Fieldwork (Fossils)

My fieldwork mainly aims to increase geographic and temporal (time interval) sampling within South America. Most terrestrial mammal fossils from South America come from the southern part of the continent (particularly Argentina). Therefore, my colleagues and I have focused our efforts on other areas, such as Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. Some of these localities have also increased the temporal sampling in South America by producing fossils from time periods that were previously unrecognized or very poorly known. I mostly work at sites that are Eocene, Oligocene, or Miocene in age, which means we are finding fossils that are between about 45 and 10 million years old. We mainly collect fossils by prospecting but sometimes use other strategies as well. Most of this fieldwork was initially supported by exploratory grants from the National Geographic Society and subsequently supported by larger grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). Our fieldwork in Chile has also been supported by that country’s equivalent of the NSF, CONICYT.

  • Bolivia (southern): The Bolivian sites I investigate are middle to late Miocene in age, generally between 16 and 12 million years old. They are located in arid regions at high elevations, typically above 11,500 feet (3,500 m).
  • Bolivia

    Quebrada Honda, Bolivia

    Quebrada Honda, Bolivia

    The fossil site of Quebrada Honda is located in the far south of Bolivia, about 40 miles (60 km) southwest of the city of Tarija. It sits at an elevation of about 11,500 feet (3,500 m) in the Eastern Cordillera of the Andes, the mountains that form the eastern border the Altiplano. The fossil-preserving rocks […]

    Cerdas, Bolivia

    Cerdas, Bolivia

    The fossil site of Cerdas, Bolivia, is located on the high, flat plateau in the middle of the Andes Mountains known as the Altiplano. This makes it a challenging place to do fieldwork. The fossil-producing beds range in elevation from about 12,500 to 13,000 feet (3,800 to 4,000 m), which means the air is thin and […]

  • Chile (northern): Our sites in northern Chile are early to late Miocene in age, between about 18 and 10 million years old. Most of our studies have focused on a site known as Chucal that is located in the Chilean Altiplano at more than 13,000 feet (4,000 m).
  • Chile-Northern

    Chucal

    Chucal

    Chucal is located in the Altiplano (high plateau) of northern Chile at an elevation nearly 4,500 m. As far as we are aware, it is the highest vertebrate fossil locality in the western hemisphere. It is also among the highest vertebrate fossil sites in the world. The area was at a much lower elevation when its fossils were […]

  • Chile (central): We have discovered many sites in the Andes mountains to the west and southwest of Santiago. These range in age from middle Eocene (45 million years old) to early Miocene (16 million years old). The fossils are preserved in very hard rocks that represent ancient lahars (volcanic mud flows). As a result, it takes a very long time (typically two to eight weeks) to clean each specimen.
  • Chile-Central

    Tinguiririca

    Tinguiririca

    Perhaps the most important of our Chilean localities is Tinguiririca, which is located in central Chile near the town of Termas del Flaco. In the transition between the warm, equitable climate of the Eocene Epoch (54.8 to 33.7 million years ago) and the cooler climate of the Oligocene Epoch (33.7 to 23.8 mya), numerous ‘archaic’ […]

    Other Central Chilean Localities

    Other Central Chilean Localities

    Many of the other fossils we have discovered in Chile come from a variety of localities in the central part of the country. All of these sites apparently sample the Abanico Formation, a group of rocks that was deposited mainly between about 40 million and 15 million years ago. This particular formation tends to preserve specimens in great […]

  • Chile (south-central): The main site we are investigating in south-central Chile, Laguna del Laja, is situated about 250 miles (400 km) southwest of Santiago in a beautiful, mountainous area next to a recently-active volcano and a natural lake. The thick sequence of rocks preserves early to middle Miocene fossils that range from about 20 to 10 million years in age.
  • Chile-Southcentral

    Laguna del Laja

    Laguna del Laja

    A recent area of focus in terms of fieldwork has been the fantastic sequence of strata in the Laguna del Laja area of Chile. These rocks, which are set against a backdrop of a beautiful lake and a picturesque volcano, preserve a diverse array of mammal fossils. We have collected several hundred specimens from the […]

  • Peru (eastern): Our field sites in Peru are in the eastern topical lowlands where it is warm and wet throughout the year. The fossils from this area range from in age from middle Eocene (about 41 million years old) to middle Miocene (about 12 million years old).
  • Peru

    Peru

    Peru

    I am interested in the extinct mammals of Peru for many of the same reasons I am interested in  the extinct mammals of Bolivia. Therefore, I jumped at the opportunity to collaborate with a French and Peruvian research team led by Pierre-Olivier Antoine on a project searching for mammal fossils in the eastern part of […]

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