Proposal for SVP 2013 Fieldtrip Sharktooth Hill Bonebed: a marine middle Miocene bonebed and environs

Transcription

1 SAMPLE 1 Proposal for SVP 2013 Fieldtrip Sharktooth Hill Bonebed: a marine middle Miocene bonebed and environs Purpose and intended outcome of the field trip: This one day field trip will journey to Kern County, California where participants will visit various points of interest throughout the scientifically and historically significant Kern River district northeast of Bakersfield. Crossing the San Andreas Fault rift in the Tehachapi Mountains, where the North American and Pacific plates meet, we will examine the regional geology of Kern River Oil Field, from the Oligo-Miocene boundary through the Quaternary. We will especially examine the Miocene marine sequence that has been analyzed paleomagnetically and formed the basis for numerous publications. We will visit the Sharktooth Hill National Natural Landmark and exposed portions of the Sharktooth Hill Bonebed, a thin but dense layer of vertebrate fossils that is a global standard of comparison for middle Miocene marine assemblages. Begins: 7:30 a.m. Sunday, November 3, 2013 from the Westin Bonaventure Hotel Ends: 6:00 p.m. Sunday, November 3, 2013 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel Venue: Sharktooth Hill Bonebed Transportation: Rental Vans Insurance: Full insurance coverage will be provided by the chosen rental van company for all vehicles and passengers. In addition, all vehicles driven by the trip leaders mentioned below will carry their own car insurance policies. Recommended clothing and items to bring: A hat along with sunscreen and clothing covering your arms and legs as it may be hot or, less likely, wet. A water bottle would be useful. Moderate hiking footwear as the terrain is hilly, although not rocky. We will provide all collecting gear so there is no need to bring picks or hammers. Physical Capabilities: Must be able to walk on trails for about a half a mile and endure prolonged exposure to sun and wind. Cost Includes: Transportation via vans, snacks, lunch, beverages and a field trip guide. Budget for minimum number of participants Item Unit Cost Qty Total Van Rental $150 per 15 passenger van 1 $ 150 Gas $100 per van 1 $ 100 Food $ 15 per person 11 $ 165 Guidebook $ 5 per person 11 $ 55 Supplies $ 75 1 $ 75 Grand Total $ 545

2 Budget for maximum number of participants Item Unit Cost Qty Total Van Rental $150 per 15 passenger van 3 $ 450 Gas $100 per van 3 $ 300 Food $ 15 per person 41 $ 615 Guidebook $ 5 per person 41 $ 205 Supplies $ 75 1 $ 75 Grand Total $1645 Proposed cost per person: $50 excluding organizers/leaders Minimum number of participants: 11 excluding the leaders Maximum number of participants: 41 excluding the leaders Note: The leaders will not pay for the field trip registration fee, however they will pay for their own food and field guides, a total cost of $80. SVP is to add a $5.00 required administrative fee to proposed registration cost per person. Organizers/Leaders Lawrence G. Barnes, Curator Emeritus Tel: (213) [email protected] Samuel A. McLeod, Collections Manager Tel: (213) [email protected] Vanessa R. Rhue, Assistant Collections Manager Tel: (213) [email protected] Howell W. Thomas, Paleontological Preparator Tel: (213) [email protected]

3 Advertising Copy Sharktooth Hill: a marine middle Miocene bonebed and environs This one day field trip will journey to Kern County, California where participants will visit various points of interest throughout the scientifically and historically significant Kern River district northeast of Bakersfield. Crossing the San Andreas Fault rift in the Tehachapi Mountains, where the North American and Pacific plates meet, we will examine the regional geology of Kern River Oil Field, from the Oligo-Miocene boundary through the Quaternary. We will especially examine the Miocene marine sequence that has been analyzed paleomagnetically and formed the basis for numerous publications. We will visit the Sharktooth Hill National Natural Landmark and exposed portions of the Sharktooth Hill Bonebed, a thin but dense layer of vertebrate fossils that is a global standard of comparison for middle Miocene marine assemblages. Begins: 7:30 a.m. on Sunday, November 3, at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites Ends: 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, November 3, at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites Venue: Sharktooth Hill Bonebed Cost: $55.00 per person Cost Includes: Transportation via vans, snacks, lunch, beverages, and field trip guide. Minimum Number of Participants: 11 Maximum Number of Participants: 41 What to Wear or Bring with You: A hat along with sunscreen and clothing covering your arms and legs as it may be hot or, less likely, wet. A water bottle would be useful. Moderate hiking footwear as the terrain is hilly, although not rocky. We will provide all collecting gear so there is no need to bring picks or hammers. Physical Capabilities: Must be able to walk on trails for about a half a mile and endure prolonged exposure to sun and wind. Leaders: Lawrence G. Barnes [email protected] Vanessa R. Rhue [email protected] Samuel A. McLeod [email protected] Howell W. Thomas [email protected]

