|
One of the great Early Triassic (roughly
240 million years old) ammonoid
localities in North America can be
visited at Union Wash, near Lone Pine, California, in the shadows
of Mount Whitney (at 14,495 feet, the highest point in the contiguous
United States). Here can be found roughly two to three dozen
species of extinct Ceratites ammonoids (forms that bear
a suture pattern intermediate between simple goniatites types
and the more complex ammonites varieties) in the Lower Triassic
Union Wash Formation. At this Web Site you will find many images
of fossil ammonoids that occur at Union Wash, in addition to
on-site scenic photographs, links to paleontological resources
on the Web, and links of specific interest to Lone Pine and Inyo
County, in general.
Please Note: The fossil localities at Union Wash lie within
the Federally designated Southern Inyo Mountains Wilderness.
This means that only surface collecting is allowed by the Bureau
of Land Management: one must not dig into the strata within a
wilderness region--only freely eroded, loose fossil specimens
may be kept. Also, please understand that the collecting status
at Union Wash is subject to sudden change without notice. Always
check the local Bureau of Land Management office before attempting
to collect fossils at Union Wash; this is an absolute must--permits
may soon be required to collect fossils at Union Wash.
For a detailed
description of the fossiliferous Lower Triassic Union Wash Formation
at Union Wash and elsewhere in Inyo County, take a look
at an online version of the Public Domain document United States Geological Survey Bulletin
1928, Stratigraphy of the Lower
and Middle(?) Triassic Union Wash Formation, East-Central California
by Paul Stone, Calvin H. Stevens and Michael J. Orchard,
originally issued in 1991. Also, go on a virtual field trip to
Union Wash at my page: A Visit
To The Fossil Beds At Union Wash, Inyo County, California, complete with on-site images and links to
images of the Early Triassic ammonoids.
And now for the obligatory words of caution. Endemic to
the Mojave Desert of California, including the Las Vegas, Nevada,
region by the way, is Valley Fever. This is a potentially serious
illness called, scientifically, Coccidioidomycosis, or "coccy"
for short; it's caused by the inhalation of an infectious airborne
fungus whose spores lie dormant in the uncultivated, harsh alkaline
soils of the Mojave Desert. Union Wash just happens to lie within
a northern sector of the Mojave where Valley Fever spores have
been detected. When an unsuspecting and susceptible individual
breaths the spores into his or her lungs, the fungus springs
to life, as it prefers the moist, dark recesses of the human
lungs (cats, dogs, rodents and even snakes, among other vertebrates,
are also susceptible to "coccy") to multiply and be
happy. Most cases of active Valley Fever resemble a minor touch
of the flu, though the majority of those exposed show absolutely
no symptoms of any kind of illness; it is important to note,
of course, that in rather rare instances Valley Fever can progress
to a severe and serious infection, causing high fever, chills,
unending fatigue, rapid weight loss, inflammation of the joints,
meningitis, pneumonia and even death. Every fossil enthusiast
who chooses to visit the Mojave Desert must be fully aware of
the risks involved.
|
