Raptors!!!!! Highly Sought After

[Pullenrock]

Ive got a pretty nice raptor collection..Heres a couple of bones from the large raptor Dromeasaurus...T- Rex is the highest most sought after theropod...But i likes my raptor theropod bones...The larger one is a metatarsel from two medicine formation while the large toebone is from Hell creek Montana...

[greywolf22]

Those are very nice. I need to start looking in the Big Bend there have been some finds in that area.

[Pullenrock]

You have got to be kidding me Jack...There?...Oh no here i come..I can be big help in this field..Its all in the layers..

[Pullenrock]

Oh yea there was a big creature there unearth by a univeristy unh?A new big creature..

[greywolf22]

There was a Pterodactyl a flying reptile of the order Pterosauria, common in the Mesozoic era that was found there. There is a small museum there that houses it. Below is some more info, an article writen by Julia T. Sankey
LATE CAMPANIAN SOUTHERN DINOSAURS, AGUJA FORMATION, BIG BEND, TEXAS
By JULIA T. SANKEY
One of the southernmost North American late Campanian microvertebrate assemblages was collected from the upper Aguja Formation, Big Bend National Park, Texas. The dinosaurs provide additional evidence that distinct southern and northern terrestrial vertebrate provinces occurred contemporaneously during this time due to latitudinal differences in temperature and rainfall. Southern areas, such as west Texas, were warm dry, with non-seasonal climates, and with open-canopy woodlands; they appear to be less fossil-rich and less diverse than northern areas. Nine dinosaurs are present, based on isolated teeth: pachycephalosaurid; hadrosaurid; ceratopsian; tyrannosaurid; Saurornitholestes cf. langstoni (Sues, 1978); Richardoestesia cf. gilmorei (Currie et al., 1990); a new species of Richardoestesia, which is named here; and a undetermined theropod unlike any previously described. Previous reports of Troodon sp. from the Talley Mt. and Terlingua microsites are mistaken; they are a pachycephalosaurid. Many of the dinosaur teeth are small, and are probably from juveniles or younger individuals, evidence that dinosaurs nested in the area. Paleoecologically, the upper Aguja was probably more similar to the lower and more inland faunas of the Scollard Formation (66 Ma) of Alberta than to contemporaneous northern faunas: both had drier, open environments and lower dinosaur abundance. This connection between climate and dinosaur abundance suggests that climatic factors were important in the Late Cretaceous dinosaur extinctions.

[Pullenrock]

Wow cool Jack of course troodon is a species of Raptor...Is it legal to collect artifacts and fossils from there? Probably not at a national Park unh?

[greywolf22]

It is legal to collect on private property and I have plenty of that down there and can get on a bunch more. How long would it take to cover 250,000 acres?

[Pullenrock]

The Land im used to covering is measured in sections..Can cover pretty quick.Any Badlands type landscape..?

[Pullenrock]

Dont get me all excited like that!!

[greywolf22]

It is all Chihuahua Desert, lots of creosote bush, ocotillo, smooth-leaf sotol, yucca, lechuguilla and rocks, rocks, rocks. Lots of washes, gullies. Its around 390 sections total. Best time of year is December to April, after that its to hot.

[Pullenrock]

Anyway Jack..Figure out what that layer looks like then you can spot it a quarter mile away sometimes.

[Pullenrock]

The washes sound like possibilities if they go deep enough..

[greywolf22]

