RAPID: Salvage Excavation of a Critically Important Late Miocene Fossil Deposit in North-Central Florida: A Rare Opportunity for Science and Education

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项目编号	1645530
	RAPID: Salvage Excavation of a Critically Important Late Miocene Fossil Deposit in North-Central Florida: A Rare Opportunity for Science and Education
	Jonathan Bloch
主持机构	University of Florida
项目开始年	2016
	2016-08-15
项目结束日期	2017-07-31
资助机构	US-NSF
项目类别	Standard Grant
项目经费	39012(USD)
国家	美国
语种	英语
英文摘要	In November 2015, fossil bones were discovered weathering out of exposures created by a sand mining operation about 30 km southwest of Gainesville, Florida. Paleontologists of the Florida Museum of Natural History quickly determined that the site was potentially very significant, and began quarrying operations. The site is located on private property and the landowner will allow access until Spring 2017 and has agreed to donate all specimens to the FLMNH permanent research collections. However there is a finite time to excavate fossils, as the pit will soon be filled in and the land then used for horse stable waste recycling and pasture for cattle. Thus there is a great urgency to recover as many fossils as possible through careful excavation. The 5-million-year old site has so far produced fossils of about 50 vertebrate taxa. A very broad range of body size is represented, with bones of animals the size of small mice and salamanders found in the same strata as those of rhinos and elephants. Portions of the site are richly fossiliferous and some areas routinely produce articulated skeletons. This is the first vertebrate locality of this age in the southeastern coastal plain with complete skeletons, and also the only one with a diverse fauna of small vertebrates. Undergraduate students, high school teachers, and citizen scientists will be trained and involved in this excavation. Ultimately specimens will be displayed at the Florida Museum of Natural History.
来源学科分类	Geosciences - Earth Sciences
文献类型	项目
条目标识符	http://119.78.100.173/C666/handle/2XK7JSWQ/70029
专题	环境与发展全球科技态势
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	Jonathan Bloch.RAPID: Salvage Excavation of a Critically Important Late Miocene Fossil Deposit in North-Central Florida: A Rare Opportunity for Science and Education.2016.