THE FOSSIL NEWS April - September, 2013
October 2011
INSIDE THIS EDITION Field trip reports from Yass & Wee Jasper... ...and Nymboida... ...and Lake St Clair... and Mulbring Fossil Identification Day
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October 2011!
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THE FOSSIL CLUB OF NEW SOUTH WALES. Inc.
April are financial until 30th June the same year - fee is half of the Single or Family rate.
THE CLUB OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE 2010-2011
Insurance payments are payable from July through to June each year. New members will need to renew their insurance each new financial year.
President: Gary Davies, (02) 9618-1254 Vice President: Jennie Hall Secretary: Albert Sequeira, secretaryfossilclub@yahoo.com.au Fossil Club of NSW Inc. C\- The Secretary, 2 Hugh Place, Kings Langley, NSW 2147 0402879266 Minute Secretary: Albert Sequeira
Payments made to: Fossil Club of NSW Inc., 9 Florence Ave, Denistone 2114 NSW
Front cover picture: The club at Wee Jasper. Photo by D. Hindmarsh, 2013.
Treasurer: Carrie Wang, treasurerfossilclub@yahoo.com.au Newsletter Editor: James Strong, 0405 400 030, editorfossilclub@yahoo.com.au Public Officer: Albert (Albie) Gamble, (02) 9651-1920 Field Trip Coordinators: David & Diana Hindmarsh, (02) 4234-1468 or 0414 383 076 dhindy@bigpond.net.au Webmaster: Albert Sequeira, fossilclubnsw@yahoo.com.au Website Address: www.fossilclubnsw.org.au Sub Committee Members: Katherine Smith, Ron Williamson & Diana Hindmarsh
Meetings: For the latest information about Club/Social Meetings, please contact the Secretary for time and place.
Taxonomic Disclaimer: This publication is not deemed to be valid for taxonomic purposes.
Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Fossil Club of NSW or its sponsors. Material presented in Fossil News may be copied for personal use or published for purpose, provided that any extracts are fully acknowledged. Where any material is credited to and/or copyright to another source, the original author must be contacted and permission gained.
Correspondence: To the Secretary - Albert Sequeira Newsletter material to the Editor editorfossilclub@yahoo.com.au Subscriptions: Fees are due for renewal 1st June each year. New members joining after 1st The Fossil Club NSW
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IN THIS ISSUE Bowning, Yass & Wee Jasper 3 Nymboida Report 5
Field Trip - Easter Weekend, March 2013
Fossil Identification Day 7
Text by D. Hindmarsh
Hunter Report 8 Lake St Clair & Mulbring 9 Riversleigh Does It Again 11 Conodonts, Redux 11 The Crinoid Classifieds 11 Activities Bulletin 12
BOWNING, YASS & WEE JASPER Good Friday Very Late Silurian This year, we had planned extra field activities, making for a start on Good Friday afternoon. It was great to welcome four new members to their first fossil field trip. These new members had all expressed a desire to find their own Trilobites during the weekend. I think that they all went home happy! All met as arranged, in the street, next to the Yass Caravan Park, home for most of us for the weekend. We then travelled to the property in convoy. Diana and I had stopped off at this property last October, and at that time, the creek where we usually fossick was running a banker! What is called a “good season” to farmers. Early this year, bushfires to the north-west cloaked the area in smoke for many days. Arriving Friday, early afternoon, we were very pleased to find the creek almost dry. Soon after arriving, members were quickly at work; in the creek, on the banks, and on top of the banks. Finds were soon being shown. Trilobites- mainly tails, shells, corals and crinoids. Following a tip-off last year, I had a walk away from the creek area, and soon found limestone slabs containing “snails”- Gastropods. Gary
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wandered down the watercourse and relocated a very large lump of Coral in the creek, members soon had a specimen!
conspicuous heap of rock, acting as an erosion barrier, soon revealed to the new comers that Trilobites were there for the taking. The whip was produced to move all to the fossicking site for several hours of hammering. Many finds were made by all - many Trilobites complete with heads. In past years, mostly tails were found, few complete.