4 SAMPLE 2 SVP 2013 Field Trip Proposal Western Mojave Desert geology and vertebrate paleontology with special emphasis on the Dove Spring Formation The western Mojave Desert, a mere 2-hour drive from downtown Los Angeles, contains rich and diverse records of fossil vertebrate assemblages and occasional marine assemblages ranging in age from Paleocene to Quaternary. In descending age order, these include: 1) the Tiffianian assemblages and associated invertebrates of the Goler Formation, the only Pacific coast Paleocene assemblage yet known (Lofgren et al., 2008), 2) the early Hemingfordian Boron local fauna in the Tropico Group (Whistler, 1984), 3) the late Hemingfordian and Barstovian assemblages of the Bopesta Formation (Quinn, 1987), 4) the Clarendonian and early Hemphillian assemblages of the Dove Spring Formation (DSF) (Whistler, et al., 2009), 5) the not yet well described mid Hemphillian assemblages of the Bedrock Springs Formation and undifferentiated Ricardo Group south of Red Rock Canyon, 6) the late Hemphillian Horntoad Hills local fauna from the Warren Formation (May, 1997) and various Rancholabrean assemblages from younger, unnamed deposits. The most thoroughly documented of these are the assemblages within the 1800 meter succession of fluvial, lacustrine and volcanic rocks of the DSF. These assemblages represent one of the most complete Clarendonian to earliest Hemphillian-aged successions in North America. Extensive paleomagnetic, radioisotopic, tephrochronological and biochronologic work in the DSF provide a temporal interpretation indicating an age range from 12.5 Ma to about 8 Ma. The diverse fossil assemblages collected over more than a hundred years contain pollen, phytolith, leaf and wood floras including the oldest published C4 grasses in North America and a diverse assemblage of 86 species of fossil vertebrates in the most recent published record (Whistler, et al., 2009). Carnivores, horses, camels, antelopes and diverse microvertebrates collected from over 50 microfossil yielding sites are well documented within the vertebrate assemblages. We propose a trip that will cross through the tectonically active valleys and transverse ranges of southern California emerging on the edge of the western Mojave Desert on an overlook of the San Andreas Fault, the boundary between the North American and the Pacific plates. Fossil-bearing marine and terrestrial Cenozoic deposits crossed during the transect will be interpreted and discussed. The trip will then cross the western Mojave Desert past the deposits of the Tropico Group, Warren Formation and undifferentiated Ricardo Group arriving in Red Rock Canyon State Park in the center of 15 square miles of exposures of DSF. We will tour the State Park interpretive Center with its fossil exhibits of the Dove Spring assemblages. A quick box lunch, then we will take a two mile (round trip) trail hike up a prominent basalt ridge where we will be able to observe the entire 1800 meter succession of Dove Spring lithology exposed in a western-dipping homocline. This vantage point also provides views of exposures of the Goler Formation and Cudahy Camp Formation, the latter a Barstovian-aged, fossil trackway producing volcanic succession underlying the DSF. This hike will provide opportunity for close examination of a Yellowstone hot spot ash, one of 17 such beds that have been used for precise age correlation of the fossil assemblages. We will spend a short time getting a close look at some of the fossilproducing deposits then retrace our journey to Los Angeles. Trip co-leaders, all from the, include those with expertise in the geology, vertebrate biostratigraphy and small vertebrate taxonomy within the DSF (David Whistler, Curator Emeritus, who has been studying the DSF for over 50 years), carnivore taxonomy and biostratigraphy (Xioaming Wang), geology and megafaunal taxonomy of the DSF (Gary Takeuchi), and marine paleontology, stratigraphy and structural history in the coastal valley Transverse Ranges (Lindsey Groves).

