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President's Message
What a great start to the 2013-14 TBFC season! Our first
meeting was a big hit for the 100+ TBFC members in attendance. We had a great
guest speaker and TBFC’s first ever new boyfriend evaluation. Two young men
dating some TBFC young ladies were run through a “paleo quiz” to determine
their compatibility and possible entry into the TBFC family. They both passed,
but at this point in time, we’ll keep both on probation until at least the
Peace River Adventure. Based on their performance on the working end of a
shovel, we’ll make a hard decision then.
I’d like to thank our speaker from the September meeting, Kristen MacKenzie.
We learned a lot about Kristen’s Arikareean site in Oregon and the similarity of its
fauna to some of the prehistoric animals that once lived in Florida. Kristen
is just the first of our speakers who will put a lot of time in on the road to
spend an evening with TBFC. I appreciate her time, and I know everyone who met
Kristen looks forward to working with her as the new Assistant Collections Manager
at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Welcome to Florida Kristen!
October 5th Meeting
Dr. Steven Wallace, PhD
& Dr. Richard Hulbert, PhD
A New Machairodont from the Palmetto Fauna of Florida,
with Comments on the Origin of Smilodonti
Writing in the online journal PLOS One, Dr. Steven Wallace of East Tennessee State University and Dr. Richard Hulbert Jr. of the Florida Museum of Natural History name and describe a new genus and species of saber tooth cat from the very early Pliocene (about 4.5 million years ago) from Central Florida. Its name is Rhizosmilodon fiteae…
Recognize anything interesting in the name, Rhizosmilodon fiteae? That’s right, Fite, as in, Barbara Fite. Every fossil hunters dream is to discover a new species, and an even bigger dream is to have that species named after them. That dream has come true for our very own Barbra Fite.
Twenty-some years ago in a central Florida phosphate mine, Barbra found the best of the specimens suspected to be a saber cat new to science. With a couple of decades of study in the books, Dr. Richard and Dr. Wallace have determined the cat to be a new species. They have thanked Barbara for her contribution to science by naming the creature in her honor.
Wallace and Hulbert will explain how they used the measurements
of limb bones and jaw pieces to determine that the cat was a new discovery and
likely originated in North America.
“The donation was a major contribution to the research because the remarkably well-preserved lower jaw contains almost pristine examples of all three chewing teeth, Hulbert said. The genus name Rhizosmilodon, meaning "root of Smilodon," implies the animal could be a missing link and direct ancestor of Smilodon, which became extinct about 11,000 years ago.”
As an extra for this special meeting, we will be including in the monthly raffle a replica of the actual Rhizosmilodon fiteae specimen originally discovered and donated by Barbra. Don’t miss it!
For the past five years or more, you’ve been greeted at the monthly meetings by Shawn & Gerlinde Thomas. Employment opportunities will take the Thomas’ away from TBFC meetings in the immediate future. We thank them for their service to TBFC and welcome two new smiling faces to the monthly meeting’s welcome table, John and Cheryl Jacobs. John and Cheryl are regulars at the monthly meeting and can be found helping out on many of the field trips they attend. Thanks for stepping up to help John and Cheryl!
National Fossil Day at the Florida Aquarium
October 19, 2013
The National Park Service and the American Geosciences Institute are partnering to host the fourth annual National Fossil Day on October 16, 2013 (we’ll celebrate on October 19th) during Earth Science Week. National Fossil Day is a celebration organized to promote public awareness and stewardship of fossils, as well as to foster a greater appreciation of their scientific and educational value.
Fossils discovered on the nation's public lands preserve ancient life from all major eras of Earth's history, and from every major group of animal or plant. In the national parks, for example, fossils range from primitive algae found high in the mountains of Glacier National Park, Montana, to the remains of ice-age animals found in caves at Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Public lands provide visitors with opportunities to interpret a fossil's ecological context by observing fossils in the same place those animals and plants lived millions of years ago and at zoo and aquarium locations where some modern day relatives can be seen.
National Fossil Day activities will also highlight natural processes that shape our planet over time to correlate with this year's Earth Science Week theme, "Mapping our World" ( http://www.earthsciweek.org/).
National
Fossil Day is being promoted through
partnerships with professional
organizations, government agencies, and other groups. Representatives from
National Earth Science Teachers Association and Paleontological Research
Institution are assisting with planning for National Fossil Day.
On October 16th – 19th, paleontologists and park rangers will share fossil discoveries at special events nationwide and explain the importance of preserving fossils where they are found, so that everyone can share a sense of discovery!
The Tampa Bay Fossil Club will once again be setting up shop at the Florida Aquarium where literally hundreds of families and kids will have a chance to view the variety of fossils that can be found right here in Florida. If you have the chance, come by and visit TBFC’s display and tour the Aquarium.
Join in the celebration of National Fossil Day! Checkout the National Park Service Fossil Day site at: http://nature.nps.gov/geology/nationalfossilday/index.cfm
See you at the October meeting!
Good Hunting
Michael Searle
President, TBFC