Paleontology in Rhode Island
state of Rhode Island
Paleontology in Rhode Island refers to
glacial activity. Notable local fossil finds have included previously unknown kinds of insect and abundant ancient amphibian trackways.[1]
Prehistory
No
horsetail fossils are preserved as casts in sandstone of more recent age. One of the best of these later specimens was a trunk with a 16-inch diameter from a tree that was estimated to be more than 50 feet tall.[1]
Carboniferous Rhode Island was home to a variety of
net-winged insects), as well as a new protophasmid (an herbivorous insect).[1] At the time, Rhode Island was also home to many kinds of cockroaches.[3]
During the
glaciers.[2]
History
Near the end of 1892 a clergyman from Providence discovered the fossilized wing of a prehistoric cockroach in Pawtucket.[1] In 1914 construction began for a trolley tunnel to run through College Hill.[citation needed] During excavation an abundance of plant fossils were found that were later curated at Brown University.[1]
Natural history museums
- Rhode Island Museum of Natural History and Planetarium, Providence
See also
Footnotes
References
- Murray, Marian (1974). Hunting for Fossils: A Guide to Finding and Collecting Fossils in All 50 States. Collier Books. p. 348. ISBN 9780020935506.
- Springer, Dale, and Judy Scotchmoor. July 1, 2005. "Rhode Island, US." The Paleontology Portal. Accessed September 21, 2012.
- Weishampel, D.B. & L. Young. 1996. Dinosaurs of the East Coast. The Johns Hopkins University Press.