Bulletin Albertavolume 35 • NUMBER 4 DECEMBER 2020 ALBERTA PALAEONTOLOGICAL SOCIETY
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Palæontological Society Bulletin AlbertaVOLUME 35 • NUMBER 4 www.albertapaleo.org DECEMBER 2020 ALBERTA PALAEONTOLOGICAL SOCIETY OFFICERS THE SOCIETY WAS INCORPORATED IN 1986 President as a non-profit organization formed to: Cory Gross [email protected] (403) 617-2079 1. Promote the science of palaeontology through study Vice-President and education. Position unfilled: To volunteer, contact the President 2. Make contributions to the science by: discovery; responsible Treasurer collection; curation and display; education of the general public; Mona Trick [email protected] (587) 578-4579 preservation of palaeontological material for study and future Secretary generations. Vaclav Marsovsky (403) 547-0182 3. Work with the professional and academic communities to aid in the Past-President preservation and understanding of Alberta’s heritage. Wayne Braunberger [email protected] (403) 278-5154 MEMBERSHIP: Any person with a sincere interest in palaeontology is DIRECTORS eligible to present their application for membership in the Society. Please Editor enclose membership dues with your request for application. Howard Allen [email protected] (403) 274-1858 Single membership $20.00 annually Membership Family or Institution $25.00 annually Howard Allen [email protected] (403) 274-1858 Programs SOCIETY MAILING ADDRESS: Harold Whittaker [email protected] (403) 286-0349 Alberta Palaeontological Society Field Trips PO Box 68024, Crowfoot PO Keith Mychaluk [email protected] (403) 809-3211 Calgary, AB, Canada T3G 3N8 www.albertapaleo.org COMMITTEES Fossil Collection THE BULLETIN WILL BE PUBLISHED QUARTERLY: March, June, Howard Allen [email protected] (403) 274-1858 September and December. Deadline for submissions is the 15th of the Library month prior to publication. Material for the Bulletin should be sent to: Georgia Hoffman (403) 228-7729 Howard Allen, Editor, APS Public Outreach 7828 Hunterslea Crescent, NW Cory Gross [email protected] (403) 617-2079 Calgary, AB, Canada T2K 4M2 Social [email protected] Virginia Goodman (403) 252-3122 Requests for missing Bulletin issues should be directed to the Editor. Symposium Send changes of contact information to the Membership Director. Mona Trick [email protected] (587) 578-4579 Website NOTICE: Readers are advised that opinions expressed in the articles are Vaclav Marsovsky (403) 547-0182 those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the Society. Except for articles marked “Copyright ©,” reprinting of articles by exchange newsletters is permitted, as long as credit is given. Upcoming APS Meetings Held in webinar format until further notice. December 11, 2020—Georgia Hoffman, Alberta Palaeontological Society The St. Mary River Formation and its fossils. See September Bulletin. January 15, 2021—Eamon Drysdale, University of Calgary. Understanding growth in the hadrosaur Prosaurolophus maximus from southwestern Alberta. See Page 3. February 19, 2020—Dr. Jon Noad, Sedimental Services. Adapting to life in the soup: The fauna of the Cretaceous Upper Chalk. See Page 4. COVID-19 has affected our operations. Watch the APS website for updates! ON THE COVER: From the 2020 field trip season, APS members examine an exposure of Upper Cambrian McKay Group rocks for trilobite fossils in the Bull Creek region of southeastern British Columbia. See story on Page 24. Photo by Keith Mychaluk. APS Bulletin 2 December 2020 display. In contrast, the crest of P. maximus grew at Upcoming Events the same rate as the rest of the skull, suggesting that this area was not strongly related to a display feature. January With these results, we hypothesize that P. maximus had a soft-tissue display structure associated with the snout and that its bony crest was not strongly associ- Friday, January 15, 2021, 7:30 p.m. ated with sexual display, unlike what was previously WEBINAR—APS members will be notified by thought. email how to register. Or visit cspg.org, navigate to Histological sections of the three juvenile speci- Upcoming Events/Division E-talks/Palaeontology/ mens and one large specimen were taken in order and follow the instructions. REGISTER EARLY! to determine the biological age of those specimens. Registration ends at noon Thursday, January 14. These biological ages were then compared with skull APS and CSPG members may register for free. Non- morphology in each specimen, to determine the de- members will be charged $10.00 to participate. There velopmental timing of the display structure present are NO meetings at Mount Royal University until in P. maximus, and compared to tibial circumference further notice. of each specimen, a proxy for body mass, to create a growth curve for the