Mast head image, showing two birds flanking Pikes Peak and the best dog I ever had, Blue, a Labrador German Shepherd mix.
Fossils - Permian Wellington Formation - Noble County, Oklahoma
The paleontological wonders of this area never cease to amaze me, if not for raising the ire of the many good folk of this area, I would love to see Noble County classified as a fossil preserve. There are numerous fossil localities scattered throughout the county that provide an important window into Earths past during a time of extreme climate. There basically two types of climate during the deposition of the rocks here in Noble County; hot and humid, and hot and arid. Imagine one century standing in a hot swamp, thousands of insects buzzing around above you (some dragonflies bigger than birds), reptiles and amphibians swimming in the water around you, lots of fish, beautiful ferns everywhere. Then the next century a wide open tidal flat on the coast of a large inland sea in a hot and arid environment, salt crystals precipitating at your feet, small spits of land containing small freshwater ponds which after a hard rain empty into the tidal flat. Click on the pictures to see a larger image.
Background Information
The North American Geologic Time Scale [Adobe Acrobat PDF], used by geologists to organize rocks into the order in which they were deposited. Geologists also use the time scale to convey information to the general public about scientific conclusions pertaining to the ages of rocks in North America. This time scale I have put together shows you the estimated ages of certain eras in Earths History along with important biological events. I have also pointed out the date in which the Noble Co. Midco member beds were deposited.
A paleogeographic map showing the proposed extent of the inland sea during deposition of the Midco Insect Beds.
A list of references relevant to Noble County geology and paleontology.
Artist Representations
A great scene done by Gregory S. Paul from the book Earth and Life Through Time by Steven M Stanley. This is what it looked like along the shores of Noble County during the Permian! Most of the localities in the area were further out towards the ocean on open mud flats so you probably wouldn't have seen the trees, but the insects and vertebrates were certainly there. To get this exact type of scene you would have had to travel a little further to the south of Perry. This scene was also repeated in Elmo, KS. The drawing shows a Dimetrodon chasing a bunch of Eryops into the water. You'll notice some of the local fauna and flora in the area. The caption got cut off so the little lizards names are missing, and the caption doesn't identify the insects, so I'll ask my friend to identify them and I'll have it here soon.

Here are some close-ups of the associated fauna: A Protorthopteran of the Family Liomopteridae | Cockroaches | Protodonate (Shouldn't have long antennae) | Lizard (Thanks to Roy Beckemeyer for the insect identifications).
Vertebrate Tracks
A large footprint from the new locality, possibly of the Permian amphibian Eryops. Quarter for scale. Eryops was a large amphibian, sometimes reaching lengths comparable to modern alligators. They likely occupied the same niche as alligators as ambush predators.
A footprint found in sandstone a few miles away from the new vertebrate locality. I don't know what critter made this print, but if you are a scientist wanting to study this print, it is now in the vertebrate collections of the Oklahoma Sam Noble Museum of Natural History.

See the Trackway below.
Vertebrate Fossils
A fragment of the neural spine of Dimetrodon. Dimetrodon was what is called a "mammal-like" reptile that had an elongate series of spines running the length of its back that paleontologists believe was covered in skin. They most likely used this to aid in externally regulating their body temperature, which at the time during the Permian gave them a distinct edge in the early mornings while all the other critters were still slow from being cold. Dimetrodon neural spines can be distinguished by the groove on either side running the length of the spine. Edaphosaurs have similar spines but lack a pronounced groove and will also have "nubs" growing out of the spine along its length.
Limb element fragments recently found within a few inches of each other. These specimens are now in the vertebrate collections of the Oklahoma Sam Noble Museum of Natural History.
Close-up of the left-most fragment.
Skull fragment from a Trimerorhachis. This specimen is now in the vertebrate collections of the Oklahoma Sam Noble Museum of Natural History.
Part of the skull of something, this specimen was given to Bill May of the Sam Noble for preparation , I should here from him what this actually is sometime in the near future.
More coming soon, and more found from Billings 3 and Black Bear Creek.
Invertebrates
Coming soon (inarticulate brachiopods, pelecypods)
Plants & Algae
Large stromatolites, some of them the size of large watermelons. Stromatolites this large in the modern world occur only in Sharks Bay Australia!
Seed from the black shale of Billings 3.
