Fossils of the Champlain Valley (Rescheduled)

Alivia Hartz – Middlebury College student

What did the Champlain Valley look like millions of years ago? What kinds of critters were roaming the area at that time?

How do we study the past using rocks?  In this program, you’ll learn what the world appeared like during the Ordovician Period (485 to 444 million years ago – that’s how old the rocks here are!) and how paleontologists have used the rocks and fossils from Vermont and New York to understand the previous environment and climate. There will also be an introduction to the kind of fieldwork that geologists do to collect data. Finally, you will know what those spirals and lumps in the rocks around Middlebury are (spoiler: they’re not just weird rocks).