Image: Ken’s trilobite. All then progressed to the next site where the graptolites are found. A few Trilobites were recovered above that layer, higher on the knoll.
Image: Collecting above the creek. Two years ago, several wild Quince trees provided dessert for some willing to try them. With Easter very early this year, we thought that we may have been too early, but no! most fruit had lost their hairy covering, but still looking green, so buckets were produced, and filled. Finally we all picked a bucket of Quinces. All in all, a rewarding day, but we missed the sheep shearing that was to happen the next day. Saturday Late Silurian All present agreed to an earlier start time, given what we wanted to do on the Saturday. Plans can be changed! Those that stayed the night formed up at 8.30am and travelled to the day’s location. A The Fossil Club NSW
We then travelled to above the historic Hatton’s Corner, an important coral reef formation. All were surprised at the great vertical depth of corals, and of the time frame for such growth to form. Now, well and truly hungry, all headed back to the Trilobite site to score that last complete specimen. We reluctantly left at 3.30pm for our history lesson, visiting one of Yass’s most significant historic houses – “Cliftonwood”, built in 1841 for a Mr Watson, on land owned by Hume Highway explorer, Hamilton Hume. All were impressed with the house sheds and underground silo. A long but very rewarding day, requiring sustenance at the local Soldiers Club.
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Easter Sunday Devonian Led by new trip leaders, Alby and Marie, we left Yass at 7.15am, to Wee Jasper, Carey’s Cave location, for a fundraiser breakfast run by the locals to support the Primary School and Bush Fire Brigade. Bacon, egg & sausage sandwiches, hash browns and pikelets, tea or coffee AND an Easter egg!!
Peter and Corrie then led us to another private property, where we were privileged to see the significant formation known as “Shearsby’s Wallpaper”, a road cutting, through the Spirifer yassensis Limestone Member, part of the Taemas Limestone beds, whose wall was a crowded mass of the Spirifer, Spinella yassensis, with fewer Chonetes culleni. This bedding plane was almost vertical. . What better way to finish a long weekend of fossil hunting and learning, than to all be seated for afternoon tea, taking in the splendid rural view at that location, followed by a drive back to town, and dinner at the Soldiers Club. Well done, and thank you to Alby and Marie, Peter and Corrie, for making this day so special.
Image: Shearsby’s Wallpaper A short drive, and we were met by the landholder, who, with the aid of some superb local Devonian fossils, some four hundred million years old, gave us an in depth insight into the formation of limestone bedding that runs through his property. Tilted to the vertical, this blue - grey limestone belt is full of any number of interesting creatures from an ancient past. Despite being very chilly weather wise, we soon warmed up with a farm walk, our guide pointing out numerous preserved fossils, with the keener members quickly taking up the chase and finding similar in situ, themselves. A splendid Sunday morning in the country. Google: Burrinjuck Fossils, Australian Heritage Magazine article. Lunch was eaten in Wee Jasper, then we descended to below the road bridge retrieving fossils shells from the banks of the river.
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Trips like this only happen due to the generosity of the landholders granting us the permission to access their properties. Thank you!
Image: Gary’s trilobite trail.
NYMBOIDA REPORT Field Trip - June Long Weekend, 2013 Text by Pat Edwards The Nymboida Canoe Centre is a good camp, cheap, lots of space, good facilities and a happy manager.
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6 the creek bed. There are some finely detailed specimens displaying what may be interpreted as bark, gnarling etc. Some small sections have been broken off by flood and were good collection pieces for the group.
