Agate Fossil Beds National Monument, Paleontological Resources Management Plan (Public Version)

Executive Summary Since Agate Springs Ranch was founded by James H. Cook in 1887, exquisite examples of transitional Miocene mammalian fauna have been found along this stretch of the Niobrara River valley. Collectively these paleontological discoveries, along with the existing archeological and historical Native American collection, were the basis for establishing Agate Fossil Beds National Monument (AGFO) as a unit of the National Park System (NPS). The fossil remains from the Harrison and Anderson Ranch formations span a short, but important, time period within the Miocene Epoch. AGFO has provided science with an intimate look into North American mammalian evolution of the time that is matched nowhere else, with body fossils and trace fossils (burrows) of many mammals in excellent condition. Investigation of the paleontological resources at AGFO has been very limited since its establishment, but the opportunities for research and discovery are still substantial. Public and academic interest in the Monument’s paleontological resources are considerable. Although there are existing legal authorities, policies and guidelines regarding the management of paleontological resources, at both the departmental and agency levels, more specific guidance would be helpful for the management of AGFO’s non-renewable fossils. This document has been prepared to provide more specific guidance and recommendations for paleontological resources management at AGFO. The Introduction outlines the significance of AGFO’s paleontological resources and defines the purpose, need, and objectives for the Agate Fossil Beds National Monument Paleontological Resources Management Plan (PRMP). This plan also identifies the legal authorities, requirements, and mandates underpinning AGFO’s mission as a unit of the NPS, with special attention to authorities that address managing and preserving paleontological resources. Background Geology and Paleontology provides a basic park geologic description, discusses the scope of AGFO’s paleontological resources, and summarizes past paleontological work performed at the Monument. This information includes historical information from periods both before and after authorization of the Monument as a unit of the NPS. This section also presents the paleontological significance of AGFO and its specimens, such as how AGFO’s taxa are cornerstones of North American geochronology and biostratigraphy. Paleontological Resources Management begins by listing in greater detail the strategic objectives related to paleontological resources within the NPS and at AGFO. This section then proceeds to discuss the specific considerations related to paleontological resource inventories and monitoring along with management requirements (from policy and guidelines) specific to AGFO. This section discusses what a paleontology inventory is and why, when and how to conduct one; fundamentals of paleontological resource monitoring; the various types of threats to paleontological resources and how to mitigate them; and resource condition assessment and site monitoring protocols. It also addresses how to handle paleontological resources discovered or recovered during other park activities. Paleontological Research Management presents NPS and AGFO research goals, how to evaluate the scientific significance of research, and how to weigh the significance of research against other park mandates, operations, and goals. The section also includes a description of the permitting process, recommended park-specific permit conditions, and rules for overseeing collection and excavation. Museum Collections and Curation documents AGFO’s current paleontological collections, collections management and curation policies, AGFO’s photographic archives, collections from AGFO in external repositories, type specimens from AGFO, and Monument compliance with museum security policies. Interpretation discusses goals and current implementation for how AGFO interprets its paleontological resources for the public. This includes: the primary themes for interpretation; the exhibits, tools and programs used by AGFO to interpret fossil resources; the target audiences for the interpretive programs; teaching good stewardship of paleontological resources; and a discussion of public accessibility to AGFO, its interpretive materials, and the paleontological resources. Relation of Paleontological Resources to Other Park Programs provides an overview of how each park division may interact with paleontological resources and have their duties cross over with paleontological resource management related actions. It also discusses the potential impacts of paleontological resource management on other types of AGFO resources (archeological, biological, historical, and physical). Paleontological Resource Data Management discusses various paleontological resource records, datasets, and other archives. AGFO’s paleontological archives and library, as well as their current status, are discussed along with an overview of the type of contents stored within them. The NPS Paleontology Program Archives and Library, and how to exchange data and records between them and the AGFO archives, are also described. This section also reviews geospatial data available to AGFO and issues of sensitivity and confidentially related to paleontological resource data and information. Finally, the Summary, Conclusions, and Recommendations summarizes the work done on the AGFO PRMP, discusses ongoing and planned projects which assist in implementing the instructions and goals set out in this PRMP, and makes a variety of recommendations for future paleontological resource management at AGFO

Pleistocene/Holocene Cave Fossils From Grand Canyon National Park: Ice Age (Pleistocene) Flora, Fauna, Environments, and Climate of the Grand Canyon, Arizona