Do not know what the layer would look like but I know where there is a bunch of petrified wood and lignite. Whole area was once volcanic. Good read below.
Volcanoes in Big Bend
by Jody Davila
Big Bend National Park is a geologist's paradise. The west side of the Park provides obvious evidence of Big Bend's volcanic past that occurred between 42 and 17 million years ago.
Geologists believe several large volcanoes were once active in what is now Big Bend National Park. The Sierra Quemada volcano was located in the southern foothills of the Chisos Mountains and is responsible for much of the rock in that area that we can see today. The Sierra Quemada volcano went extinct before the Pine Canyon volcano became active 32 million years ago southeast of the Chisos. Evidence of this volcano appears today in Casa Grande, and the South Rim formations. Thick deposits of volcanic rock reveal that these two volcanoes spewed out tremendous amounts of rock material. In fact, geologists believe that the eruptions were similar to Mount Saint Helen's eruption in 1980 but on a grander scale! Both erupted so much material that the earth's surface collapsed and formed calderas. Geologists speculate that, before their collapse, these two peaks were higher than Emory Peak (7,832 feet)! Both the Sierra Quemada and Pine Canyon volcanoes are now extinct.
Recent research has determined that there were also many smaller volcanoes in the western part of the park. These mini-volcanoes-or vents-are responsible for the formations at Burro Mesa, Goat Mountain, Cerro Castellan, and Tuff Canyon. Researchers are currently trying to determine if there were more of these vents in the Basin area.
Most geologists believe it is unlikely that any volcanoes will erupt again in the Big Bend area in the near geologic future. So enjoy the unique landscapes created by these ancient volcanoes when you visit the Park!

[Pullenrock]

Maybe the museum would be a start..if there is any bone there that isnt a cast.Check out the color and try maybe to gather info on that layer..Im gonna peek online from here..Another way is maybe another rockhound.I found Postosuchus Teeth and bones from contacting a finder that his name was on the find at the museum...He turned out to be my neighbor...All kinds of ways..Jon

[greywolf22]

A sense of place
El Solitario:
What’s In a Name?
by David Riskind
El Solitario is the signature landscape feature of Big Bend Ranch State Park. Almost 10 miles across and nearly symmetrical, this collapsed and eroded structural dome straddles the BrewsterPresidio County line in the eastern portion of the park. Early explorers of the region noted its distinctive shape even before airplanes or aerial images were available. It is one of Earth’s more distinctive features as observed from space. The name is Spanish for hermit or loner.
About 36 million years ago molten rock called magma from deep in the Earth pushed upward and displaced thousands of feet of overlying rock. This activity created a blister or domeshaped bulge on the Earth’s surface. Over millions of years, erosion collapsed the dome’s older rocks. Subsequent volcanic activity further removed overlying rock, collapsed some of the lava chamber and formed a small caldera in the central southeast Solitario. Early geologic studies erroneously suggested that the Solitario was either a large volcano or a meteor impact crater.
The Solitario, as we see it today, emerged about 2 million years ago when the ancient Rio Grande began cutting its now famous canyons. Volcanism, weathering, erosive rains, runoff and groundwater moving through the Shutups, Fresno Creek, Terlingua Creek and Contrabando Creek combined to expose and shape the landforms that park visitors see today. Eons of erosion exposed some of the Earth’s most ancient rocks including shales, sandstones and cherts in Solitario’s core.
On first impression, the Solitario’s interior seems to be an unremarkable terrain of low rolling hills covered by desert grasslands and scrub. But the exposed geologic history reveals one of the most remarkable accounts of our planet’s past that can be seen in one place. These rocks are deformed, uplifted and eroded remains of the Ouachita Mountains, which predate the Rockies. Massive limestones that were seafloor deposits were uplifted during the Rocky Mounting building period of Earth’s history. These deposits now form the Solitario’s outer rings. The entire southwest quadrant of the Solitario has steeply inclined inverted Vshaped rocks called “flat irons.” Viewing them from the south or west at sunset is a breathtaking experience. Hiking through this worldclass geologic landmark is truly a walk through time.
There are several places in the park to experience the full visual impact of the Solitario. Solitario Overlook is a few miles past Sauceda and is accessible by 2WD vehicles. Fresno Overlook on FM 170 between Lajitas and the Tepee Picnic area offers a great view in late afternoon. For a closer look you’ll need a 4WD highclearance vehicle, to reach the Mexicano Trailhead. A short hike will give you spectacular Solitario vistas. The interior of the Solitario can be accessed via a 4WD highclearance road to the Tres Papalotes Trailhead. Hikes, some substantial, can then be made to all points of the interior.