5 Date: Sunday 3 November 2012, beginning 7:00 am at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites and ending approximately 7:00 pm at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites Venue: Western Mojave Desert Transportation: Fast Deer Bus Charters ( pick up and drop off point - Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites, 404 South Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA Name of Co-Leaders: David Whistler, Tumalo Rim Dr., Bend, OR 97701, , [email protected] Xiaoming Wang, Vertebrate Paleontology,, 900 Exposition Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90007, , [email protected]; Gary Takeuchi, George C. Page Museum, 5801 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036, x124, [email protected]; Lindsey Groves, Malacology,, 900 Exposition Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90007, , [email protected] Budget: 47 Passenger Motor-Coach for the day - $ (includes insurance coverage) driver gratuity $47.00 Coffee (large coffee box $45.00 x 2) $90.00 Bottled Water (24 16oz bottles $3.50 x 4) $14.00 Snacks & other beverages $ Total $ % inflation for prices a year from now Total $ Box lunches from Corner Bakery ($10.00 per person) Note: the cost of printing & binding field guides for the trip will be paid for by the Red Rock Canyon Interpretive Association ( Red Rock Canyon State Park have waived any fees associated with day use and parking for this trip Proposed Cost per person: $93.00 Field Trip Leaders will pay the Field Trip registration fee to participate in this activity. The proposed cost does not include the $5.00 per person SVP administrative fee. Minimum number of attendees (does not include leaders): 20 Maximum number of attendees (does not include leaders): 40 Follw Up Note: Insurance policy rates may not be in effect at the time of the Field Trip. Field Trip leaders will provide updated information by March 1 st (prior to publishing the Field Trip fees).

6 Advertisement copy for SVP meeting circular and web site Western Mojave Desert geology and vertebrate paleontology with special emphasis on the Dove Spring Formation Purpose/Intended Outcome: The western Mojave Desert, a mere 2-hour drive from downtown Los Angeles, contains rich and diverse records of fossil vertebrate assemblages (and occasional marine assemblages) ranging in age from Paleocene to Quaternary. The Dove Spring Formation, the most thoroughly documented of these assemblages represent one of the most complete Clarendonian to earliest Hemphillian-aged successions in North America. The diverse fossil assemblages collected over more than a hundred years contain a diverse assemblage of 86 species of fossil vertebrates, and pollen, phytolith, leaf and wood floras including the oldest published C4 grasses in North America. The majority of these collections are housed at the. The trip will cross through the tectonically active valleys and transverse ranges of southern California with a discussion of the geology along the way, and a brief stop at an overlook of the San Andreas Fault, the boundary between the North American continent and the Pacific Plate. The trip will then cross into the western Mojave Desert arriving in Red Rock Canyon State Park, with is scenic desert cliffs, buttes and spectacular rock formations, in the center of 15 square miles of exposures of Dove Spring Formation. We will tour the State Park Interpretive Center with its fossil exhibits of the Dove Spring assemblages. We will take a two mile (round trip) trail hike up a prominent basalt ridge where we will be able to observe the entire 1800 meter succession of Dove Spring lithology exposed. Trip leaders will lead a discussion on the geology and stratigraphy of the area. This hike will provide opportunity for close examination of a Yellowstone hot spot ash, one of 17 such beds that have been used for precise age correlation of the fossil assemblages. We will spend a short time getting a close look at some of the fossil-producing deposits then retrace our journey back to Los Angeles. Begins: 7:00 am Sunday, 3 November 2013 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites Ends: approximately 7:00 pm Sunday, 3 November 2013 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites Venue: Western Mojave Desert Cost: $93 USD/per person Cost Includes: Coach travel, box lunch, snacks, beverages and a field guide. Minimum Number of Participants: 20 Maximum Number of Participants: 40 What to Wear or Bring with You: Closed-toed shoes are required. Must be able to walk on trails for about two miles. Co-Leaders: David Whistler [email protected] Xiaoming Wang [email protected] Gary Takeuchi [email protected] Lindsey Groves [email protected]