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We Have Probably Been Imagining Pterosaurs All Wrong
Read more: We Have Probably Been Imagining Pterosaurs All WrongAtlas Obscura has an article about pterosaurs. Good background information and a discussion of a paper in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B. It seems someone(s), Armita R Manafzadeh and Kevin Padian, mapped the ligament constraints on hip mobility of extinct ornithodirans (pterosaurs). It seems that it is very unlikely that pterosaurs flew with they legs stretched out behind them. Check out the paper or more details. PICTURE A CLASSIC CRETACEOUS SCENE. Sure, you’re a bit too late to have caught it in person, but if you’ve seen a kid’s book lately, you know the one. Broad-leafed plants cover…
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Report: ESCONI Paleontology Meeting: Saturday, June 16th, 2018 – Jurassic Treasures Revealed
Read more: Report: ESCONI Paleontology Meeting: Saturday, June 16th, 2018 – Jurassic Treasures RevealedAt June’s Paleo meeting, four ESCONI members (Marie Angkuw, Jann Bergsten, Rhonda Gates, and Deborah Lovely) delivered a lively and fascinating slide presentation of their February collecting trip to the Jurassic Coast of Lyme Regis, England. Numerous pictures of the local beaches and town accompanied their storytelling, which highlighted not only the variety in landscape they explored, but the full spectrum of weather they encountered: sun, wind, rain, and snow. After the talk, treasures brought home from the journey were on display. Fossil specimens included pyritized ammonites, ichythosaur vertebrae, crinoid plates, belemnites, and petrified wood. Victorian era artifacts were also…
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COD STEMinar Series: Ted Daeschler – Great Steps in the History of Life: The Origin of Limbed Vertebrates
Read more: COD STEMinar Series: Ted Daeschler – Great Steps in the History of Life: The Origin of Limbed VertebratesA video of the April ESCONI General Meeting has been posted to youtube. Remember, this was part of the COD STEMinar Series. The talk was by Ted Daeschler and titled “Great Steps in the History of Life: The Origin of Limbed Vertebrates”. Very interesting! If you missed it, check it out!
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Check an Address Through Deep Time
Read more: Check an Address Through Deep TimeThere is an interesting page at dinosaurpictures.org, which will show you a location on earth through deep time. The Mazon Creek area looks about right for 300 million years ago. And, check out the young Rockies 66 million years ago.
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U-Haul Tully Monster
Read more: U-Haul Tully MonsterJust in case you’ve never seen it on their trucks and trailers, U-Haul has the Tully Monster graphic on their website. There’s also a small animation with sound. Click “Learn More“, there’s a bunch of information about our State Fossi. Enjoy!
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PBS Eons: The Age of Reptiles in Three Acts
Read more: PBS Eons: The Age of Reptiles in Three ActsPBS Eons has an episode on the Mesozoic – the Age of Reptiles. From the Great Dying until the K-Pg extinction event, reptiles ruled the earth. Great explanation of the origin or dinosaurs, pterosaurs, birds, and mammals along with other details of this important period!
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Reminder: ESCONI Paleontology Meeting: Saturday, June 16th, 2018 – Jurassic Treasures Revealed
Read more: Reminder: ESCONI Paleontology Meeting: Saturday, June 16th, 2018 – Jurassic Treasures RevealedJurassic Treasures Revealed Collecting along the Black Ven of Lyme Regis and beneath the cliffs of neighboring Charmouth, England Enjoy a slide presentation as four ESCONI members share their recent fossil collecting experiences and discoveries along southern England’s Jurassic Coast. If a trip to this part of the world is on your bucket list, learn some tips on what to bring and wear, how to negotiate the Atlantic tides, and getting your treasures home. Or, if you’re simply curious about this World Heritage Site and its 200-million-year-old Ammonite Pavement, this presentation is sure to please. After the talk, there will be plenty of fascinating…
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Speaker Change for the June General Meeting: Crinoids of the Muschelkalk Triassic Germany by Tom Williams
Read more: Speaker Change for the June General Meeting: Crinoids of the Muschelkalk Triassic Germany by Tom WilliamsDue to a medical emergency, there is a change to the speaker and topic for the June General Meeting. Tom Williams will present "Crinoids of the Muschelkalk Triassic Germany". Come on out, it should be interesting!
