Fossil Hunting in Pennsylvania Site#1

If you live in Pennsylvania and are interested in fossil hunting, you should consider joining the Delaware Valley Paleontology Society, www.dvps.org, which hosts field trips.  If you are not already familiar with some of the productive sites in Pa., consider following this blog's posts for such information.   I will only post information about sites that I've visited recently so that access information is current.

                                                        Site #1.  Beltzville Lake
Late Devonian (365 million years) fossils everywhere! They consist of what is referred to as "death assemblages" created when floods churned up the dead organisms in a sediment-filled warm sea.  In the warmer months you can wade into the water near the beach or picnic area and find tons of brachipods, crinoids, bryozoans, and trilobites-including the state fossil- Phacops.  Anytime of the year, check out the outcrops by the water near Pavillion #2 which are very productive.  Once or twice a year, the Army Corps of Engineers allow DVPS members access to the outcrops in the spillway-  loaded with Phacops.  DO NOT ATTEMPT TO GO THERE WITHOUT PERMISSION.  They have been very responsive to trespassers since 9-11.