Kayleigh Johnson, preparator and lab manager at
South Dakota Mines Museum of Geology, holds a fossilized cycad. These fossils
were once abundant at the Fossil Cycad National Monument in the Black Hills
that was closed due to years of overcollecting.
The Museum of
Geology at South Dakota Mines will celebrate National Fossil Day from 9 a.m. – 4:30
p.m. on Oct. 12. The event includes visiting paleontologists from around the
region who will be on hand for the unveiling of a special exhibit commemorating
the 100th anniversary of Fossil Cycad
National Monument.
The monument, which contained one of the world’s
greatest concentrations of fossilized cycadeoids, opened
in the Black Hills near Hot Springs in 1922. But it was closed in 1957 after decades
of looting robbed the site of fossils.
National Fossil Day is held each
year to, “highlight the scientific and educational value of paleontology and
the importance of preserving fossils for future generations.”
The public is invited to the event at Mines where
they can speak with paleontologists from South Dakota Mines, the U.S. Forest
Service, the Mammoth Site, the Bureau of Land Management, and Badlands National
Park.