The Centre, as well, is across the road from the Reserve Quarry, just a few miles from the Coal Mine Road Quarry, and close to the Nymboida hamlet with pub, farmers market, museum and church coffee shop. The Reserve Quarry provides abundant blackened fossilised flora on a fine light grey matrix. Not heavy digging, the fossils are found among weathered outcrops or discarded quarry works. Coal seams are evident along the quarry face between strata. The quarry has drivable access. The fossil material most suitable for collection is exposed by splitting rocks along flat plates, The specimens are fairly stable and remain in good condition for wrapping or until treated with PVA. The Coal Mine Road Quarry presents similar material although larger plates can be found. The material is just as stable. Drive access is good. Rad found some large finely detailed plates. The local creek has full scale petrified timber logs presented as if they have just fallen into place. They form part of the rock that makes up The Fossil Club NSW
Image: Ginko A local at the church coffee shop asked us to visit his private property in the area. He had found small but detailed specimens of fossilised flora in a light coloured claylike matrix and we managed a few finds while there. He was very helpful and drove us all to the hilly areas in his farm vehicle and showed us his unusual and massive cliff face. A cliff weathered to a shape similar to the well known wave rock formation of the outback.
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7 We then moved on to Wauchope and an abandoned quarry behind the town. The quarry sits in a hard limestone area containing numerous crinoidal sections and shells. It has very hard rock and makes for hard collecting but weathered out pieces can be dug out of the ground. Diana found a particularly good crinoid section. Rad's local knowledge made the trip very productive. Later that day we headed toward home and had afternoon tea at my place. We were all loaded with rocks, dirty clothes, and wet boots so we knew we had had a good trip.
FOSSIL IDENTIFICATION DAY 21 July, 2013 Text by Gary Davies
Image: wave rock On day 4 the group moved from Nymboida to Macksville for an overnight stay.
The course was attended by a large number of members and their families. It started at 10.30 and finished 12.30 then followed by an excellent lunch.
Our next stop was Bowerville and we visited the local museums before driving further along the Bowerville Rd and collecting. The local road cuts present fenestella and polypora that has been iron dyed to a brown and that sit in a white matrix. These specimens are very detailed and in a soft base that can easily be prepped into nice show pieces. An occasional shell can be seen among these plates.
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We were told that classification of fossils is a dynamic process and revisions are made as more analysis is carried out. Classification systems have changed over time as more information has come to light. Environments also change over time due to a number of climatic changes caused by the Earth’s orbit, tilt and solar activity. This puts selection pressure on living things and species’ need to change or die out. A number of books and references were given, but I thought the best one was the Macquarie University Website ( The Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences). A full list can be obtained from Albert Sequeira our secretary or from Diana Hindmarsh our trips leader.
we were a bit taken aback to see a large building sited on the said spider location! Lunch helped, and we then walked down to the rock platform and Southward, finding some beautiful fossil leaves - Glossopteris - dendrites and hard rock that should take a polish when slabbed. About 3.30pm we parted company and tracked to Cessnock, finding most members already set up and awaiting our arrival at the caravan park. John and Sue in from Melbourne, Peter and Corrie from Queanbeyan, Jim from the South Coast.
We were then taken through the classification of the invertebrates from the Porifera to the Echinodermata. I would like to thank Emanuel for his informative and interesting talk, to David and Diana for cooking lunch and to everyone that attended. Image: Group at the quarry at Lake St Clair.
HUNTER REPORT Field Trip - 10th & 11th August, 2013 Text by David Hindmarsh, Trip Leader We left the South Coast early on the Friday morning, stopping at Thornleigh, North Sydney, for a break at the home of members Laurie, Lan and Kevin Brown. What a great collection Kevin has. I am most envious of his Belmont insects! With the Brown’s leading, we travelled to Merewether Beach, Newcastle, as Laurie had found “spiders” there many years ago. On arriving at the car park over looking the baths, The Fossil Club NSW
Saturday, clear and sunny, all headed along country lanes to Singleton to meet the rest of the group – Rad, Heinz, Audrey, Malcolm, Chris, Brian, Diana, Richard, Jennifer and Nathan at the Mc Donald’s, before heading to the quarry at Lake St Clair. Again, it was great that so many members made the effort of travelling to attend the two days activities. Despite the usual fractious bedding material, finds were soon reported. Straight Nautiloid shells, a nice Lepidodendron bark section, a Conularia, Bryozoa, shells and a cute, small but well defined Trilobite tail, to name a few of the finds. Having had a successful start to the weekend, we did a drive-by of the Glendonite location on the banks of the Hunter River, to
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break the return drive to Cessnock. This is also an easily reachable location where a great variation of intact Glendonite forms may be quickly obtained.