Fossil Insects
Fossil wing of a scorpion fly? Ceres, OK. Modern scorpion flies are scavengers and carnivorous, live in soil or rotten wood, which means that such a substrate was most likely nearby during deposition of this wing. They will often make a meal out of a spiders catch right on the web. Here is a picture of a modern scorpion fly. Here are more pictures of fossil scorpion fly wings from my friend Roy Beckemeyer's webpage. This specimen will go into the fossil insect collections at the Johnston Geology Museum at Emporia State, in the meantime, it is in the collections of Roy Beckemeyer.
Fossil wing of a dragonfly ancestor, Oligotypus tillyardi. Ceres, OK. Collected by Michael Montgomery, a good friend and field companion who has helped me a great deal with my work in Noble County. This specimen will go into the fossil insect collections at the Johnston Geology Museum at Emporia State, in the meantime, it is in the collections of Roy Beckemeyer, another good friend and mentor. More information about this specimen can be found on his website at this link. More information about the fossil insects of this area and Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) can be found at his website, WindsOfKansas.com. To see the fossil insects of this area, simply click on "Fossil Insects" and scroll down to click on "Midco, Oklahoma (Noble County)."
The abdomen of an insect, this is the first of many abdomens that I have found in the area. I am hoping to find a complete insect one day. Where there are abdomens, there are bound to be complete insects.
Probnis speciosa, complete specimen from Billings 3. All that is showing in this photograph by Roy Beckemeyer are the wings, but currently a French paleontologist has it and has reported to Roy that the head and part of the abdomen has been uncovered. The link on the image will take you to the page on WindsOfKansas.com where more information on this wonderful specimen exists.
A complete specimen of Glaphyrophlebia! This is without a doubt, the best insect fossil I've collected from Oklahoma. See this remarkable fossil at Roy's website!
Yet another complete specimen found from Billings 3, this a Misthodotes cf edmundsi can be viewed at Roy's website.
A new wing with odd venation. I found this wierd little wing while going through scrap I saved from my earliest days breaking samples. Just goes to show you, save your scrap!
More coming soon, and more found from Billings 3 and Black Bear Creek.
Mystery Fossils!
This very odd looking thing was collected by Bill May from OMNH-Billings 1. One hypothesis is that it is the telson of a horseshoe crab. If you have any suggestions, contact me. (Photo courtesy of Bill May, do not reproduce).
Very weird fossil from Billings 3. We occasionally find fragments of this thing in the insect bed near Billings, OK. Recently, I discovered a black shale with abundant fossil vertebrates including amongst them, fish scales. Fragments of this fossil were found alongside the fish scales, so it is a possibility that this too is a fish scale. If you have any input, again, contact me. Also on this page by Roy J. Beckemeyer are some photographs of other great finds from this locality.
Another, possibly more complete, example of this odd fossil has been found at Billings 3.
More coming soon, and more found from Billings 3 and Black Bear Creek.
"Black Bear Creek"
Orthacanthus texensis tooth found in the sandstone at the new locality.
Segment of a beautiful large protodonata wing. These ancestors to the modern dragonflies reached wingspans of up to 3 feet!
An interesting bed form, possibly caused by an erosional event shortly after the deposition of the bed. This is the lowermost bed that produces abundant insect fossils at the new locality, the rock hammer pointing due north. If these were the result of an erosional event, I would guess that since the main part of the continent was primarily south from here, the current direction was likely from the southwest.
More coming soon!
"Billings 3" & OMNH-Billings1
The Oklahoma Natural History Museum has a locality in Noble County designated as "Billings 1," which I refer to as "OMNH-Billings 1, because I also have a locality I refer to as "Billings 1." In the process of my thesis work in Noble County, I discovered a locality near OMNH-Billings 1 which I refer to as "Billings 3." This new locality will not be included in my thesis as I only recently gained permission to enter it, however, I will be referring to the interesting sequence discovered there. This is a general accounting of the more interesting features of these two localities.
Trackway
Bill May, of the Oklahoma Natural History Museum (OMNH) standing on the trackway at OMNH-Billings 1. Volunteers cleared off a large portion of the bed for study, much more still remains under the shale to the right. This trackway is one of the largest Permian trackways in the world. This is the first reported trackway found in dolomite.
