Month: June 2025
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Mazon Monday #276: Video for Cal So’s “Taxonomic diversity and development of Late Carboniferous amphibamiforms from the Mazon Creek Lagerstätte”
This is Mazon Monday post #276. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. Cal So, Postdoctoral Scientist in the Research & Collections Department of The Field Museum, Chicago, gave us an informative presentation in June 2025. The title of his presentation was “Taxonomic diversity and development of Late Carboniferous amphibamiforms from the…
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A T-Rex with feathers? Scientists say dinosaurs were likely different from what most of us picture
A story in the UC Berkeley News details how dinosaurs were probably much different than we have imagined. 50 years ago, scientists had a much differernt view of dinosaurs as slow, dumb animals. Then, came John Ostrom, Bob Bakker with their insights comparing dinosaurs to modern animals. Those viewpoints led to the Jurassic Park view…
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Natural History Museum: New dinosaur species on display in our Earth Hall
The Natural History Museum in London has a new video on Youtube about their new dinosaur, Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae. Meet Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae, our new dinosaur! Now on display in our Earth Hall, Enigmacursor is a species new to science and would have roamed North America in the Late Jurassic 145-150 million years ago. Measuring only 1.5…
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ESCONI Events for Summer 2025
Sat, Aug 23rd ESCONI Rock Swap – 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM – DuPage County Fairgrounds in Wheaton, IL Details
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Fossil Friday #271: Laveiniopteris rarinervis
This is the “Fossil Friday” post #271. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to esconi.info@gmail.com. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world! —————————————————– This week we have a breathtaking…
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Throwback Thursday #271: Rare fossil find for Joliet man
This is Throwback Thursday #271. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. I came across this story a few days ago in a Facebook post by Gus Kramer. Back in…
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Reptiles Alive! exhibit opens at Field Museum
The Field Museum has a new exhibit… Reptiles Alive! Explore the fascinating world of reptiles in this one-of-a-kind family-friendly exhibition! Combining original Field Museum science with live animals and engaging interactives, Reptiles Alive! offers an immersive experience into the lives of snakes, lizards, crocodiles, and more. Discover their habitats, adaptations, and the groundbreaking research of Dr. Sara…
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University of Arizona study confirms New Mexico fossils may be earliest evidence of humans in Americas
Tuscon.com has a story about the oldest evidence of human occupation in North America. A 2021 study from the University of Arizona revealed data that dated fossilized footprints from White Sands National Park to 23,000 year ago. This was controversial as the previously excepted oldest human evidence was 17,000 before present. Most of the criticism…
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Mazon Monday #275: Rhacophyllum molle
This is Mazon Monday post #275. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. After Lesquereux (1870) Rhacophyllum molle is a wispy plant, underfined plant species described by Leo Lesquereux in 1870 as Hymenophyllites mollis. Later, he reclassified it as Rhacophyllum molle. He thought it was a type of aquatic plant. He reported…
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Video for ESCONI June 2025 General Meeting – “New discoveries in Inner Space Cavern reveal the animals of Ice Age Texas”
The June 2025 General Meeting was held on June 13th, 2025 via Zoom. Our speaker was John A. Moretti of the Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin. His topic was “New discoveries in Inner Space Cavern reveal the animals of Ice Age Texas“. Summary from John Moretti New discoveries in…
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PBS Eons: The Dinosaurs Too Big to Be Dinosaurs
There’s a new episode of PBS Eons on Youtube. This one is about big dinosaurs… really BIG dinosaurs. How did sauropods, uniquely large land animals, actually live, with their anatomy and physiology pushed to such extremes? Well, their unprecedented gigantism came with some equally massive costs…
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Fossil Friday #270: Anthracomedusa turnbulli
This is the “Fossil Friday” post #270. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to esconi.info@gmail.com. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world! —————————————————– For this week, we have a…
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Throwback Thursday #270: Believe It Or Not
This is Throwback Thursday #270. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. We have a poem about collecting… collecting fossils. artifacts, minerals, and just rocks. It’s easy to over…
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PBS NOVA – Great Mammoth Mystery
PBS NOVA just published the “Great Mammoth Mystery” on Youtube. Sir David Attenborough investigates a unique site in southern England where amateur fossil hunters uncovered giant mammoth bones and evidence of Neanderthals. A team of paleontologists and archaeologists soon discover that the site preserves rare evidence of the extinct beasts and early human inhabitants of…
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ESCONI Rock, Mineral, and Fossil Swap – August 23rd, 2025 – DuPage County Fairgrounds
ESCONI will be holding a Rock, Mineral, and Fossil Swap on August 23rd, 2025 at the DuPage County Fairgrounds from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Come on out!
