When I retired I cleaned out my classroom and found a collection of  25 glass vials from Ward Scientific containing sand samples with microfossils. I didn't even remember buying them! I immediately thought they would make a perfect addition to the sand website. The only problem was there were no labels for the samples, only identification numbers. I posted to several lists asking if anyone had the collection with the names. Several people from Wards responded, and within 24 hours I had a pdf of the list! Thank you Wards! Click here for a great description of collecting microfossils.

This page has a link from Harvard University's Encyclopedia of Life Project on the Fossil Finds Page!

This page was recognized by December 2010's  NSTA Reports.

IMAGE THUMBNAIL

FORMATION

LOCATION

GEOLOGIC PERIOD/EPOCH

MICROFOSSILS

Lomita Marl

San Pedro, California

Quaternary

Pleistocene Epoch

Mollusk Shells

San Pedro Formation

San Pedro, California

Quaternary

Pleistocene Epoch

Mollusk Shells

Talbot Formation

Walles Bluff, Maryland

Quaternary

Pleistocene Epoch

Mollusk Shells

Diatomaceous Earth

Santa Barbara County

Unknown

Diatoms

Tripoli Beach Sand

Tripoli, Libya

Quaternary

Pleistocene Epoch

Foraminifera

Caloosahatchee Marl

Southern Florida

Tertiary

Pliocene Epoch

Mollusk Shells

Jackson Bluff

Tallahassee, Florida

Tertiary

Miocene Epoch

Mollusk Shells

Yorktown Formation

Hampton, Virginia

Tertiary

Miocene Epoch

Mollusk Shells

Chickasawhay  Marl

St. Stephens, Alabama

Tertiary

Oligocene Epoch

Echinoderm Fragments

Branch Marl

Jackson, Mississippi

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Foraminifera

Branch Marl

Copenhagen, Louisiana

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Bryozoa

Giza Limestone 1

Giza, Egypt

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Nummelites pyramid

Castle Hayne

Castle Hayne, North Carolina

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Bryozoa

Weches Formation

Chireno, Texas

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Mollusk Shell Fragments(?)

Vincentown Sand

Rancocas River, New Jersey

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Bryozoa

Yazoo Formation

Clairborne, Alabama

Tertiary

Eocene Epoch

Mollusk Shell Fragments(?)

Brightseat

Brightseat, Maryland

Tertiary

Paleocene Epoch

Mollusk Shell Fragments(?)

Lopez de Bertodano 2

Seymour Island, Antarctica

Tertiary

Paleocene Epoch

Echinoderm Fragments

Selma Chalk

Selma, Alabama

Cretaceous

Foraminifera

Cisco Group

Stephens County, Texas

Pennsylvanian

Crinoids

Graford Formation

Wise County, Texas

Pennsylvanian

Sponges

New Providence

Bullitt County, Kentucky

Mississippian

Echinoderm Fragments

?4

Metcalfe County, Kentucky

Mississippian(?)

Echinoderm Fragments

Salem Limestone

Harrodsbay, Indiana

Mississippian

Foraminifera

Genundewah Limestone

Erie County, New York

Devonian

Conodonts

Rochester Shale

Rochester, New York

Silurian

Echinoderm Fragments

?3

Bellbrook, Ohio

Silurian(?) or older

Bryozoa

 1The Giza Limestone sand sample did not come from the Ward's collection. It was found at Giza by an individual and sent to me.

2The Lopez de Bertodano sand sample did not come from the Ward's collection. It was on loan from the United States Polar Rock Repository at Ohio State University.

3The Bellbrook sample did not come from the Ward's collection. The sample  was contributed by a geology student from University of Dayton, Dayton, Ohio. Since the sample was collected from a creek and not an actual outcrop, it is impossible to name the formation. Since the fossils are so fragmented, it is impossible for me to accurately identify or date them.

4The Metcalfe County sample did not come from the Ward's collection.

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