A footprint in the dolomite at OMNH-Billings 1. It is thought that the animals actually made the prints in the shale just above the dolomite, and that the dolomite was deformed underneath the shale as a result of each print. Here you see a footprint consisting of 3 claw marks (probably from a reptile) with the back end exhibiting a "piling" of dolomite mud as the animal pushed off for forward movement. I haven darkened the print so you can see it better. Here is the original picture with a rock hammer for scale. Note: the tip of the rock hammer is pointing due west, so the direction of movement for this animal was probably towards the west (the continent would have been at a different orientation then).
Track, from Billings 3.
Track, from OMNH-Billings 1
Track, from OMNH-Billings 1
Insects
A sample of the insect bed containing two abdomens, a wing, our mystery fossil, and halite hopper impressions from Billings 3.
A forewing and hindwing from Billings 3.
A complete specimen of Glaphyrophlebia! This is without a doubt, the best insect fossil I've collected from Oklahoma. See this remarkable fossil at Roy's website!
Yet another complete specimen found from Billings 3; Misthodotes cf edmundsi can be viewed at Roy's website.
A nice wing which still has its original color pattern still preserved.
Two wings, one fairly well-preserved, the other not well-preserved and a bunch of associated conchostracans. I think I'll try to find a really nice conchostracan to put on here, that shouldn't be hard seeing how they are everywhere! Roy Beckemeyer has recently identified this specimen as Parapisca fragilis, the first record of the lemmatophorid from the Oklahoma Wellington Formation.
Another wing with nice venation, collected 1/21/05. I might note that these few specimens on this website and those on Roy's website are the exception to the majority of wings we find, which are usually very small, less than 2-3 mm.
Vertebrates
There are two horizons at Billings 3 which produce vertebrate fossils. The upper horizon below the Basal Billings Pool Sandstone contains mostly fish scales, whereas a thin black shale below the Midco Insect Bed contains an amazing array of vertebrates. In addition to the vertebrate fossils, this black shale also contains conchostracans, carbonized plant material, and the brackish-marine inarticulate brachiopod Lingula.
Tooth of Sagenodus, a lungfish. From Billings 3. (ID by Bill May)
Another, more complete tooth of Sagenodus. It contains part of the plate which the tooth was attached to in life. From Billings 3. (ID by Bill May)
Bone fragment from Billings 3.
A scale, possibly a lungfish. From Billings 3.
A very small Orthocanthus tooth from Billings 3.
Skull fragment, possibly of Trimerorhachis. from Billings 3.
Sagenodus ray fin spine from Billings 3. (ID by Bill May)
Intercentrum, possibly from Trimerorhachis. From Billings 3.
Maxilla of a fish, complete with very tiny teeth! Must have been a very small fish.
Canine tooth of the mammal-like reptile Dimetrodon from the Vertebrate Horizon at Billings 3. Photograph by Bill May of the Oklahoma Sam Noble Natural History Museum.
Neural spine of the mammal-like reptile Edaphosaurus from the Vertebrate Horizon at Billings 3. Photograph by Bill May of the Oklahoma Sam Noble Natural History Museum.
The first recorded ocurrence of the Diplocaulid Diploceraspis west of the Ohio River. Photograph by Bill May of the Oklahoma Sam Noble Natural History Museum.
A tooth, possibly Dimetrodon from the Vertebrate Horizon at Billings 3. Collected 1/21/05.

Side view [JPG - 403KB]

View from tip showing grooves [JPG - 337KB]
Rib fragment with tooth marks from the Vertebrate Horizon at Billings 3. Collected 1/21/05.
Aquatic Invertebrates
A possible fragment of the inarticulate brachiopod Lingula. This particular fossil is very similar in appearance to Lingula found in the vertebrate bearing sandstone at Black Bear Creek, which I might add is stratigraphically equivalent to this black shale.
Plants & Algae
Seed from the black shale of the lower vertebrate horizon at Billings 3.
Walchia sp. An interesting find for the insect bed, this conifer had previously not been found this far north within the insect bed. This specimen is small compared to the other Walchia found many miles to south, closer to the shoreline.
Uncertain Affinities
A rather interesting fossil that we find quite regularly in both the insect bed and the lower vertebrate horizon where it often found associated with scales of lungfish and paleoniscoid fish. Therefore, one hypothesis is that this is some sort of fish scale. This specimen was recovered from the Billings 3 Insect Bed and appears to be whole. If you have any other hypotheses as to what this is, please feel free to contact me.
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