Dry Dredgers

Digging Crinoids

From the May 2000 Field Trip

David Sligar found a large number of crinoid stems on the surface of the shale which included a few "log jam" fragments. These are groups of stems all oriented in the same direction and usually indicates the presence of a layer consisting entirely of these "log jams." Field Trip Chair Dan Cooper proceeded to show David how to dig out this layer using a hammer, a tire iron and a hand trowel.

Here are some pictures showing how this is done.

Only a few crinoid cups (calyx) were found, but amazing quantities of crinoid stems were uncovered. Here are a few pictures of the layer that was exposed.

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