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Mazon Monday #274: George Langford Sr. Passes Away on June 16th, 1964
This is Mazon Monday post #274. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. Recently, I ran across the letter from George Langford Jr. upon the death of his father – George Langford Sr. The letter is the subject of this post and follows below. George Langford Sr. is giant in the history…
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The Conversation: Why Dippy the dinosaur remains beloved, 120 years after arriving at the Natural History Museum
The Conversation has an interesting piece about Dippy the Diplodocus carnegiei, who is the star of the Natural History in London. Dippy first went on display in 1905 at the Natural History Museum in London. Dippy arrived in London as part of a campaign for public education by the Scottish-American millionaire Andrew Carnegie (1835–1919). At that…
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Soft tissue anatomy of pterosaur hands and feet – new information from Solnhofen region pterodactyloid specimens
Dr. David Hone has announced new research with Rene’ and Bruce Lauer of the Lauer Foundation. The paper “Soft tissue anatomy of pterosaur hands and feet – new information from Solnhofen region pterodactyloid specimens” was published in the journal Lethaia and is open access. As part of my ongoing work tracking down various undescribed Pterodactylus and Rhamphorhynchus specimens, I’ve come…
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Fossil Friday #269: Crenulopteris subcrenulata
This is the “Fossil Friday” post #269. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to esconi.info@gmail.com. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world! —————————————————– This week, we have a stunning…
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Throwback Thursday #269: Field Museum Megatherium
This is Throwback Thursday #269. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. If you’ve been to the Field Museum in the last 100 years or so, you’ve invariably ran…
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ESCONI June 2025 General Meeting – June 13th, 2025 – “New discoveries in Inner Space Cavern reveal the animals of Ice Age Texas”
The June 2025 General Meeting will be held at 8:00 PM CDT on June 13th, 2025 via Zoom. Our speaker is John A. Moretti of the Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin. His topic is “New discoveries in Inner Space Cavern reveal the animals of Ice Age Texas“. Since its…
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After years in the making, Utahraptor State Park opens for visitors
From Moab, Utah comes news that Utahraptor State Park is now open to visitors. MOAB, Utah — The first visitors have arrived at Utah’s newest state park that took years to create. “This is the first project in state history to take over 100 million years to complete!” Governor Spencer Cox joked at the…
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Mazon Monday #273: Neuropteris fimbriata
This is Mazon Monday post #273. What’s your favorite Mazon Creek fossil? Tell us at email:esconi.info@gmail.com. Neuropteris fimbriata is a seed fern. It has by found associated with Neuropters ovata and is considered a growth form of it. N. fimbriata was described in 1866 by one the founders of American paleobotany Leo Lesquereux (1806-1889). Lesquereux…
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150-Million-Year-Old Stegosaurus Skull Rewrites Dinosaur Evolution
SciTechDaily has an article about a stegasaur skull discovered in Spain. Stegasaur skulls are rarely found due to the extreme fragility of their bone. This new speciec, Dacentrurus armatus, was found near Villar del Arzobispo Formation and is nearly complete. The rock formation dates to the late Jurassic about 150 million years ago. The research…
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ScienceNews: The first cicada concert was 47 million years ago
ScienceNews has a story about the first cicada concert. Fossil cicadas from Messel Pit in Germany suggests the first singing cicadas date to the Eocene some 47 million years ago. The fossil of Eoplatypleura messelensis, was collected around 1986 and identified as a cicada in 1988. Unfortunately, the researchers didn’t realize it was the oldest singing…
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Fossil Friday #268: Metasequoia Cone From Stonerose in Washington
This is the “Fossil Friday” post #268. Expect this to be a somewhat regular feature of the website. We will post any fossil pictures you send in to esconi.info@gmail.com. Please include a short description or story. Check the #FossilFriday Twitter hash tag for contributions from around the world! —————————————————– This week’s submission comes from Jim…
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ESCONI Events for June 2025
Field trips require membership, but visitors are welcome at all meetings! Fri, June 13th ESCONI General Meeting – 8:00 PM via Zoom – Topic: “New discoveries in Inner Space Cavernreveal the animals of Ice Age Texas” by John A. Moretti of the Jackson School of Geosciences at The University of Texas at Austin Zoom link…
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Throwback Thursday #268: Looking Back At ESCONI For June 2025
This is Throwback Thursday #268. In these, we look back into the past at ESCONI specifically and Earth Science in general. If you have any contributions, (science, pictures, stories, etc …), please send them to esconi.info@gmail.com. Thanks! email:esconi.info@gmail.com. 25 Years Ago – June 2000 50 Years Ago – June 1975 70 Years Ago – June…
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Dinopalooza Dino Derby at the Field Museum on June 7th, 2025
This Saturday, June 7th, 2025 is Dinopalooza at the Field Museum. Find out more on the Dinopalooza webpage. Dinopalooza is back and bigger than ever! Come celebrate SUE at this Museum-wide dinosaur extravaganza featuring Field scientists sharing their work, paleoart crafts, face painting, special tours, and so much more! This year the Field Museum is…
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The Day The Dinosaurs Died : Up First from NPR
NPR’s Up First has a story about the a New Jersey fossil hotspot… also the day the dinosaurs died. In 2007, paleontologist Ken Lacovara suspected he’d made a huge discovery in an unexpected spot. Tucked behind a Lowe’s hardware store in a strip mall in New Jersey he found one of the most intact fossil…
