Monthly Archives: February 2011

Fossil plants as art

Posted on February 28, 2011 by altondooley

Over the last few months DB and I have been working on making a dent in the huge backlog of fossil plants that have come to VMNH over the last two years, from both Boxley-Beckley and Tom McLoughlin’s donation. We’ve also been working … Continue reading →

Posted in Paleobotany | 2 Comments

Balaenula update

Posted on February 23, 2011 by altondooley

Laura Kellam and I returned to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences yesterday to meet with Vince Schneider for further examination of the Balaenula skull from Lake Waccamaw. Craig Fitzpatrick has been fabricating and armature to support the cranium, and with most of … Continue reading →

Posted in North Carolina Balaenula | Tagged | 3 Comments

Bourbon and Geology

Posted on February 20, 2011 by altondooley

A signature product of the southeastern United States, and one with which my family has had a generations-long relationship (at least as consumers), is bourbon whiskey. Bourbon is produced through a rather complex process involving the fermentation of corn and … Continue reading →

Posted in General Geology, Invertebrate Paleontology, Science and Technology | Tagged | 4 Comments

Trace fossils on whale ribs

Posted on February 14, 2011 by altondooley

Piedmont Governor’s School student Zach Turman is doing a project on quantifying shark bite marks on the ribs of the Carmel Church baleen whale “Sinistra”. This whale was heavily scavenged by sharks, and he’s finding tons of bites. However, he … Continue reading →

Posted in "Sinistra", Carmel Church mysticetes, Carmel Church Quarry, Chesapeake Group, Invertebrate Paleontology | Tagged | 7 Comments

Potomac sperm whale completed

Posted on February 11, 2011 by altondooley

I’ve finally completed the preparation work on the small sperm whale jaw from Westmoreland County brought to the museum by John Parker last month. The jaw was crushed flat in the sediment, and required a fair amount of reassembly to restore it … Continue reading →

Posted in Chesapeake Group | Tagged | 8 Comments

Darwin Day at Roanoke College

Posted on February 6, 2011 by altondooley

I spent all day Friday at Roanoke College, participating in Darwin Day celebrations. Darwin’s birthday is not actually until February 12, but thanks to DB Poli Darwin Day at Roanoke has evolved into an extravaganza with events spread over a … Continue reading →

Posted in Science, education, and philosophy | 2 Comments

From the Collections Room (Proboscidean femur)

Posted on February 1, 2011 by altondooley

My friend Bobby Boessenecker (who blogs at The Coastal Paleontologist) published a paper today with Frank Perry in the journal Palaios (abstract). In the paper they describe circular bite marks found on several fur seal bones from the Miocene-Pliocene Purisima Formation … Continue reading →

Posted in From the Collections Room | Tagged | 5 Comments