This lovely oil in water coloured ammonite is the beauty Beudanticeras sp. from the Lower Cretaceous (Upper Aptian), Krasnodar region, Northern Caucasus, southern Russia. This area of the world has beautiful fossil specimens with their distinct colouring. The geology and paleontological history of the region are fascinating as is its more recent history. The territory of present ..read more

Turtle shells are different from the body armour or armoured shells we see adorning dinosaurs like the ankylosaurs. Ankylosaurs were blessed with huge plates of bone embedded into their skin that acted as a natural shield against predators. Crocodilians have these same bony plates, or osteoderms, embedded in their skin to give them extra protection. We find similar body armour on ..read more

Stemec suntokum, Sooke FormationThe diving bird you see here is Stemec suntokum, a Fossil Plopterid from Sooke, British Columbia, Canada.We all dream of finding new species, and new fossil species in particular. This happens more than you think. As impossible as it sounds, it has happened numerous times at many fossils sites in British Columbia including Sooke on Vancouver Island.The upper ..read more

This specimen of Phylloceras velledae (Michelin) has a shell with a small umbilicus, arched, acute venter, and at some growth stage, falcoid ribs that spring in pairs from umbilical tubercles, disappearing on the outer whorls. This specimen has been polished to show the sutures to great effect. These ammonites are common in rock shops and plentiful on the internet. These ammonites make a ..read more

This lovely with her colourful body is an octopus. Like ninety-seven percent of the world's animals, she lacks a backbone. To support their bodies, these spineless animals — invertebrates — have skeletons made of protein fibres. This flexibility can be a real advantage when slipping into nooks and crannies for protection and making a home in seemingly impossible places.On the east side ..read more

A sweet as you please example of Keuppia levante (Fuchs, Bracchi & Weis, 2009), an extinct genus of octopus that swam our ancient seas back in the Cretaceous. This particular lovely adorns a special place in my heart and my office. His forever home will be within the collections of a local museum but we spend time together—me taking in the remarkable detail and preservation of this ..read more

Nootka Fossil Field Trip. Photo: John FamThe rugged west coast of Vancouver Island offers spectacular views of a wild British Columbia. Here the seas heave along the shores slowly eroding the magnificent deposits that often contain fossils. Just off the shores of Vancouver Island, east of Gold River and south of Tahsis is the picturesque and remote Nootka Island.This is the land of the proud ..read more

Some lovely examples of Douvilleiceras mammillatum (Schlotheim, 1813), ammonites from the Lower Cretaceous (Middle-Lower Albian) Douvilliceras inequinodum zone of Ambarimaninga, Mahajanga Province, Madagascar.The genus Douvilleiceras range from Middle to Late Cretaceous and can be found in Asia, Africa, Europe and North and South America. We have beautiful examples in the early to mid-Albian ..read more

This beautiful dinosaur track is from Kalasin Dinosaur Park in northeastern Thailand. Thailand boasts some of the finest Mesozoic trackways from five endemic dinosaur species.  Since 1976, the Department of Mineral Resources with Thai-French Paleontological Project had continuously investigated the dinosaurs in the Phu Wiang mountains. The project found so many vertebrae, teeth ..read more

Look at how this protective mamma bear holds her cub in her arms to give him a bit of a wash. Her gentle maternal care is truly touching. This mamma has spent late Autumn to Spring in a cave, having birthed them while still hibernation and staying in the den to feed them on her milk.Black bear cubs stay with their mamma for the first one to three years of their lives while she protects them ..read more