– Alby, Bill, Joan, Kevin and Laurie, for another day in the sun. Again finds were reported by everyone – mostly Fenestella and Richard scored with a nice find of the day Neocamptocrinis. This site has not been “worked” as a quarry for many years, and it is getting harder for members to get readily accessible rock to split, without some digging or the use of bigger sledge hammers! Various finds were wrapped and put away! With some returning to home, the few stragglers drove to the Kitchener site, rather surprised that the trail in had dried nicely, and was quite accessible to all. Out came hammers and chisels, and buckets were again filled, satisfying the first timers to that location. So ended another great weekend of collecting.
LAKE ST CLAIR & MULBRING A brief report from South of the Border Field Trip - 10th & 11th August, 2013 Text by John and Sue Harle from Melbourne We really don’t need much of an excuse to jump over the Murray to meet up with our fossiling mates, so the chance to catch the Turner Exhibition in Canberra and spend a night with Alby and Marie put the matter beyond doubt. The Turner Exhibition was great but you should see Alby’s collection. It was a privilege to enjoy the fruits of so many years of patient, thoughtful collecting and so beautifully displayed. Images (top and bottom): Neocamptocrinis Sunday had groups converging on Mulbring from all directions with a few different members The Fossil Club NSW
By Friday afternoon the expeditioners were starting to arrive at the caravan park in Cessnock. David hadn’t told us about the bonus
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attraction, a giant Swap Meet he had arranged at the Showgrounds next door. But the best surprise was seeing Corrie and Peter who we didn’t think were coming. The best part of fossiling for us is catching up with all the friends we’ve made, the amazing specimens are just the icing on the cake.
These are very strange, they are mineral specimens but the original mineral has been substituted by another mineral. The mineral, ikaite, is formed in seawater at near freezing temperatures and are only formed in a particular chemical and physical environment. They come in various shapes and sizes some with points on each end and others like pineapples. We all collected a selection and struggled back to the cars. We were all pretty exhausted after the day, some of us bought fish and chips, some went home and Rad, Heinz and Audrey camped closer to Mulbring.
Image: Nathan’s Turitella (right) and straight nautiloid (left). So Saturday morning we all gathered at Maca’s carpark in Singleton then off in a convoy to the quarry at Lake St Clair. The quarry is part of the Woolooma Formation and is Carboniferous between 525-350 million years old. Everyone found interesting specimens including Spirifers and other brachiopods , corals and gastropods. Nathan found a beautiful piece of Club Moss.
On Sunday we all set out for the disused Quarry at Mulbring. Alby, Bill and Joan and Kevin and his Dad, Laurie came up from Sydney for the day. We were all overwhelmed by the amount of fossilized material in the quarry. There were large sheets of Bryozoa particularly Fenestella. Rad quarried a huge area with his sledge hammer and Heinz and Audrey filled their trailer with enormous pieces. The plates contained beautiful brachiopods, molluscs, crinoids and bryozoan. John found the smallest trilobite tail which everyone needed glasses to see. Some found bucket loads of interesting material. Late in the afternoon David and Diana, John and Sue, Audrey and Heinz, Richard and Corrie and Peter went on a rough track to the top of a hill at Kitchener to find beautiful red and orange shells that were hidden in the rock. We had a beautiful view from the top and it was a perfect end to a wonderful weekend.
Image: Nathan’s Lepidodendron In the afternoon Rad took us to site beside a river near Glendon to search for Glendonites. The Fossil Club NSW
David and Diana were wonderful as tour leaders. They left no stone unturned. We appreciated all the help from the more knowledgeable members of the group and we really enjoyed everyone’s company.
