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Paleontology
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The Fossil Club at the Calvert Marine Museum sponsors fieldtrips to fossil collecting sites, public lectures, and fossil fairs. No prior experience in paleontology is needed and the only requirement is being a member of the museum. The club, which has been in existence since 1981, is pleased to announce the Betty (Sandy) Roberts Scholarship for Natural Sciences to provide financial support to Southern Maryland graduating students in pursuit of a post-secondary education focused on the natural sciences. Sandy Roberts is a founding member of the fossil club who now resides at Asbury. The Fossil Club will award one scholarship of $500 annually with preference given to applicants pursuing post-secondary education in the fields of paleontology or geology, but the scholarship is open to anyone pursuing education in any of the natural sciences. Any graduating senior from a public, private, or religious high school, as well as home schooled students, in Southern Maryland is eligible. Selection will be based on academic achievement, extracurricular activities, and community service.
Applications must be received at the Calvert Marine Museum no later than March 30. Applicants will be notified by April 30, 2013.
Click here to download scholarship requirements and application.
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Fossil Club Membership
Join the Calvert Marine Museum Fossil Club and increase your knowledge of life in the Miocene and take advantage of special field trip opportunities. Click here for an application/renewal form.
Fossil Club Facebook Page
Fossil Club Meetings
Meetings are scheduled on a quarterly basis on Saturdays and begin promptly at 1 p.m. in the conference room on the top floor of the museum. All meetings are open to the public - you do not have to be a current CMMFC member to attend a meeting. Members are encouraged to come early to see the new on-goings at the museum and to bring and set-up their own recent fossil finds. Various related fossil topics, club issues, etc. are discussed at the meetings, as well as updates from the Paleo Staff of the Calvert Marine Museum on recent finds and new additions to the museum's permanent collection. Whenever possible, these new items will be on display. Beverages and snacks are usually provided and additional "finger food" contributions are always appreciated. Meetings are usually an hour to an hour and a half in length and are, whenever possible, followed by a free public lecture by a visiting distinguished guest in the auditorium.
The 2013 Fossil Club Meeting and Lecture schedule is as follows:
May 11, 2013 - 1:00 p.m. - Fossil Club Meeting in the museum lounge. Following the meeting, Dr. Nick Pyenson, Curator of Fossil Marine Mammals at the Smithsonian, will give a free public lecture on his anatomical fieldwork in Iceland and paleontological fieldwork in Chile. The title of his talk is: "The life and death of whales: new discoveries from Iceland and the Atacama of Chile." 2:30 p.m. in the auditorium.
September 28, 2013 - 1:00 p.m. - Fossil Club Meeting in the museum lounge. A free, public lecture will follow at 2:30 p.m. in the auditorium. Topic to be announced at a later date.
November 16, 2013 - 12:00 p.m. - Fossil Club Meeting & Thanksgiving Pot Luck Luncheon in the museum lounge. A free, public lecture will follow at 2:30 p.m. in the auditorium. Topic to be announced at a later date.
Fossil Club Field Trips
For all trips, contact Bob Ertman at robertertman@msn.com or 410-533-4203 as soon as possible, but no later than Thursday before the trip. Please remember to call in for yourself and family members, or for another club member, on the date and time indicated. Current memberships in both the Fossil Club and the Calvert Marine Museum are needed to go on the trips. Information on directions, lodging, meeting times and meeting places will be provided at the call-in.
Upcoming Fossil Club Field Trips:
Friday (Good Friday), March 29: There will be a trip to Plum Point. Meet at the bowling alley at the corner of Route 4 and Plum Point Road at a10:45 a.m. We will drive to Plum Point in no more than 4 cars as parking is limited. The low tide is at 12:15 p.m. Trip limited to 12 people.
Saturday, April 27 (rain date - Sunday, April 28): Red Hill, Hyner, Clinton County, PA. The DVPS is pleased to invite members of the Calvert Marine Museum Fossil Club to join our trip to the Red Hill site at Hyner, PA about 30 miles north of Lock Haven. Red Hill is one of the premier sites in the world in terms of early plant and vertebrate fossil remains. Fossils found at this site are Devonian and include vertebrate (shark, fish, and amphibian) material and plant fossils from Red Hill. Fossil collection is by hammer and chisel almost exclusively. For more information about Red Hill, see the following website: http://www.devoniantimes.org/ .
Note: The Red Hill site is a VERY steep outcrop, and footing can be somewhat precarious. Because of this, children under the age of 13 will not be allowed to collect there. Red Hill is about a 4.5 hour drive from Delaware and Maryland. If interested in attending, please contact Bob Asreen directly before Wednesday, April 24th at rcasreenjr@msn.com or at 302-838-0339.
Saturday, April 27: A trip to Scientists Cliffs beach. Meet at the ACLT trailhead parking lot on Scientists Cliffs Road at 10:30 a.m. for a low tide at 11:30 a.m. Trip limited to 12 people.
Saturday, May 25: There will be a trip to Purse Park on the Potomac River. Meet at noon in the parking lot (for directions, contact Bob Ertman). Low tide is at 1:37 p.m.
Other Trips:
The Virginia Museum of Natural History sponsors some really nice trips to places you can't go by yourself. Visit them at http://www.vmnh.net/index.cfm/topic/field-trip-adventures.
Note: CMMFC members interested in collecting "South of the Border" at Castle Hayne, Rocky Point, or Belgrade Mines in North Carolina on Fridays, December thru March, can e-mail Bruce Hargreaves at mooseman65@centurytel.net for coordination and exclusive tour guide service. Rocky Point is generally open from 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. on Fridays. Castle Hayne opens at 1 p.m.
The PCS Mine in Aurora, NC has canceled all fossil collecting this spring, 2011, because of safety concerns associated with the ongoing mine reconfiguration. A PCS spokesperson said mine officials will review the safety situation this summer to determine whether collecting will be permitted for the fall season.
Onslow Beach (Camp Le Jeune, Jacksonville) and Green Mill Run (Greensville) are still open. The best time for Green Mill Run is on the weekends during the ECU school year. Onslow is located on the Marine base at Camp Le Jeune in Jacksonville, but civilians can get a pass at the front gate.
The Belgrade Martin Marietta quarry, north of Jacksonville, will "probably" reopen to collectors in 2011, after the New Year. Belgrade has been closed to fossil hunting since last spring. Richland's was temporarily closed to fossil collectors but has recently reopened. Also, Harleyville, the C. auriculatis site in South Carolina, is still closed.
Phone Numbers:
Belgrade: 910-743-6471
Castle Hayne: 910-602-6058
Harleyville: 843-462-7655
Rocky Point: 910-675-0011
Richlands: 910-324-7430
Non-CMMFC Field Trips:
VMNH Field Trips
Fossil Club Elected Officers & Volunteers*
Mike Ellwood, President: mellwood@comcast.net
Mark Griffin, Vice President: marcgriffin@comcast.net
Christa Conant, Treasurer: christa101@comcast.net
Flo Strean, Secretary: (e-mail address not available)
Pam Platt, Membership Chairperson: papfossil@earthlink.net
Stephen Godfrey, Editor*: Godfresj@co.cal.md.us
Robert Ertman, Fall Field Trip Leader*: Robertertman@msn.com
Spring Field Trip Leader*: (to be determined)
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