The Colorado Plateau is a distinct physiographic province in western North America covering an area of roughly 337,000 km2 (130,115 mi2) across parts of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Elevations range from about 360 m (1,180 ft) in the overall Grand Canyon (GC; which includes the Grand Canyon National Park, GRCA) river corridor to an average at the eastern South Rim of 2,072 m (6,800 ft) to 3,850 m (12,630 ft) on the nearby San Francisco Peaks at Flagstaff, Arizona, with an average elevation of 1,525 m (5,000 ft). The Colorado River of Grand Canyon is located along the southwestern portion of the Colorado Plateau in Arizona and is renowned for its dramatic display of geomorphic effects created by fluvial incision and its unique dry-preservation of fossils from the Ice Age (late Pleistocene and Holocene [Quaternary]; most recent 2.58 million years). Although there were at least 22 glacial-interglacial cycles during the Ice Age, this discussion is limited to the most recent episode (called the Wisconsinan Glaciation), which includes the transition to the modern climate (latest Pleistocene and Holocene; the most recent 50,000 years of geologic history)

Tale of two hearts: a TNNT2 hypertrophic cardiomyopathy case report

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a heritable cardiomyopathy that is predominantly caused by pathogenic mutations in sarcomeric proteins. Here we report two individuals, a mother and her daughter, both heterozygous carriers of the same HCM-causing mutation in cardiac Troponin T (TNNT2). Despite sharing an identical pathogenic variant, the two individuals had very different manifestations of the disease. While one patient presented with sudden cardiac death, recurrent tachyarrhythmia, and findings of massive left ventricular hypertrophy, the other patient manifested with extensive abnormal myocardial delayed enhancement despite normal ventricular wall thickness and has remained relatively asymptomatic. Recognition of the marked incomplete penetrance and variable expressivity possible in a single TNNT2-positive family has potential to guide HCM patient care

How protecting shark teeth can lead to finding dolphins: George Washington Birthplace National Monument as a case study in developing and implementing paleontological resource monitoring

George Washington Birthplace National Monument (GEWA) is a National Park Service (NPS) unit located in the Northern Neck of Virginia, situated on low bluffs overlooking the Potomac River. This small park unit, focused primarily on cultural and historical resources, may seem at first glance to be an unlikely candidate for notable paleontological resources. However, the bluffs are composed in large part of the fossiliferous early–middle Miocene-age Calvert Formation, and these bluffs and the adjacent shoreline have long been known by locals and rockhounds as places to find fossil shark teeth and other fossils. Following initial contact in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the NPS Paleontology Program has worked closely with GEWA since 2014 on the dual aims of stemming illegal fossil collecting and monitoring non-renewable paleontological resources in the face of rising river levels, increasing storms, and other effects of climate change. The working relationship is a case study for managing fossil resources facing similar challenges. Fossil theft has declined since the project began, as measured by decreasing bluff vandalism left by fossil removal. The benefits of establishing and maintaining a close relationship with park staff are superbly illustrated by the March 2020 recovery of two specimens of Miocene dolphins at imminent risk of loss to wave erosion or unauthorized collection. Plans are in progress to expand this collaborative work with the help of regional institutions

The price of neglect: Revisiting Fossil Cycad National Monument (1922–1957)

The history associated with the discovery, research, preservation, protection, and loss of the fossil cycadeoid locality near Minnekahta in the southern Black Hills of South Dakota—which for 35 years was designated as Fossil Cycad National Monument—has gained considerable public attention. Several publications have attempted to capture portions of this history through the assimilation of information from archives, reports, correspondence, photographs, and other records associated with the monument. Previously unknown records continue to emerge, helping to expand and reshape the understanding of the monument’s unfortunate history, and also raising new questions. Some of the newly uncovered information is presented here. Additionally, several questions are identified that hopefully might be advanced through communication with individuals who are able to share additional information or historical records to fill in some of the gaps related to the history of Fossil Cycad National Monument

Research put into action: How a fossil inventory informed paleontological resource monitoring efforts preceding road construction at Theodore Roosevelt National Park

Theodore Roosevelt National Park (THRO) in western North Dakota that comprises badlands that surround the Little Missouri River in three separate units. Established initially as a national memorial park in 1947 and redesignated as a national park with its current boundaries in 1978, THRO was founded for its connection to its namesake, the United States president, and continues to memorialize Roosevelt’s ideals of stewardship with its management of its diverse cultural and natural resources. The badlands in the park expose the highly fossiliferous Paleocene-age Bullion Creek and Sentinel Butte Formations that have been investigated extensively outside of the park’s boundaries but not as much within them. Following a survey between 1994 and 1996 and later paleontological discoveries in the park, a Paleontological Resource Inventory was conducted during 2020 and 2021 to gauge these resources within THRO and determine best management and protection practices. This inventory was put to the test in monitoring for fossil resources preceding two road construction projects in the park: on the South Loop Road in 2021 and the Buck Hill Road in 2023. The inventory gave information as to what paleontological resources were to be encountered during construction, including known fossil occurrences and localities within and surrounding the project area. Results of monitoring included the discovery of new paleontological material, including bird material and well-preserved angiosperm fossils around the South Loop Road, and a potentially high-yield vertebrate site including choristodere (an extinct aquatic reptile), bowfin, and turtle material near Buck Hill Road. These instances demonstrate the importance of paleontological resource inventories as a foundation for resource monitoring preceding construction projects