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RIVERSLEIGH DOES IT AGAIN Text by Albert Sequeira Karen Black from UNSW led a team to Riversleigh, in the May 28, 2013 and discovered a new species of fossil koala names Litokoala dicksmithi after Dick Smith who funded the research. The paper is found in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology and in http:// newsroom.unsw.edu.au/news/science/20million-year-old-koala-named-after-dick-smith Litokoala dicksmithi is one of only two fossil koalas found with an intact head. It is about 3 to 4 kilos and was small compared to modern day koalas. The smaller size indicates that L. dicksmithi is more agile and probably tree dwellers like the today’s koalas. It has a larger variety of diet, which means it can occupy a larger area. The discovery of L. dicksmithi brings the total number of extinct koala species to 18 and fills in a 10,000-year gap in the 100,000-year history of the koala and its ancestors.
revision in what I thought I knew, almost daily. But such fun!) While it is true that form-species were used for conodonts into the 1970’s and beyond, discoveries of conodont elements in their life associations and other work has allowed palaeontologists to reconstruct the complex, multi-element feeding apparatus of these animals, and has lead to a multi-element taxonomy that replaces the old form-species naming system. It would take a bit of space to explain this system in detail - for a latter issue. I look forward to bringing some of these microfossils to a club meeting soon.
THE CRINOID CLASSIFIEDS Do you or your partner have too many fossils in their collection? I know my wife thinks so! Well why not sell some of them in “The Crinoid Classifieds”. It is a great place to all your fossils and paraphernalia to a selected audience. Not only can you advertise your fossils for sale, other pre owned treasures could also be advertised.
CONODONTS, REDUX
If you advertise in the Fossil News, it would automatically be advertised on our website and the advertisement will go for 3 months until the next issue.
Text by James Strong, editor
Private Rates:
In the last issue I discussed the fascinating - and biostratigraphically useful - conodonts. I wrote about the idea of form-species - the term given to species designations for a part of an animal or plant when the whole is unknown (or until it is known). Well, I made a mistake! (Sorry - my hurried and harried thesis year has meant a complete The Fossil Club NSW
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12 THE FOSSIL CLUB OF NSW Inc.
ACTIVITIES BULLETIN September 2013 To join The Fossil Club on Facebook – go to this web address: https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheFossilClubofNSW/
SOCIAL DAY, ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING and COMMITTEE MEETING AGM postponed. New date will advised in the next Activities Bulletin th
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October 5 -7 (Labour Day)
Field Trip – DUNEDOO Late Permian Glossopteris plant fossils, petrified wood and possible new location. Register with David or Diana Hindmarsh (dhindy@bigpond.net.au or 02 4234 1468 or 0414 383 076) at least seven days before departure to advise participation and receive latest information. Check email and/or phone before departure to ensure trip has not been cancelled due to weather or site conditions.
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November 2 -3
10am-5pm
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November 23 -24
* CANBERRA LAPIDARY CLUB – SPRING GEMCRAFT & MINERAL SHOW Parkes Room, Exhibition Park, Canberra See www.canberralapidary.org.au for details
* HAWKESBURY DISTRICT LAPIDARY CLUB – GEM and MINERAL SHOW
9.30am-5pm (Sat) Windsor Function Centre, Cnr. Dight and Macquarie Streets, Windsor 9.30am-4pm (Sun) This is one of the premier gem and mineral shows in the Greater Sydney area. There are usually quite a number of fossil dealers displaying their latest acquisitions.
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April 18 -21 2014 (Easter)
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October 4 -6 2014
Field Trip – S.E. QUEENSLAND and N.E. NSW and GEMBOREE at GATTON
Field Trip - VICTORIA
*This is not a Fossil Club activity. Information only for members who may wish to attend. Annual fees were due by 30 June 2013 for the 2013-2014 year. Financial members only are eligible to attend the above activities, except for non-Fossil Club activities. Membership Application/Renewal form is available at the website www.fossilclubnsw.org.au All renewals before the due date will go into the draw for a fossil prize. Personal Accident insurance is compulsory for all members attending field trips, except those over 80. The annual cost is $3.50 per member and must be paid before registering for the first field trip. If you are a member of another lapidary, gem or mineral club and pay insurance to that club, you will already be covered.
Fossil Club of New South Wales Inc.
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