We can thank Mr. Spielberg and popular culture for the fact that most people think of dinosaurs when they think of fossils. The bone record is actually far less abundant that the plant record.

Scientists have determined that Neandertals had big mouths that they were able to open unusually wide. No great surprise given their large craniums and strong facial musculature, but what is more interesting is that we have now sequenced their DNA and determined that they did not interbreed with modern homeo sapien sapiens.

Do you suppose Neanderthals died out because of some lack of evolutionary skill or perhaps their small, inbred population with a sea of genetic mutations and mouths gaped widely meant the cooler kids, the homo sapien hipsters, just wouldn't play nice, hang out and interbreed>.

A newly described plesiosaur, Nichollsia borealis, has been named for the late Elizabeth (Betsy) Nicholls, a renowned paleontologist from the University of Calgary. Betsy holds a special place in the hearts of the paleo community, particularly those in Alberta and British Columbia who had the opportunity to work with her over the years. She greatly broadened our understanding of the large marine reptiles who swam our ancient seas in describing one of the largest marine reptiles ever to be found.

Most travelers exploring the rugged terrane of Vancouver Island are unaware of the island’s fiery history.  Like Phoenix from the Ashes, the igneous volcanic and granitic rock that would become Wrangellia and later Vancouver Island, began as eruptions of searing molten magma out in the Pacific some 380 million years ago, then cooling the peaceful terrane we see today. 

From the searing Devonian to the cooler Triassic, some 245 million years ago, Vancouver Island sat in an incubator beneath the sea. 

A trip along Chuckanut Drive, in northwestern Washington is a chance to view incredible diversity from sea to sky. An amazing array of plants and animals call this coastline home.

For the fossil enthusiast, it is a chance to slip back in time and have a bird’s eye view of a tropical paradise preserved in the Eocene strata of various fossil sites. Snug up against the Pacific Ocean, this 6000m thick exposure yields a vast number of tropical and flowering plants that you might see in Mexico today.

Easily accessible by car, this rich natural playground makes for an enjoyable daytrip just one hour south of the US Border.