
​

The Animals

In our paleolandscape we see:

1. Geese (Anser sp.)
2. Killdeer (Charadruis vociferous)
3. Pliocene horse, extinct (Dinohippus sp.)
4. Razorback sucker (Xyrauchen texanus)
5. Garter snake (Thamnophis sp.)
6. Gomphothere proboscidean, extinct (Gomphotherium sp.)
7. Fan Palm (Washingtonia sp.)

The Fossils

Photographs from Fossil Treasures of the Anza-Borrego Desert
Photograph by Barbara Marrs