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CSS Fall 2020 Field Trip to Corral Bluffs Open Space

On Sunday, September 20, 2020, or
Sunday, October 4, 2020

Sharon Milito, of the Corral Bluffs Alliance (CoBA), gave the CSS two separate guided tours of the Corral Bluffs fossil-discovery site which examined the strata where Denver Museum of Nature & Science (DMNS) researchers Tyler Lyson and Ian Miller, along with colleagues, deciphered a trove of plant and animal fossils that tell a remarkable story of how life recovered after the Chicxulub asteroid impact event 66 million years ago. The walking tours started at the Cretaceous/Paleogene (K/Pg) boundary and climbed up-section as the paleo-environment evolved from Fern World to Salad-Bar World. Sharon described how the recovering plant communities controlled the diets, morphology, and size of the mammals inhabiting those environments. We’ll also see where the Earth’s magnetic poles flipped, permitting the DMNS scientists to pinpoint the timeline of the fossil discoveries.

Colorado Springs restrictions on in-person gatherings because of Covid-19 limited each tour to 9 participants, and the use of facial coverings was required. Corral Bluffs is about 15 miles east of Colorado Springs, and participants had to provide their own Covid-friendly transportation. The ~4-mile-roundtrip hike took about 4 hours, including a lunch break, and allowed plenty of time for discussion. The hike is of moderate to strenuous difficulty, mostly because there are no improved trails, the ground is uneven, and the path follows a gently-rising arroyo with a sandy surface. We arrived at our meeting place in Colorado Springs at 9:00 am with plenty of water and a lunch. Appropriate field clothing included sturdy, closed-toe footwear as well as long pants—no shorts.  No dogs were allowed, and no smoking is permitted. Like other natural areas in Colorado, there are rattlesnakes, cactus, and uneven ground. A $5 donation was requested to help pay for CoBA liability insurance and support their website.

For more information about Corral Bluffs see our CSS 2020 Past Presidents’ presentation on Rise of the Mammals: Exceptional Continental Record of Biotic Recovery after the Cretaceous–Paleogene Mass Extinction by Tyler Lyson and Ian Miller.
And the Nova episode Rise of the Mammals on PBS.

 

2020 Corral Bluffs Field Trip Announcement

Corral Bluffs Field Trip, Additional Logistical Information plus Waivers

Thanks to James Paces, CSS 2020 President, for some of the photos here.