Mesozoic Life In Western Canada Flashcards
What were Mesozoic conditions like in Western Canada?
Climate varied because terranes were still adrift. Cretaceous Seaway was also changing and affecting climate.
Describe the areas near Tumbler Ridge.
Age range of rocks vary from Precambrian through to Cretaceous. The sediments that make up the older part of Tumbler Ridge rocks were deposited on the edge of NA Plate in warm shallow seas. The area fluctuated with shallow marine and terrestrial conditions because of the formation of the Rockies and and Cretaceous Seaway.
What was found in the Triassic marine deposit called Wapiti Lake?
Ammonites, fish, sharks, coelocanths, ray-finned fish. Also marine reptiles like ichthyosaurs, mixosaurs and thalattosaurs.
Describe the ammonites from the Coast Mountains in BC.
From the Early Jurassic. Records recovery of end of Triassic extinction. Took 20 Ma.
What fossil was found in northeastern BC?
Ichthyosaur from the Late Triassic.
What was found in Comox Valley on Vancouver Island and Hornby Island?
Elasmosaur found by 12 year old girl and dad. Ammonites, crabs, snails, bivalves, and shark teeth could also be found there.
The Vancouver Island elasmosaur was discovered on the banks of which river in the Courtenay/Comox area?
Puntledge.
In addition to the elasmosaur, what other large marine reptile has been discovered in the Courtney/Comox area?
Tylosaurus.
How many years of prehistory are preserved on Vancouver Island?
400 Ma.
What is the age of the exposed sea floor along the Trent river bank?
80 Ma.
What types of fossils are usually found in the rocks along the Trent river bank?
Shelled animals, ammonites.
What types of fossils are found more rarely in the rocks along the Trent river bank?
Large marine reptiles.
How many vertebrae of the elasmosaur did Mike Trask and his daughter find on the first weekend after their discovery?
11
How long was the elasmosaur?
14m
Why is it important to record where you discover a fossil?
Help other people and their research. Isn’t a discovery without location.
What flying animal was found in Hornby Island?
Pterosaur from Late Cretaceous. Discovered by Sandy MacLachlan.
What terrestrial animal was found at North of Fort McMurray Alberta?
A nodosaur found by Shawn Funk.
Where is the first discovered dino bonebed in BC?
Tumbler Ridge with hadrosaur.
Where and what was the first piece of dino skull found in BC?
Upper jaw of a tyrannosaur 75Ma at Tumbler Ridge.
What dinosaur was found in Red Deer Valley Alberta that is now at Pacific Museum of the Earth?
Lambeosaurus 75Ma. Found by Charles Sternberg and his sons.
Describe Dinosaur Provincial Park.
Many vertebrate and dino fossils found here. Plants that could’ve been here include magnolias, sycamores, bald cypress trees, redwoods, and ferns.
What is the most common dinosaur found at Dinosaur Provincial Park?
Centrosaurus.
Is dino bone heavy or light?
Heavy.
How did the dinosaur bones all end up in the same place, in ‘bone beds’?
Storms flooded area and dinos drowned.
Is it likely to find the bones of a full, single dinosaur in a bone bed? Why or why not?
No because bones are scattered.
What is the purpose of the consolidant that is painted on the fossils once they are exposed?
To preserve and protect. Easy to see.
