Green
River Formation Fossils
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The
Green River Formation is one of the United States foremost
Lagerstätte fossil sites. It is a huge Eocene age formation has exposures
in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The site is most famous for its
fish fossils, where two different layers in particular yield
abundant fossils that exhibit distinct differences: 1) the so-called
split fish layer is highly laminated and yields fossils with
fine preservation, particularly of skeletons, and, 2) the so
called 18 inch
layer, an unlaminated layer that often yield fossils with remarkable
soft tissue preservation, albeit they are extremely hard to prepare.
The spans some 5
million years, from about 53.5 to 48.5 million
years ago. One dealer I spke with at the 2014 Tucson Fossil Show
told me that he had a barn with more than 80,000 fish fossils
stored, so I don't think there will be a shortage any time
soon.
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Fossils
of the Green River Formation Eocene Lagerstätte:
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Family
Osteoglossidae
Fossil Lake, Kemmerer, Wyoming |
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Weevil
Insect Fossil
Eocene
Order Coleoptera, Family Curculionidae
Green
River Formation
Uintah, Utah
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