Re: BIG MAMMAL TRAMPLES DEAD DINOSAUR! :-o

["dinotracker" <dinotracker@earthlink.net>]

Ray McAllister asked:

    >What about other tracks? It seems odd that there is only one. Are there
more, possibly under adjacent rock? Tell us more. Even show us a picture.
WOW.<

    As are all the trackways and tracks we find here in Maryland, the find
was a 'float', meaning a piece of substrate that by whatever means had been
dislodged from its natural stratigraphic context and washed downstream.  You
see, for several different reasons, most of the creeks running through Early
Cretaceous (EK) outcroppings in this area were machine deepened several
years ago to prevent flooding, mosquitoes, etc. That action broke out some
pieces of Early Cretaceous substrate that, fortunately, were not hauled off,
as was most of it (I don't know where it was dumped, and it has been several
decades.).  The same equipment also seems to have fractured some areas of EK
substrate that were not actually scooped out of context, and the
proliferation of paved surfaces has subsequently caused increased flooding
that, from time to time, dislodges some of them.  The substrate pieces we
find as float -- whether bearing multiple trackways, singular trackways, or
mere a single track (as in this case) -- seem to derive, primarily, from
those two types of situation.  It is, thus, very difficult, but demonstrably
not impossible, to piece together several pieces of such 'float' to get
something more meaningful than the singular pieces.

    Over a period of twenty-two months, several years ago, my wife and I
were successful in finding the four major pieces of a magnificent
junior-sized sauropod left pes imprint 37 cm long (about 14.5 inches)
containing interesting dermal patterns, so we know it can be done, but have
been unsuccessful in other instances in finding adjoining pieces of
substrate.  Perhaps the major problem in doing that is simple RECOGNITION,
perceiving that a piece of substrate is a piece of the puzzle.

    You can bet, of course, that I will be keeping a careful eye on the area
of the find in hopes of discovering other tracks or maybe even an intact
trackway by that large mammal, and, hopefully, more of the seeming dinosaur
skin cast.

    We have found the in-tact substrate sources upstream of quite a number
of our finds, but some of them are covered by other layers of substrate
(including some clay), and, sometimes, atop that are trees and/or briars. It
is my policy never to excavate, and I consider my Mesozoic Track Project
only a rescue mission for ex-situ track bearing substrate that otherwise
would be washed further downstream, perhaps to eventually end up in the
Potomac River or, later, in the Chesapeake Bay.

    Call it a paleoichnological orphans' home. :o)  Someday they will be
adopted by a deserving museum, if I can find one.

    No one had discovered the Early Cretaceous tracks until I started
recognizing them in August, 1994.  But now, more than one local person,
having seen the collection, has gone out and excavated and carried away
substantially sized pieces of substrate.  One such scoundrel, with help of a
friend from Columbia, removed about thirty meters of the entire bottom of a
creek and hauled it off, over a period of several weeks! I do not know where
they took the many hundreds of pounds of substrate or what they found in it
that was of interest (yet I could guess, from materials found down-stream),
but wouldn't be surprised to see some of it show up some day in an
exhibition with the name of that character proudly attached, claiming he is
the discoverer of Maryland's EK tracks and trackways, as if he had never
visited the collection (usually uninvited) so many times.  That wouldn't be
surprising, considering the way he has 'operated' in the past.  I think such
stream-bed destruction irresponsible and disgusting.

    By contrast, there is one intellectually honest and professional
geologist to whom I introduced the collection and some of my sites.  He
collects only in the way I do, never taking anything but 'float'.  He has
even vowed to give the finds he has resultantly made to whatever museum I
decide to give mine. By contrast with the antics of the person mentioned in
the former paragraph, the latter kind of 'spirit' and honesty is welcome by
me at the local sites.  He even took off from work early, one day, when I
phoned him after having discovered the most dramatic sauropod manus track
(other small tracks are on the substrate, including that of a seeming
mammal) I've ever found (and when I had injured my back in trying to remove
the 100+ pound piece of substrate).   He reached me quickly, helped me get
it onto a 'dolly' for transport to my vehicle, and followed be back to help
transport it into its display location.

    As to showing a photo on the dinosaur mailing list, that is prohibited.
Then too, it is probably best to release no photos to persons unknown to me,
or generally, until publication in a major journal, which this deserves.  I
shall move in that direction quickly, because this has me very 'fired up'.
Major journals frown upon pre-publication in any form. So I guess I must
quote HP Dr.Tom Holtz by saying, "...wait for the paper".

    So any list member unknown to me who wants to see this will just have to
ask permission for a personal visit to the collection.  If anyone is not an
established professional in the field of paleontology or paleoichnology, and
is hitherto unknown to me, I request some personal information and a
reference from some person who knows you personally and is trusted in this
area of study, or who is trusted by me.  I don't think that's asking too
much, considering the circumstance.

    Tracks reveal life activities and dynamics of the trackmaker.  It is
nice to get to know some of the denizens of Early Cretaceous Maryland who
shared the environment(s) with our beloved dinosaurs, by 'following' their
tracks, frozen in place for about 115,000,000 years.

    Ray Stanford

"You know my method.  It is founded upon the observance of trifles." --
Sherlock Holmes in The Boscombe Valley Mystery