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ESCONI Paleontology Meeting: Saturday, June 16th, 2018 – Jurassic Treasures Revealed
Read more: ESCONI Paleontology Meeting: Saturday, June 16th, 2018 – Jurassic Treasures RevealedJurassic Treasures Revealed Collecting along the Black Ven of Lyme Regis and beneath the cliffs of neighboring Charmouth, England Enjoy a slide presentation as four ESCONI members share their recent fossil collecting experiences and discoveries along southern England’s Jurassic Coast. If a trip to this part of the world is on your bucket list, learn some tips on what to bring and wear, how to negotiate the Atlantic tides, and getting your treasures home. Or, if you’re simply curious about this World Heritage Site and its 200-million-year-old Ammonite Pavement, this presentation is sure to please. After the talk, there will be plenty of fascinating…
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Reminder: June General Meeting is on Friday, June 8th, 2018 – Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of Wisconsin
Read more: Reminder: June General Meeting is on Friday, June 8th, 2018 – Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of WisconsinThe June 2018 General Meeting is on Friday, June 8th, 2018. The speaker will be Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater. His program is entitled “Cretaceous Reef Paleoecology of Central Texas”. Don’t miss it!
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ESCONI Events June 2018
Read more: ESCONI Events June 2018Field trips require membership, but visitors are welcome at all meetings! Fri, June 8th ESCONI General Meeting, 8:00 PM College of Dupage – Tech Ed (TEC) Building, Room 1038B (Map) – Topic: “Cretaceous Reef Paleoecology of Central Texas” by Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater Sat, June 16th ESCONI Paleontology Study Group Meeting, 7:30 PM College of Dupage – Tech Ed (TEC) Building, Room 1038B (Map) – Topic: “Jurassic Treasures Revealed: Collecting the Black Ven of Lyme Regis and Beneath the Cliffs of Neighboring Charmouth, England” by Marie Angkuw, Jann Bergsten, Rhonda Gates, and Debora Lovely…
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Do You Have BIG Plans for this Weekend? Maximo is at the Field Museum!
Read more: Do You Have BIG Plans for this Weekend? Maximo is at the Field Museum!Máximo the Titanosaur is at the Field Museum this weekend! Come on out and check him out! Máximo the Titanosaur has arrived at the Field Museum from Patagonia and will be ready for his close-up this weekend. Bring your family and friends for a first look at this awe-inspiring sight in Stanley Field Hall as we put the finishing touches on Máximo, and install the fossil of Patagotitan mayorum’s eight-foot-long femur for everyone to see. Don’t forget to visit the second story balcony and take a selfie with Máximo!
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June General Meeting is on Friday, June 8th, 2018 – Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of Wisconsin
Read more: June General Meeting is on Friday, June 8th, 2018 – Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of WisconsinThe June 2018 General Meeting is on Friday, June 8th, 2018. The speaker will be Dr. Rex Hanger from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater. His program is entitled “Cretaceous Reef Paleoecology of Central Texas”. Don’t miss it!
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Nope, octopuses probably didn’t come from outer space!
Read more: Nope, octopuses probably didn’t come from outer space!ZME Science has a great post about the online controversy about the Octopus genome. Cephalopods are not aliens and the author Mihai Andrei does a great job explaining why. The new study, penned by over 30 researchers, essentially rehashes the theory of panspermia — the idea that life on Earth emerged in outer space, hitching a ride on meteorites or other objects that crashed into Earth at one point, something often referred to as the Hoyle-Wickramasinghe (H-W) thesis of cosmic biology. The research starts from the Cambrian Explosion an event approximately 541 million years ago, during an age called the…
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The CGMA Show for 2018 is Saturday, May 26th and Sunday, May 27th 2018
Read more: The CGMA Show for 2018 is Saturday, May 26th and Sunday, May 27th 2018The show is this weekend. Full details are found on their website along with a map. Download the show flyer here. It is always a great time, don't miss it! CGMA Galaxy of Gems 42nd Annual Show May 26th & 27th, 2018 Memorial Weekend Kane County Fairgrounds 525 S. Randall Road, St Charles, IL 60174 Saturday, 10 a.m.- 6 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Over 30 Dealers, Special Exhibits, Demonstrators. Kids Korner, Door Prizes, and More Adults $5, Seniors (62) and Students $3, Two-day Passes Available. Active Service Personnel and ID, Scouts in Uniform, Kids under 13…
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PBS Eons: The Weird, Watery Tale of Spinosaurus
Read more: PBS Eons: The Weird, Watery Tale of SpinosaurusThe PBS Eons YouTube Channel has a episode about Spinosaurs. Enjoy! In 1912, a fossil collector discovered some strange bone fragments in the eerie, beautiful Cretaceous Bahariya rock formation of Egypt. Eventually, that handful of fossil fragments would reveal to scientists one of the strangest dinosaurs that ever existed — the world’s only known semi-aquatic dinosaur.
