The Robledo Mountains' reputation as one of the world's most important landscapes of pre-dinosaur fossil trackways likely will be enhanced by another discovery — petrified wood slowly emerging from the desert floor.
"There are just so many types of fossils here, it just staggers the mind," said Jerry MacDonald of Las Cruces, the amateur paleontologist who discovered the Permian Period fossil trackways in the late 1980s and more recently found the dozens of locations with petrified wood.
MacDonald told the Albuquerque Journal on Sunday that he believes that time and erosion are causing an ancient forest to emerge from the ground "that I am just finding the top of."
MacDonald and others are hopeful that the latest find will generate momentum in Congress to pass legislation to carve out a 5,300-acre portion of the southern Robledos as a national monument to protect the Paleozoic Era trackways.
"The fact that the area contains evidence of so many of the members of an Early Permian non-marine ecosystem preserved in one relatively small area like the Robledo Mountains is unique in the history of paleontology and makes the proposed national monument extremely significant," said Sidney Ash, a retired paleobotanist and adjunct professor at the University of New Mexico.
Damn. I missed being able to go see this. It's not the late Permian - which is my fascination - but its still near my old stomping grounds.
8 comments:
Aw, and it's just a bit too far west for me to visit in three weeks' time. I'm going to Carlsbad and Alamogordo on holiday before the SVP conference. I keep threatening my husband with the McKittrick Canyon Death March/Permian Reef Trail.
Who in their right mind goes to Alamogordo on holiday, Julia? Unless you're into watching fighter planes! :P ;)
White Sands is fun. That used to be our 'beach' in LC. We'd gather people up and go sledding. Sometimes star watching during meteor showers too. That was prior to getting the job out at WSMR though. I wanted to get as far away from wsmr as possible then. ;)
Yes it's almost wholly because it's nice and close to White Sands. I didn't feel like heading down to El Paso as my one abiding memory of the place was that it was almost entirely strip joints. We'll go through it at about 75mph early the next morning!
I do remember a decent all-you-can-eat buffet the other side of the highway from all the hotels from the last time I was there. And if we can include a night in Gillette WY on our honeymoon and be relatively untraumatised we can hopefully take Alamogordo in good humour too...
Carlsbad is partly for the caverns and partly for Lucy's Mexicali Restaurant. I would be equally disappointed if we missed out on either. I have been dreaming about the 46oz margaritas since we booked the flights.
I think Paul will enjoy White Sands. He really liked Coral Pink Sand Dunes in Utah.
EP is a nasty place to be sure. You should have hit up Las Cruces instead. I could direct you to some people that are locals - since I lived there 9 years - and they could tell you were the outstanding eateries are. My knowledge is, sadly, outdated since I've been in the SF Bay Area for 6 years now. La Posta in Mesilla is probably still there...
HEY LCans? Can we get a foodie update?
Well the hotel has only been reserved in Alamogordo, not paid for. So if LC is to be recommended then I'm up for changing our travel plans. If your pals can recommend some good places to eat (preferably within a mile of a decent hotel - we're happy with Super 8, Motel 6, Best Western, etc) then it's only another hour on the journey from White Sands, and it'd cut about half an hour off the journey to San Antonio the next day I expect.
La Posta (http://www.laposta-de-mesilla.com/) in Mesilla. Very good. There are some smaller palces in Mesilla too. I'd make reservations if you can for LP. You can also walk around Mesilla's downtown square. Touristy, true, but pleasant that time of year.
Too bad you're not in Albuquerque next week...Balloons!
Hey, next time in Cruces let me know. If I can i'll give you a tour of my finds. MacDonald/aka Dinobot
I would be delighted! Next time I pass through I'd love the tour.
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