Penn Dixie Fossil Park and Nature Reserve
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Penn Dixie Fossil Park and Nature Reserve[edit]
Penn Dixie Fossil Park and Nature Reserve, locally referred to as Penn Dixie, is an outdoor education center featuring 380 million year old Devonian fossils. The site is operated by the Hamburg Natural History Society and is located in Hamburg, New York.
History[edit]
New York State is home to one of the most complete and well studied set of Devonian strata in the world.[1] During the Devonian period the region was covered by a shallow, warm tropical sea, 20 to 30 degrees below the equator, home to a variety of invertebrates and vertebrates.[2] The Erie Cliff, rich with trilobite beds is best approached by Hamburg, New York by Lake Erie.[3] The Penn Dixie site is named for the Penn-Dixie Cement Corporation of New York.[4] Nine to ten feet of shale were removed from the surface by the company from the early to late 1960's for cement production. Fossils were revealed by weathering forces and amateurs and professionals began visiting the site in the early 1970's.[2]
Preservation[edit]
Ownership of the site changed several times between the 1970's and 1990's making access to the site inconsistent for geologists and paleontologists.[2] The site was frequented by all-terrain vehicles, impromptu parties, and illegal trash dumpers in those year.[citation needed] The threat of light industrial development in 1989 and 1990 united a group of citizens and geologists to preserve the site for education.[5][6]
The Hamburg Natural History Society was formed as a 501(c)(3) non-profit in 1993 to help purchase and develop the land. [7] In 1996 the Town of Hamburg purchased the land and deeded 32.5 acres to the society in 1996.[8]
In 2016 Penn Dixie entered a partnership with the newly formed Centre for Himalayan Geology in Kashmir, India to preserve a Triassic fossil park under threat by industry. The organization is undergoing similar land transfer challenges experienced by Penn Dixie in the past.[9]
Education[edit]
In a 2011 case study, published by the Geological Society of America, examining seven U.S. fossil parks, Penn Dixie was ranked number one in several categories: informative web site, authentic collecting experience, accessibility and safety of site, fossil identification by signage and brochures, on site paleontologist mentors, and visitor education.[10]
Educators are on site during regular hours. Programming also includes summer camps,[11] astronomy nights,[12] and a science lecture series.[13] Local groups that frequently visit the site include the Buffalo Geological Society,[14] bird watching groups,[15] and local schools.[16]
Fossils[edit]
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Visitors can take home as many fossils they can find from a supply that experts consider inexhaustible.[17] Since 2005, Penn Dixie has annually invited paleontology and geology experts to guide enthusiasts through freshly exposed layers of shale.[18] .[19]
Visitors can find ancient relatives of shell fish called brachiopods, snails called gastropods, and crustaceans called ostrocods. Primitive fish and petrified wood can also be found on site. The site is known for its abundance of extinct marine arthropods called trilobites.[20]
References[edit]
- ↑ N.Y.),, Paleontological Research Institution (Ithaca,. Field guide to the Devonian fossils of New York. ISBN 9780877105060. OCLC 890189703. Search this book on
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Bastedo, Jerold (1999). New York Geological Association 71st Annual Meeting Field Trip Guidebook: Penn Dixie Paleontological and Outdoor Education Center: Visit to a Classic Geological and Outdoor Education Center. State University of New York College at Fredonia. Search this book on
- ↑ N.Y.), Hamburg Natural History Society (Hamburg, (1994). Geology and palaeontology of Eighteen Mile Creek and the lake shore sections of Erie County, New York. Published for the Hamburg Natural History Society, Inc. by Persimmon Press. ISBN 1882903013. OCLC 30318426. Search this book on
- ↑ "Penn Dixie Cement - Albany Mesothelioma Attorneys: Lipsitz & Ponterio". www.lipsitzponterio.com. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ Staff (1990-10-07). "HAMBURG SHOULD ACT TO PRESERVE FOSSIL SITE". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ Gryta, Matt; Ernst, Tom (1990-03-04). "DRIVE SEEKS TO PRESERVE FOSSIL SITE HAMBURG QUARRY CONSIDERED VALUABLE". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ "Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ Warner, Gene; Ernst, Tom (1995-02-27). "HAMBURG OKS BUYING FOSSIL QUARRY SITE UNANIMOUS VOTE FOLLOWS SHARP CRITICISM ON WISDOM OF ACQUISITION". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ O'Brien, Barbara (2016-07-29). "From Hamburg to Kashmir, connections through fossils". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ Clary, Renee M. and Wandersee, James H. (2011). "Geobiological opportunities to learn at U.S. fossil parks" (PDF). The Geological Society of America Special Paper 474.CS1 maint: Multiple names: authors list (link)
- ↑ "Summer day camps at Penn Dixie". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. 2016-02-09. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ↑ "Astronomy Nights". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. 2016-02-08. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ↑ "Science talk series". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. 2016-02-08. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ↑ "Buffalo Geological Society -". Buffalo Geological Society. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ↑ "Our birds". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. 2016-02-11. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ↑ "School & group programs". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. 2016-02-10. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- ↑ O'Brien, Barbara (2013-10-13). "They'll never run out of fossils at Penn Dixie". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ Staff (2016-04-27). "Dig paleontology? Come 'Dig with the Experts' at Penn Dixie site". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ Hall, Lauren; Up, News 4 Wake (2016-05-20). "Experts in town to dig for fossils". wivb.com. Retrieved 2017-06-22.
- ↑ "Our fossils". Penn Dixie Fossil Park & Nature Reserve. 2016-03-15. Retrieved 2017-06-23.
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