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Meet Maximo the Titanosaur!
Read more: Meet Maximo the Titanosaur!The Field Museum has revealed the name of the new titanosaur that is being installed in Stanley Field Hall in the next few weeks. His scientific name is Patagotitan mayorum. He lived about 100 million years ago in what is now Patagonia, Argentina. The spanish word maximo translates to “maximum” or “most” in English. This name references his massive size!
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Braceville Field Trip Report for Spring 2018
Read more: Braceville Field Trip Report for Spring 2018it started out rainy and fairly cold (46 degrees), but the day turned out nice. There were many concretions found. Hopefully, they will prove to be more than just potentially fossil bearing. The world has turned very green recently!
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Medium: More than dinosaurs
Read more: Medium: More than dinosaursRoy Plotnick has an interesting article published at Medium. Paleontology is much, much more than dinosaurs. Enjoy! It happened again today. I was asked what it is do and when I said I was a paleontologist, the response was “cool.” This is the common reaction, often followed by (if we are not confused with archeologists), asking how many dinosaurs I have discovered. I then have to explain that although I study fossils, I don’t work on dinosaurs and have never discovered one.
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CBC Quirks & Quarks – A new fossil reveals the first bird beak – and it came with teeth as well
Read more: CBC Quirks & Quarks – A new fossil reveals the first bird beak – and it came with teeth as wellCBC’s Quirks & Quarks has a segment about the first known bird beak. It belongs to Ichthyornis a bird that dates to about 80 million years ago, during the Cretaceous Period. The species was first identified in the 1870’s and named by Othniel Charles Marsh, of Yale’s Peabody Museum of Natural History. The original paper appears in the journal Nature. Recently, however, newly discovered fossils of Ichthyornis came into the hands of Canadian paleontologist Dr. Bhart-Anhan Bhullar, an assistant professor in the Departments of Geology and Geophysics at Yale University, and the Assistant Curator of Yale’s Peabody Museum of Natural…
ESCONI Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Show
Most Recent Post
- ESCONI April 2026 General Meeting via Zoom – “Life in the Devonian Period, The Age of Fishes”
The April 2026 General Meeting will be held on April 10th, 2026 at 8:00 via Zoom. At the meeting, Jessica Hull will present “Life in the Devonian Period, The Age of Fishes.” The Devonian Period was a crucial moment in the history of life. In this presentation, Jessica Hull will bring fossils to life by describing how they would have lived based on the most up to date research. Dunkleosteus fans won’t want to miss this!
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Field trips require membership, but visitors are welcome at all meetings!
| Friday, April 10th | General Meeting – 8:00 PM via Zoom. Jessica Hull will present “Life in the Devonian Period, The Age of Fishes.” |
| Saturday, April 11th | Junior Study Group Meeting – 2:00 PM, in person at the College of DuPage Technical Education Center (TEC) Building – Room 1038A (Map). Katherine Howard will present on Sand and Sediment Collecting. Specifics of this meeting are available from Scott Galloway, 630-670-2591, gallowayscottf@gmail.com. |
| Saturday, April 18th | Paleontology Study Group – 7:30 PM via Zoom and in person at the College of DuPage, TEC, Room 1038B (Map). Keith Robitschek will present “Digging the Marl of the Lance Formation.” |
| Friday, April 24th | MAPS Expo XLVII – Springfield, IL. |
| Saturday, April 25th | MAPS Expo XLVII – Springfield, IL. |
| Sunday, April 26th | MAPS Expo XLVII – Springfield, IL. |
| No meeting this month | Mineralogy Study Group |