species. The results of this Eamon Drysdale analysis showed that the examined specimens ranged University of Calgary between the ages of three and seven when they died. When these ages were compared, it showed that the Understanding growth in the hadrosaur crest is poorly developed at age three, has started Prosaurolophus maximus from south- developing at age four, and is fully developed at age western Alberta seven. Additionally, the large P. maximus individual that was examined had yet to reach skeletal maturity, adrosaurs, or duck-billed dinosaurs, are large suggesting the species may reach a maximum body Hherbivores that were present during the Late size larger than represented by currently known Cretaceous Period. Hadrosaurs can be divided into specimens, perhaps with a skull length approaching two sub-families: the lambeosaurines, or hollow- the size of its relative Saurolophus angustirostris. crested hadrosaurs, and the hadrosaurines, or solid Finally, the reconstructed growth rate for P. or non-crested hadrosaurs, both of which have been maximus demonstrated that its growth rate is much found on almost every continent. This abundance lower than other hadrosaurines and is closer to that of hadrosaurs has led to discoveries of specimens at observed in lambeosaurines, suggesting that envi- almost every growth stage, making hadrosaurs an ex- ronmental differences or the complexity of display cellent group for studying dinosaur growth. structures may play a larger role during growth than In this study we examine the changes that oc- was previously thought. cur during growth in Prosaurolophus maximus, a hadrosaurine known from southern Alberta and Biography northwestern Montana. This species is known for Eamon Drysdale grew up in London, Ontario. having a small bony crest located directly above the He completed his undergraduate degree at the eye, which has been thought to have been used for University of Western Ontario, where he completed sexual display. We examine three juvenile specimens an Honours Thesis project examining the mineral- of P. maximus, which represent the smallest known ogy of Palaeozoic stromatoporoids under Dr. Jisuo members of the species, using both morphometric Jin and Dr. Roberta Flemming. He then completed and histological techniques, to better understand an M.Sc. in Geoscience at the University of Calgary growth in this dinosaur species. under Dr. Darla Zelenitsky and Dr. François Fifteen skulls of P. maximus, including the three Therrien investigating the growth and development juvenile specimens, were examined using morpho- of the hadrosaur species Prosaurolophus maximus metric analyses to determine the rates at which bones using three juvenile specimens from the Bearpaw in the skull change throughout growth. The results of Formation of southern Alberta. His current research these analyses indicate that the snout of P. maximus interests focus on understanding the evolutionary grew at a faster rate than the rest of the skull, which factors influencing growth and sexual display in is a strong indicator that this area was used for sexual hadrosaurs. APS Bulletin 3 December 2020 ily of coccolithophores, tiny circular discs formed as February plankton disintegrate after death. These were depos- ited as thick, fluidized oozes in shallow warm seas, Friday, February 19, 2021, 7:30 p.m. with little sediment input. Evidence of cyclicity in the WEBINAR—APS members will be notified by sedimentation is demonstrated by the interbedded email how to register. Or visit cspg.org, navigate to layers of flints, often representing casts of shrimp Upcoming Events/Division E-talks/Palaeontology/ burrows. Common cemented hardgrounds were and follow the instructions. REGISTER EARLY! formed during pauses in sedimentation that may Registration ends at noon Thursday, February 18. relate to relative sea level highs. APS and CSPG members may register for free. Non- members will be charged $10.00 to participate. There are NO meetings at Mount Royal University until further notice. Dr. Jon Noad Sedimental Services Adapting to life in the soup: The fauna of the Cretaceous Upper Chalk halk seas covered much of the Late Cretaceous Cworld and outcrop from the White Cliffs of Dover in the UK, one of the Earth’s most famous geological landmarks, to as far as western Australia. Fossils are often perfectly preserved in the very fine grained sediment, providing an excellent opportunity to study their morphology. Little consideration has been given to the morphology of the living organ- Figure 2. The sea urchin Micraster (photograph from the isms and the various styles of preservation, and this Natural History Museum, London, https://www.nhm.ac.uk/our- talk will address these issues. science/data/echinoid-directory/taxa/specimen.jsp?id=1617: