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Regional Geochemical Mapping of The University of Texas at El Paso DigitalCommons@UTEP Open Access Theses & Dissertations 2016-01-01 Regional Geochemical Mapping Of The upS erior Upland Province; Ichnology Of The rC etaceous Mesilla Valley Formation, Cerro De Cristo Rey; A New Ichnospecies Of Cardioichnus From The Cretaceous (albian) Of New Mexico; A Pedagogy For The eC rro De Cristo Rey Tracksite; Walking In The oF otprints Of Dino Eric J. Kappus University of Texas at El Paso, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/open_etd Part of the Geochemistry Commons, Geology Commons, and the Paleontology Commons Recommended Citation Kappus, Eric J., "Regional Geochemical Mapping Of The uS perior Upland Province; Ichnology Of The rC etaceous Mesilla Valley Formation, Cerro De Cristo Rey; A New Ichnospecies Of Cardioichnus From The rC etaceous (albian) Of New Mexico; A Pedagogy For The eC rro De Cristo Rey Tracksite; Walking In The ootF prints Of Dino" (2016). Open Access Theses & Dissertations. 673. https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/open_etd/673 This is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UTEP. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UTEP. For more information, please contact [email protected]. REGIONAL GEOCHEMICAL MAPPING OF THE SUPERIOR UPLAND PROVINCE; ICHNOLOGY OF THE CRETACEOUS MESILLA VALLEY FORMATION, CERRO DE CRISTO REY; A NEW ICHNOSPECIES OF CARDIOICHNUS FROM THE CRETACEOUS (ALBIAN) OF NEW MEXICO; A PEDAGOGY FOR THE CERRO DE CRISTO REY TRACKSITE; WALKING IN THE FOOTPRINTS OF DINOSAURS: TEACHING SENSE OF PLACE IN EL PASO, TX ERIC KAPPUS Doctoral Program in the Department of Geological Sciences APPROVED: Philip Goodell, Ph.D., Chair Richard Langford, Ph.D. Tom Gill, Ph.D. Lixin Jin, Ph.D. Aaron Velasco, Ph.D. Tina Carrick, Ph.D. Spencer Lucas, Ph.D. Charles Ambler, Ph.D. Dean of the Graduate School Copyright © by Eric Kappus 2016 Dedication This work is dedicated to my first geology professor, Fred Trexler, PhD, and to my tracking teacher, Tom Brown Jr. You both inspired me to learn about the Earth and to teach others about it. You both showed me how to uncover secrets about my surroundings, and to look beneath the surface of things. You both modeled a sense of appreciation and awe, grounded in awareness. I will honor your legacy and continue to help people fall in love with their home, our beautiful planet. REGIONAL GEOCHEMICAL MAPPING OF THE SUPERIOR UPLAND PROVINCE; ICHNOLOGY OF THE CRETACEOUS MESILLA VALLEY FORMATION, CERRO DE CRISTO REY; A NEW ICHNOSPECIES OF CARDIOICHNUS FROM THE CRETACEOUS (ALBIAN) OF NEW MEXICO; A PEDAGOGY FOR THE CERRO DE CRISTO REY TRACKSITE; WALKING IN THE FOOTPRINTS OF DINOSAURS: TEACHING SENSE OF PLACE IN EL PASO, TX by ERIC KAPPUS, MS DISSERTATION Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at El Paso in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY The Department of Geological Sciences THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO August 2016 Acknowledgements I would like to express my gratitude to my advisor Philip Goodell. Thank you for teaching me how to spin plates. I would also like to thank my committee members for their contributions. Special thanks to Spencer Lucas! To my mentor-teachers Doris Nielsen (“Mabel”) and Rev. Lee Bondurant, thank you for facilitating my growth as a scientist and teacher. Richard Romero and Mercy Guzman, retired EPISD science facilitators, thank you for all your help, ideas, and support and thank you for welcoming me into the district with open arms. I would also like to thank Hunt and Marilyn Burdick, Gloria Villaverde, Robert Ardovino, and my brother Jeremy for being there for me when I really needed help. v Abstract This is a multi-disciplinary study that covers a variety of geoscience topics on both international borders of the continental United States. This dissertation is the product of several separate investigations. First is a report on the landscape geochemistry of the Superior Upland Province of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan, with regional maps of 37 chemical elements interpreted in terms of bedrock, glacial reworking, and anthropogenic influence. The next 2 sections are reports on the invertebrate ichnology of the Cretaceous Mesilla Valley Formation at Cerro de Cristo Rey, including the proposal of a new ichnospecies of echinoid resting trace, Cardioichnus biloba nov. isp.. These are the first reports on the invertebrate ichnology of the Cretaceous of the El Paso/Juarez region. The next section presents a pedagogy for the Cerro de Cristo Rey Dinosaur Tracksite, including hiking trails the author designed and constructed, a trail map, and two sets of educational content including self-guided tours and virtual visits. The next section is a report documenting place-based education at the Cerro de Cristo Rey tracksite, and presents strategies for teaching Hispanics about natural history and instilling a sense of place and stewardship. The final chapter is a presentation of two lessons in rock texture discrimination that were developed by the author for undergraduate geology students at the University of Texas at El Paso. vi Table of Contents Acknowledgements ..........................................................................................................................v Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... vi Table of Contents ......................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ...................................................................................................................................x List of Figures ................................................................................................................................ xi Chapter 1: Regional Geochemistry of the Superior Upland Province .............................................1 Abstract ...................................................................................................................................1 1. Introduction .........................................................................................................................1 2. Statement of the Problem ....................................................................................................2 3. Study Area ..........................................................................................................................3 4. Dataset.................................................................................................................................5 5. Methodology .......................................................................................................................7 6. Results and Interpretation .................................................................................................15 7. Discussion .........................................................................................................................23 8. Future Work ......................................................................................................................31 Chapter 2: Invertebrate Ichnology of the Cretaceous (Albian) Mesilla Valley Formation ...........32 Abstract .................................................................................................................................32 1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................32 2. Provenance ........................................................................................................................34 3. Systematic Ichnology ........................................................................................................37 4. Discussion .........................................................................................................................84 4.1. Ichnofabric Analysis .............................................................................................84 4.2 Proximal Cruziana Ichnofacies ..............................................................................88 Importance of Tempestites ...........................................................................................89 Importance of Benthic Dysoxia ...................................................................................91 5. Future Work ......................................................................................................................92 Chapter 3: A New Ichnospecies of Cardioichnus from the Cretaceous of Southern NM .............93 Abstract .................................................................................................................................93 vii 1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................93 2. Location and Geologic Setting ..........................................................................................93 3. Systematic Ichnology ........................................................................................................94 4. Interpretation .....................................................................................................................96 Conclusions ...........................................................................................................................96
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