Monday, May 20, 2013

FRASERBURG - PALEONTOLOGICAL SITE


A fossilised vertebra of a Struthiocephalus.


 A mould of a fossilised Diictodon.



Part of a fossilised Diictodon.


Part of a fossilised jaw bone of a Pareiasaurus. 


Rhachiocephalus - a calf sized reptile dating back 255 million years .  This fossil was found on the farm Ayesfontein.


The fossilised head of a Diictodon.


The fossilised head of a Pareiasaurus.


The head of a fossilised Struthiocephalus.

Fraserburg boasts one of the best paleontological sites in the country.  It was exposed after a large storm some years back when a dam wall burst.   All of the above fossils were found in the Fraserburg district and are now available to be seen in the museum.  The district has been of great interest to paleontologists and the likes of National Geographic because of this.

Interestingly, one of the paleontologists who visited here then went on to visit the Northern Drakensburg region of Natal and said that this was on the same seem as Fraserburg.  The fossils found there are the same and all are of the pre-dinosaur era.










1 comment:

outsidein said...

Thanks for the pictures.