Monthly Archives: December 2010

Dealing with ontogeny

Posted on December 27, 2010 by altondooley

A colleague recently pointed out a change in my appearance that has become more obvious in recent years. It’s noticeable in the images above, from 2005 (left) and 2010. Here are some closeups emphasizing the change:

Posted in "Picasso", Carmel Church Quarry, Chesapeake Group, Modern critters, Paleontological techniques | Tagged | 4 Comments

Sinistra’s ribs

Posted on December 20, 2010 by altondooley

It has been awhile since I’ve talked about “Sinistra”, the specimen of the baleen whale Diorocetus hiatus from Carmel Church. The lack of posts does not indicate a lack of interest or activity in this whale, however. “Sinistra” is apparently the … Continue reading →

Posted in "Sinistra", Carmel Church Quarry, Chesapeake Group | Leave a comment

From the collections room (Calippus)

Posted on December 13, 2010 by altondooley

I recently received an email requesting information about fossil horses from Virginia. To my amazement, I discovered that I had never done a blog post on the Carmel Church horse; a truly remarkable achievement considering how much I talk about … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmel Church land mammals, Carmel Church Quarry, Chesapeake Group | 3 Comments

Whale skull from North Carolina

Posted on December 10, 2010 by altondooley

Several months ago Vince Schneider, the paleontologist at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, generously asked if I would be interested in working on a whale skull that was found in Lake Waccamaw State Park a few years ago (here’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Chesapeake Group, North Carolina Balaenula | 3 Comments

A strange vertebra from Carmel Church

Posted on December 6, 2010 by altondooley

A few months ago a student working on a project measured and photographed all the whale vertebrae we’ve prepared from Carmel Church. More than half of these vertebrae are isolated bones that are not part of an associated skeleton, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Carmel Church mysticetes, Carmel Church odontocetes, Carmel Church Quarry | Tagged | 2 Comments

Whorlies (updated)

Posted on December 3, 2010 by altondooley

I don’t actually know all that much about plants. I took a number of biology courses in college and graduate school, but they were all in evolutionary theory or animal anatomy, with little or no botany. So all this work … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments