Finding Fossils in Southwest Florida

EDUCATION. MAKE SURE TO VISIT WGCU DOT ORG. WELL, TODAY MARKS NATIONAL FOSSIL DAY. YES, A WORLDWIDE CELEBRATION OF PALEONTOLOGY AND THE PRESERVATION OF THESE VALUABLE RESOURCES FOSSILS SHARE A UNIQUE LOOK AT PREHISTORIC SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. IT'S A WORLD BEFORE PEOPLE SETTLED IN THE AREA. WGCUS JENNIFER CRAWFORD LEARN HOW BANKS SHOULD ARTIFACTS ARE ALL PART OF THE EXPERIENCE AT THE IMAC. >> WITH MORE, I'M NOW JOINED BY CAROL MORE IN AN EDUCATOR, AN EXPERT ON FOSSILS WITH THE I'M MEG HISTORY AND SCIENCE CENTER, WHICH IS LOCATED IN FORT MYERS. THANK YOU FOR JOINING US IN OUR STUDIO TODAY. THANK YOU. NOW, WHEN A LOT OF US WHEN WE THINK OF FOSSILS, WE IMMEDIATELY THINK OF DINOSAURS HATS, THERE ARE MANY OTHER KINDS OF FOSSILS ARE OUT AND MANY FOUND RIGHT HERE IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA HAS. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE VARIETIES OF FOSSILS? >> YES. >> THE PICTURES HERE ARE SOME FROM I MAKE. AND THESE ARE PHONE IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. NOW WE WERE ACTUALLY UNDER WATER DURING THE ICE AGE AND AS THE WATER WAS RECEDING, ARISING, DOT THESE ANIMALS. LIBERATED IN THE AREA A LOT MORE. SO THESE FOSSILS ARE DIRECTLY FROM OUR AREA. AND IF YOU GO TO THE PEACE RIVER, YOU'LL NOT ONLY FIND IT PARTS OF THESE ANIMALS HERE, BUT ALSO. MEGALODON TEETH AND LOTS OF OTHER SURE CASE. >> CAN YOU TELL US WHAT ARE WE LOOKING AT? SHIRT? >> THIS IS A GIANT GROUND. SLOTHS. THEY ARE EXTINCT. IT LOOKS A LITTLE BIT JUST BUT ACTUALLY HE WAS A GENTLE PLANT EATER. SO THEY GREW UP AROUND 50 FEET TALL. SEYBERT WHOSE CAT? AND I DID FIND OUT RECENTLY SOME OF THE SPECIES OF DIFFERENT CATS AND ANIMALS HEAD SABER TEASE. THOSE LONG TEETH WERE BECAUSE THE PREY THEY WERE HUNTING. THIS IS COOLER TIMES HAD THICKER FOR. AND THICKER SKIN. THEY HAD TO BITE THROUGH IT. WHEN THEY WERE EATING. AND BACK HERE, WE DID A MAMMOTH AND MASTODONS IN OUR AREA. SO BUT I BELIEVE THIS ONE IS A MAMMOTH AND IT HAS HUGE TUSKS. SO THERE ARE REMAINS, AS I SAID OF ALL OF THESE ANIMALS IN OUR AREA. >> WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR US TO LEARN ABOUT FOSSILS FOSSILS? TEACH US A LOT. >> THEY TEACH US ABOUT THE PAST. NOT ONLY ABOUT THESE DIFFERENT ANIMAL SPECIES, BUT HOUSING ADAPTED TO THEIR ENVIRONMENTS. AND IF THEY COULDN'T ADAPT WITH A LOT OF CHANGING WEATHER AND WATER AND FOOD, THEY WOULD EAT, THEY WOULD DIE OUT. SO THAT TEACHES US THAT. PLUS WHAT THE ENVIRONMENTS WHERE LIKE BACK THEN THE CLIMATE AND WE NEED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE CLIMATE TOO. HELP US FIGURE OUT WHAT'S GOING ON NOW TO. SO IT DOES TEACH US A LOT ABOUT THE HISTORY OF OUR PLANET AND IT'S VERY INSPIRATIONAL FOR CHILDREN, TOO. >> CAN YOU EXPLAIN HOW THE FOSSILS FORM? >> OH, THAT'S A GOOD ONE. THEY FORM IN MANY WAYS. SOMETIMES THERE'S ACTUAL EVIDENCE OF AN ANIMAL BONES, TEETH AND OTHER THINGS LIKE THAT. AND THEY WILL FALL DOWN, OF COURSE, WHERE THEY DIED AND THAT CAN BE. ON LAND OR IN THE WATER AND DIFFERENT THINGS, COVER THEM. ALSO, THERE'S TRACE EVIDENCE LIKE FOOTPRINT. AND THERE'S DIFFERENT REMAINS. NOW. SOMETIMES THERE'S. THINGS FOUND IN LIKE A BOG WHERE THEY'RE SOLD. THAT CUTS OFF OXYGEN AND PREVENTS DECAY SOMETIMES OR SOFT TISSUE FOUND IN SOME OF THOSE REMAINS. AND THEN ONCE THEY'RE DISCOVERED, HOW IS IT BEST TO PRESERVE THEM? THAT IS SOMETHING. IF YOU DO FIND SOMETHING YOU SHOULD. IF IT'S SMALL, YOU CAN PROBABLY KEEP. BUT THERE'S MANY WAYS TO PRESERVE AND THEY HAVE TO CAREFULLY TAKE THINGS OUT OF A DIG. SOMETIMES A RAPID IN PLASTER GET BACK TO, YOU KNOW, THE MAIN PLACE THEY LIKE A MUSEUM OR SOMETHING. AND THEY CAREFULLY REMOVE EXTRA DEBRIS AROUND, BUT THEY'RE VERY FRAGILE. OF COURSE. STILL THERE. THE THERE'S DIFFERENT WAYS DEPENDING ON WHAT THE ITEMS ARE. THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE FUN TO DO AS A GEOLOGY STUDENT, PALEONTOLOGY STUDENT GOING DAY FIND THINGS LIKE THAT. >> NOW SOMEONE IS INTERESTED IN FINDING FOSSILS AND LOOKING FOR THESE WONDERFUL THINGS IN A IN SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. WHERE SHOULD THEY GO? I KNOW YOU SAID PEACE RIVER. GET GREAT PLACE TO LOOK FOR SHARK TEETH. >> I WOULD SAY MAYBE EVEN COME TO I MAY CAN SEE SOME OF THESE SPACES THAT HAVE BEEN HERE ACTUALLY IN OUR FLORIDA AREA. BUT STUDY A LITTLE BIT AHEAD OF TIME. IF YOU GO TO THE PEACE RIVER, THEY HAVE A NICE WEBSITE AND IT TELLS A LOT ABOUT WHAT THEY CAN FIND THERE. AND THERE'S ALSO SPECIAL PERMITS DEPENDING ON WHAT YOU MIGHT FIND IN WHAT YOU CAN TAKE WITH YOU. SO IT DOES WALKING SHOES IT ON THEIR WEBSITE, TOO. >> AND THEN HOW DO YOU USE THESE FOSSILS TO TEACH VISITORS AT THE MUSEUM? >> I USE THESE AN EDUCATION. >> SO WE LIKE TO INSPIRE. THAT'S ONE OF THE MAIN. >> THINGS ABOUT I MIK, WE LIKE TO INSPIRE EVERYBODY, ESPECIALLY FUTURE GENERATIONS. SO EVEN THE SMALLEST CHILD CAN COME BY AND LOOK AT THESE THINGS AND WONDER AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHAT IS IT. BUT WE DO ALSO HAVE WORKSHOPS AND CLASSES THAT WE CAN GO INTO MORE DETAIL AND THEY CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT FOSSILS AND MAKE SOME LITTLE REPLICAS OF SOME THINGS ON THEIR OWN. >> ARE THERE ANY SPECIAL FOSSILS ON DISPLAY THAT ATTRACT MORE ATTENTION ARE MORE POPULAR? >> I THINK OF COURSE, OUR BIGGEST ONE WOULD BE THE GROUND SLOUGH TO. BUT I THINK ALL OF THEM, I SEE PEOPLE LOOKING AT ALL OF THEM. SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT INSPIRES THEM. WE DO HAVE UNDER THE GROUND SLOTHS OUT WITH THE CAN SEE IT. BUT THERE'S ANOTHER AND THE NIGHT NOW THIS ONE WAS DONATED TO US. IT'S A GOOD SIZE. AND EMMA KNIGHTS, ALONG WITH THIS ONE RIGHT HERE. AND THIS PIECE. THOSE WE'RE ALL OVER THE WORLD. AND IF YOU FIND THEM NOW THEY'RE GONNA DATE THE ROCK LAYER THERE IN BECAUSE THEY WERE SO MUCH IN SO MANY PLACES AROUND THE WORLD. ALSO THIS LARGER ONE HERE WAS FOUND IN THE CANADIAN ROCKIES UP IN THE MOUNTAIN TOPS. SO THAT'S WHERE WE GET INTO PLATE TECTONICS. BUT THAT'S ANOTHER STORY. THAT'S WONDERFUL. THANK YOU FOR SHARING THAT INFORMATION WITH US TODAY. PROBABLY ME TO MISS MORE. NICE TO MEET YOU.