United States. National Park Service

1 Welcome to Agate Fossil Beds

2 A Landscape Rich With Life

3 Guide and Adviser

National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

Agate Fossil Beds

Transcriber's Notes

Agate Fossil Beds National Monument
Nebraska

Produced by the
Division of Publications
Harpers Ferry Center
National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior
Washington, D.C.

The National Park Handbook Series

National Park Handbooks, compact introductions to the great natural and historic places administered by the National Park Service, are designed to promote understanding and enjoyment of the parks. Each is intended to be informative reading and a useful guide before, during, and after a park visit. More than 100 titles are in print. This is Handbook 107. You may purchase the handbooks through the mail by writing to Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington DC 20402.

About This Book

What was life like in North America 20 million years ago? Agate Fossil Beds provides a glimpse of that time, long before the arrival of man, when now-extinct creatures roamed the land which we know today as Nebraska. Part 1 of this handbook introduces you to the park; Part 2 brings life to the fossil specimens and examines the area’s geological and ecological evidence; and Part 3 presents concise guide and reference information.

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

United States. National Park Service.

Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Nebraska.

(National park handbook; 107) Bibliography: p.

Includes index.

Supt. of Docs. no. I29.9/5:107

1. Vertebrates, Fossil.

2. Paleontology—Miocene.

3. Paleontology—Nebraska—Agate Fossil Beds National Monument.

4. Natural history—Nebraska—Agate Fossil Beds National Monument.

5. Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Neb.

I. Title.

II. Series: United States. National Park Service. Handbook—National Park Service; 107.

QE841.U59 1980 566′.09782′99 80-607119

Contents

Part 1 Welcome to Agate Fossil Beds 4

Worlds of Past and Present 7

Part 2 A Landscape Rich With Life 18

Text: James R. and Laurie J. Macdonald

Illustrations: Jay H. Matternes

A Visit to the Past 23

The Mark of Death Upon the Land 35

The Geologic History of Agate 47

Ecology: Change and Adaptation 53

Part 3 Guide and Adviser 74

Contents for this section 77