Data from: Trace fossils of possible parasites inside the gut contents of a hadrosaurid dinosaur, Upper Cretaceous Judith River Formation, Montana

Tiny sinuous trace fossils have been found within probable gut contents of an exceptionally preserved specimen of a hadrosaurid dinosaur, Brachylophosaurus canadensis, from the Judith River Formation of Montana. Approximately 280 examples of the trace fossils were observed in 19 samples of gut region material. The tubular structures typically are about 0.3 mm across. Many have thin calcareous linings or layers, and some exhibit fine surficial striae. At least two dozen of these trace fossils share walls with adjacent tubular traces, and this association can extend for several millimeters. While the trace fossils share some characteristics with fine rhizoliths, these features are most consistent with tiny burrows, or possibly body impressions, of worms (vermiform organisms) of uncertain biologic affinity. Such trace fossils have not been reported previously, and herein described as Parvitubulites striatus n. gen. n. sp. Either autochthonous (parasites) or allochthonous (scavengers) worms may have created the trace fossils, but taphonomic factors suggest that autochthonous burrowers are more likely. Several lines of evidence, such as constant diameters and matching directional changes, suggest that the paired trace fossils were made by two individuals moving at the same time, which implies sustained intraspecific contact. Parvitubulites striatus provides a rare record of interactions between terrestrial, meiofaunal-sized, soft-bodied invertebrates and a dinosaur carcass. The evidence that the worms may have parasitized a living hadrosaur and subsequently left traces of intraspecific behavior between individual worms adds unique information to our understanding of Mesozoic trophic interactions

An Inventory of Trilobites from National Park Service Areas

Trilobites represent an extinct group of Paleozoic marine invertebrate fossils that have great scientific interest and public appeal. Trilobites exhibit wide taxonomic diversity and are contained within nine orders of the Class Trilobita. A wealth of scientific literature exists regarding trilobites, their morphology, biostratigraphy, indicators of paleoenvironments, behavior, and other research themes. An inventory of National Park Service areas reveals that fossilized remains of trilobites are documented from within at least 33 NPS units, including Death Valley National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve. More than 120 trilobite hototype specimens are known from National Park Service areas

An Inventory of Trilobites from National Park Service Areas

Trilobites represent an extinct group of Paleozoic marine invertebrate fossils that have great scientific interest and public appeal. Trilobites exhibit wide taxonomic diversity and are contained within nine orders of the Class Trilobita. A wealth of scientific literature exists regarding trilobites, their morphology, biostratigraphy, indicators of paleoenvironments, behavior, and other research themes. An inventory of National Park Service areas reveals that fossilized remains of trilobites are documented from within at least 33 NPS units, including Death Valley National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve. More than 120 trilobite hototype specimens are known from National Park Service areas

The National Park System fossil record: Uncovering significant new paleontological discoveries through inventory, monitoring, research and museum curation

The fossil record preserved throughout the parks, monuments, and other areas administered by the National Park Service spans at least 1.4 billion years and reveals rich and diverse paleontological resources available for scientific research and public education. Fossils documented in at least 286 different NPS areas represent important and iconic components of the history of North American paleontology. Our knowledge of the fossil record within the national parks continuously expands based on new paleontological discoveries every year. Most of the new fossil discoveries are associated with four primary management activities undertaken by the NPS Paleontology Program, parks, partners, and cooperating scientists: paleontological resource inventories, monitoring, research, and assessment of fossils curated in museum collections. Paleontological resource inventories focus on the scope, significance, distribution (both temporal and geospatial), and resource management issues associated with park fossils. Paleontological resource monitoring consists of the assessment of the stability and condition of irreplaceable fossils that are present within the parks’ geologic strata and subject to natural processes or anthropogenic activities. Paleontological resource research is typically an academic undertaking to gather new data, fossil specimens, and associated geological or paleoecological information to expand our understanding of these resources in parks. Finally, under the curatorial component, as of 2023 more than 650,000 fossil specimens are being curated in museum collections within the parks themselves or in outside repositories, and are available for future scientific research and use in exhibits or public education. The harmonious combination of inventory, monitoring, research, and use of museum collections has resulted in many new and important paleontological discoveries associated with park fossils. This article, and the others presented in this special issue of Parks Stewardship Forum dedicated to NPS paleontology, highlight some of these new paleontological discoveries from national parks associated with these four management activities