Mazon Creek fossil beds
Conservation lagerstätte in Illinois on the National Register of Historic Places / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Mazon Creek fossil beds are a conservation lagerstätte found near Morris, in Grundy County, Illinois. The fossils are preserved in ironstone concretions, formed approximately 309 million years ago in the mid-Pennsylvanian epoch of the Carboniferous period. These concretions frequently preserve both hard and soft tissues of animal and plant materials, as well as many soft-bodied organisms that do not normally fossilize. The quality, quantity and diversity of fossils in the area, known since the mid-nineteenth century, make the Mazon Creek lagerstätte important to paleontologists attempting to reconstruct the paleoecology of the sites.[4] The locality was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1997.[3][5]
Mazon Creek Fossil Beds | |
Nearest city | Benson Road, Morris, Illinois |
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NRHP reference No. | 97001272 |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | September 25, 1997[2] |
Designated NHL | September 25, 1997[3] |