Utah Fossils Views
Opportunities to learn about Utah's fossils provide a variety of experiences for all age groups and interest levels. Museums throughout the state exhibit fossils from Utah. Dinosaur quarries contain hundreds of dinosaur bones. You can also visit dinosaur tracksites and nature trails where fossils and petrified wood can be found in a natural setting.
The Burgess Shale of Canada and Chengjiang, in Yunnan Province, China are the best known Lagerstatte of Cambrian time Both sites have a great diversity of benthic or burrowing creatures. Less well known is that the western state of Utah has similar fauna of the Cambrian Explosion. Interestingly, some scientists believe that a larger number of species are found in the Weeks, Wheeler and Marjum Formations within the House Range in Utah than in the Burgess Shale, though the fossils are far less abundant and not as well preserved. Even fewer are collected simply because collectors usual do not recognize them as fossils.
The Middle Cambrian Wheeler, Marjum and Weeks Formations are exposed within the House Range west of Delta, Utah. Both formations are famous for their trilobites and other shelly fossils, but also contain a rich diversity of fossils of soft-bodied animals of the Cambrian Explosion, some of which from these and other Utah locations are shown below.
LODGING: Camping is an inexpensive way to stay right inside Dinosaur National Monument. The park has three campgrounds on the Utah side and three in Colorado. Cost, facilities and access vary greatly. Reservations are available only for group sites during the high-use season. Backcountry camping is free; a permit is required. Details at www.nps.gov/dino.There are 18 motels in Vernal, many used by service workers in the oil and gas industry. Information at Vernal Welcome Center, 435-789-4002, or Dinosaurland Travel Board, 800-477-5558.FOSSILS: Private citizens are permitted to collect invertebrate fossils (such as plants or trilobites) on public land. If youDrs"re not a scientist and find a vertebrate fossil, leave it alone. Locals recommend amateurs try Cowboy Canyon, about 35 miles southeast of town near the gilsonite mine on Highway 45.DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT: www.nps.gov/dino.BROWNyrs"S PARK: www.utah.com/oldwest/butchcassidyoverview.htm.
Utah Fossils Images
